Cats have inspired musicians across genres, leading to a variety of songs that celebrate these mysterious, playful, and sometimes mischievous creatures. These songs are all about actual cats, so no metaphorical felines here. That means you won’t find tracks like “Cat’s in the Cradle” or “Eye of the Tiger” on this list.
Be sure to check out the Songs About Cats Playlist at the bottom of this page.
Best Songs About Cats
1. “Kitty” – The Presidents of The United States of America
Lyric Sample: “Kitty at my foot and I wanna touch it.”
Based on a real feral cat that lived in a Boston apartment, this 1995 alt-rock track describes a man who tries to pet a stray that’s been out all night, and gets scratched for his trouble.
2. “My Cat’s Name Is Maceo” – Jane’s Addiction
Lyric Sample: “My cat’s name is Maceo, he’s a little man in a cat’s body.”
Perry Farrell named this song after his actual cat, Maceo. The track is a tribute to the comfort of having a pet that’s just always there.
3. “Everybody Wants to Be a Cat” – The Aristocats
Lyric Sample: “Everybody wants to be a cat, because a cat’s the only cat who knows where it’s at.”
From Disney’s 1970 animated film The Aristocats, this song is a jazz celebration of cat life. It’s about their freedom and swagger, and the idea that if you could choose any animal to be, it’d definitely be a cat.
4. “Phenomenal Cat” – The Kinks
Lyric Sample: “There lived a cat, a phenomenal cat, who loved to wallow all day.”
This whimsical 1960s tune features Dave Davies’s voice sped up to play the cat himself, narrating a life of adventure that ends in total, satisfied contentment.
5. “Cats” – The Living Tombstone
Lyric Sample: “Meow meow meow meow meow.”
This entire song is the word “meow” arranged into a surprisingly catchy melody, which is either the laziest or the most committed cat song ever written.
6. “The Kitty Cat Song” – The Troggs
Lyric Sample: “I’ve bought a little kitty cat who never chased a mouse.”
From the 1966 garage rock band behind “Wild Thing,” this is a song about a cat who lounges around, demands attention, and scratches the singer every time he tries to get close.
7. “I Taut I Taw a Puddy Tat” – Mel Blanc
Lyric Sample: “I taut I taw a puddy tat a-creeping up on me.”
Mel Blanc, the voice of Tweety Bird and Sylvester the Cat, turned the classic Looney Tunes catchphrase into a novelty song in 1950 that spent four weeks at number one on the Billboard charts.
8. “The Siamese Cat Song” – Peggy Lee
Lyric Sample: “We are Siamese if you please, we are Siamese if you don’t please.”
Lee wrote and performed this for Disney’s 1955 film Lady and the Tramp, voicing the two scheming Siamese cats who cause chaos the moment their owner leaves the house.
9. “Stray Cat Strut” – Stray Cats
Lyric Sample: “I don’t bother chasing mice around, I slink down the alley looking for a fight.”
This rockabilly hit is narrated by a street cat who takes what he needs, answers to nobody, and considers himself the coolest creature in any neighborhood he passes through.
10. “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” – The Tokens
Lyric Sample: “In the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps tonight.”
This doo-wop classic tells the story of a sleeping lion in a peaceful jungle. Originally written by South African musician Solomon Linda in 1939 as “Mbube,” the Tokens turned it into a worldwide hit in 1961.
Related: Best One-Hit Wonder Songs
11. “The Cat’s Song” – Katrina Gupalo
Lyric Sample: “Morning, dear, I’m ready to go, come on, turn on the radio.”
Gupalo’s 2024 pop song is a day-in-the-life from a cat’s perspective, covering the full range from kitchen floor sunbeams to rooftop dreams.
12. “Cat’s in the Well” – Bob Dylan
Lyric Sample: “The cat’s in the well, and the gentle lady is asleep.”
In “Cat’s in the Well,” Dylan uses animals, including a trapped cat, a circling wolf, and a restless horse, to describe a world on the edge of something terrible
13. “Walking My Cat Named Dog” – Norma Tanega
Lyric Sample: “Dog is a good old cat, people, what you think of that?”
This 1960s folk tune is a slightly absurdist song about wandering through life on your own terms. The cat represents doing things the wrong way around just because you want to.
14. “Smelly Cat” – Friends
Lyric Sample: “Smelly cat, smelly cat, what are they feeding you?”
This hilarious song from Friends became a cult favorite. Its offbeat lyrics and Phoebe Buffay’s unique delivery make it one of the funniest songs about cats.
15. “Thomas O’Malley Cat” – Phil Harris
Lyric Sample: “I’m Abraham DeLacey, Giuseppe Casey, Thomas O’Malley, O’Malley the alley cat.”
Harris voiced the street-smart alley cat O’Malley in Disney’s The Aristocats. He’s a tomcat who’s been everywhere, knows everyone, and makes it all sound like the best kind of life.
16. “Josie and the Pussycats” – Josie and the Pussycats Theme
Lyric Sample: “Josie and the Pussycats, no time for purrs and pats.”
The title track from the 2001 film sounds like a throwaway pop tune, but it has the same sly commentary on fame and commercialism that runs through the whole movie.
17. “The Old Gumbie Cat” – Cats
Lyric Sample: “Her name is Jennyanydots, her coat is of the tabby kind, with tiger stripes and leopard spots.
Based on a T.S. Eliot poem, “The Old Gumbie Cat” introduces Jennyanydots, a cat who sits perfectly still all day and then spends her nights secretly running a school for mice and beetles in the basement.
18. “I Go Meow” – The Kiffness
Lyric Sample: “I go meow, I go meow, I go meow, go meow, I don’t know who I am.”
Cala the cat became a meme in early 2024, and the Kiffness turned her vocalizations into a polished song that is somehow both genuinely funny and weirdly moving
19. “The Cat Song” – Bryant Oden
Lyric Sample: “Cats, they’re the sweetest, cats, they’re the meanest, that’s just the way it goes.”
Oden wrote this cheerful children’s song as a full-on celebration of cats. He sings about what they do, how they move, and why he’s completely devoted to his cat.
20. “The Rum Tum Tugger” – Cats
Lyric Sample: “The Rum Tum Tugger is a curious cat.”
This catchy Cats tune introduces a tomcat who can’t be pleased. Whatever he has, he wants the opposite, and whatever you offer him, he refuses.
21. “Plea from a Cat Named Virtute” – The Weakerthans
Lyric Sample: “All you ever want to do is drink and watch TV.”
This indie rock song is told entirely from the cat’s perspective. She tells her owner to invite friends over, stop singing sad songs, and stop the self-defeating lies, or she’ll bite him.
22. “I Love My Kitty Cat” – Parry Gripp
Lyric Sample: “I love my kitty cat, yes, I do.”
Gripp wrote this novelty song as a love letter to his cat. He just wanted to say something nice about his pet and had the skills to make it catchy.
23. “Soft Kitty, Warm Kitty” – The Big Bang Theory
Lyric Sample: “Soft kitty, warm kitty, little ball of fur.”
This simple lullaby became famous thanks to The Big Bang Theory. It’s probably the most quoted cat song of the last 20 years.
Related: Best Lullaby Songs
Conclusion
Cats have inspired everything from Broadway productions to Bob Dylan apocalypse blues, which says a lot about the animal. Their mysterious, independent, and sometimes mischievous nature makes them the perfect subject for songwriters.
If you enjoyed this list, check out our picks for Songs About Dogs and Songs with Animals in the Title!
