best one chord song?

Not a one chord song as such (therefore, by rights, I should be berating myself as vehemently as I was berating others upthread) but "Me About You" by the Turtles has straight-down-the-middle-100%-no-messin' one note bassline, which is admirable to me as it's not some arty wankfest but a pop song

OK, how about "I'm Chief Kamanawanamaka (We're the Royal Macadamia nuts)" by the same group?

I'm ashamed to admit I don't have that album!

It's difficult to get on CD

Unless you get a really good clean original and write it to CD

and make a nice label and envelope printed with the photo you took of it, and so on.

I have it right here..

"heart and soul" by joy division could be a perfect one chord song just excluding those 'fake' chords from barney that add some color post verses (there are no key changes anyway so there you have it)

"Born in the USA" comes close...

Saw a few suggestions of "Exodus" by Bob Marley, "Run Through the Jungle" by CCR, "No Diggity," "Forever In My Life" by Prince ...

Keith Urban has a song called "One Chord Song." What is "Showbiz Kids" by Steely Dan? I guess a lot of these songs can be played with one chord on guitar, though the recordings may not necessarily stick there.

love thy will be done IS NOT a one chord song, try humming the vocal melody and you will realise there are at least 2 or 3 chord changes during the verses

raga bihag. padma talwalkar & buddies do a good version.

I'd just like to say that it's _my favourite thing ever_ when there is a triad or an open 5th that drones on for the song's entirety... chord changes, bass movement may happen, but that chord stays on, regardless. "2nd Thought" and "Of all the things we've made" by OMD are key examples

Yeah, 'Of All The Things We've Made' is great. Love the way the bassline moves around while the guitars stay on the one chord throughout.

drunks with guns - hell house, iirc?

love thy will be done IS NOT a one chord song, try humming the vocal melody and you will realise there are at least 2 or 3 chord changes during the verses

yeah, that's what I always thought but listening to it recently, I realized the bass stays on the one note the whole time. of course there are some other notes played by the synth and I agree that it feels like there are more chords though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVoMrAtrj00

Bo Diddley wrote sarky songs to Chubby Checker? Oh hang on...

eheh, listening to "Love Thy Will Be Done" on the Prince Originals comp made me think of this thread... only to find out I had already written the EXACT same thing I was planning to post !
Ageing memory...
Regarding "Tomorrow Never Knows" I think I remember McCartney actually saying in the Anthology or something that Lennon was just strumming the C chord throughout the song and how unusual and new it was for them.

Sheets of Easter, of course