Have you ever been ambushed by music ? One minute you're driving, the next a tune like "Wannabe" by the Spice Girls comes on the radio, and suddenly you're a full-on pop star, belting out the chorus. Or maybe you're at a wedding, and the opening notes of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" trigger a mass singalong. What is it about these songs that makes them so irresistible?

I found myself pondering this at my daughter's all-night graduation party. After an evening at an arcade, we took the grads to a private nightclub. With unlimited soda, a photo booth, and a DJ spinning tunes until 5 a.m., the dance floor was the main event. It was a real-life experiment in catchy music. From "Y.M.C.A." to "Uptown Funk," certain songs had an almost magnetic pull, drawing everyone to the dance floor.

See Full Page