Ages: 8 and up
Players: 4 to 30, in teams
Time: 20 minutes
Place: seated
Energy: quiet
Group size: Small group (4 to 8), Medium group (9 to 20), Large group (over 20)
Good for: Teenagers, Adults, Elders, All ages together, Ladies' parties, Office

What you need

Slips of paper with song titles (write them yourselves, about forty), a bowl, a one-minute timer.

How to play

Before the game, write song titles on slips. Mix eras and languages to suit the guests, and mark each slip with its era so that hummers can pass if they do not know the song.
Make two or three teams.
A player from the first team draws a slip and has one minute to hum the tune for their own team.
The team calls out guesses. The exact title, or the opening line everyone knows the song by, counts.
If the hummer does not know the song, they may put the slip back and draw once more.
A correct answer scores a point. If the time runs out, the other teams get one guess each for a bonus point.
Teams take turns until everyone has hummed.

The team with the most points wins.

Whistle round, or "play it on a comb and paper".
Elders' special: only songs from before a chosen year. Youngsters hum, elders guess, then swap.
Lip-sync round: mouth the words silently instead of humming.
Finish-the-line round: the host sings or plays the first line and stops; the team must sing the next line together.

Only titles go on the slips. Sing for your own enjoyment at home; this is a party game, not a public performance.

One team knows only new songs and the other only old ones. Sort the slips into two bowls and make each team draw from both in turn.
Hummers mouth the words. Lips closed; a hand over the mouth if needed.

Time the round with the party timer, make chits or random teams with the chit maker, and keep the points on the scoreboard.