Novelty & Comedy SongsTable of Contents |
| Novelty songs are different from most popular songs in that they usually have an invisible expiration date like 1999 or Pac-Man Fever with the exception of Christmas Songs and to a lesser extent, Halloween Songs. Pac-Man Fever really mattered in the early 1980s, but it has long since lost its purpose. Sometimes you can’t tell the difference between a novelty song and an odd pop song written on purpose. Songs like 1999 by Prince, Angie Baby by Helen Reddy, 1985 by Bowling For Soup and Who Let The Dogs Out by the Baha Men come to mind. Songs like Lindbergh (The Eagle of the U.S.A.) and Lucky Lindy (both 1927) celebrated Charles Lindbergh’s historic non-stop flight across the Atlantic Ocean. Even Lorne Green (TV’s Bonanza’s Ben Cartwright) tried to financially horn in on the Beatles’ coming, with his tribute to Ringo, in 1964. Of course, not all novelty tunes were about the world around them. Some were very experimental. Richard “Dickie” Goodman took short riffs (now called ‘samples’) from then-current pop songs to answer by his intrepid, fast-talking reporter/announcer. His Mr. Jaws was a hit in 1975 and The Flying Saucer soared in 1956. Some novelty tunes are new interpretations of the classics, like Richard Cheese’s Baby Got Back, and Jessica’s Simpson’s remake of These Boots Are Made For Walking. Youtube videos changed the game, and the most successful are targeted towards a younger audience. |
Top Novelty Songs Given To Us By Youtube |
1. Baby Shark – Pinkfong |
2. Crazy Frog – Axel F |
3. Gummy Bear |
4. Gangnam Style – Psy |
5. The Duck Song – Song by Bryant Oden and video by Forrest Whaley |
6. It’s Raining Tacos – Parry Gripp |
7. Hamster Dance – Hampton the Hamster |
8. The Fox (What Does The Fox Say?) – Ylvis |
9. Everything is Awesome – Tegan and Sara |
10. Chocolate Rain |
2000s Comedy & Novelty Songs |
| 1. White and Nerdy – Weird Al Yankovic |
| 2. She-Bang – William Hung |
| 3. The Hardest Part of Breaking Up (Is Getting Back Your Stuff) – 2ge+her |
| 4. Aaron’s Party – Aaron Carter |
| 5. Because I Got High – Afroman |
| 6. Tribute – Tenacious DÂ |
| 7. My Humps – Black-Eyed Peas |
| 8. Chicken Noodle Soup – Young B and Webstar |
| 9. Baby Got Back – Richard Cheese |
| 10. Osama – Yo’ Mama – Ray Stevens |
90s Comedy/ Novelty Songs |
| 1. Amish Paradise – Weird Al Yankovic |
| 2. The Humpty Dance – Digital Underground |
| 3. The Thanksgiving Song – Adam Sandler |
| 4. Smells Like Nirvana – Weird Al Yankovic |
| 5. This Is Ponderous – 2nu |
| 6. Deep, Deep Trouble – The Simpsons |
| 7. Meet The Flintstones – The B.C. 52’s |
| 8. Three Little Pigs – Green Jelly |
| 9. Redneck Games – Jeff Foxworthy & Alan Jackson |
| 10.  Turtle Power – Partners In Kryme |
80s Comedy/ Novelty Songs |
| Noone in the world of novelty has had the enormous success of Weird Al Yankovic. He has mocked many of the stars of the 1980s through today, including Michael Jackson, Nirvana, Eminem, Limp Biskit, Chamillionaire and others. His first breakout near-hit was Another One Rides the Bus, recorded in a bathroom for “just the right echo effect”. |
| 1. Fat – Weird Al Yankovic |
| 2. Curly Shuffle – The Jump In The Saddle Band |
| 3. Shaddap You Face – Joe Dolce |
| 4. Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life – Monty Python (Eric Idol)* * From 1979’s Life of Brian |
| 5. Because I’m a Blonde – Julie Brown |
| 6. Take Off – Bob & Doug McKenzie with Eddie Lee |
| 7. Eat It – Weird Al Yankovic |
| 8. You Look Marvelous – Billy Crystal |
| 9.Meet The Flintstones – Bruce Springstone |
| 10. Make My Day – T.G. Sheppard with Clint Eastwood |
70s Comedy/ Novelty Songs |
| The Streak had its day in 1974, but by April of that year, the shortcomings of this fad, running naked through public events, were evident, as noted by film star David Niven. Practically everybody bought a C.B. radio when they heard Convoy in 1976. Of course, some Novelty tunes are timeless like Junk Food Junkie by Larry Groce and Take This Job and Shove It by Johnny Paycheck. |
| 1. Disco Duck – Rick Dees |
| 2. King Tut – Steve Martin |
| 3. My Balogna – Weird Al Yankovic |
| 4. Mr. Jaws – Dickie Goodman |
| 5. Earache My Eye – Cheech and Chong |
| 6. Shaving Cream – Benny Bell |
| 7. The Topical Song – The Barron Knights |
| 8. Junk Food Junkie – Larry Groce |
| 9. Do You Think I’m Disco – Steve Dahl |
| 10. Dead Skink – Loudon Wainwright III |
60s Weirdest/ un-P.C. Songs |
| 1. Maxwell’s Silver Hammer – The Beatles |
| 2. In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida – Iron Butterfly |
| 3. A Boy Named Sue – Johnny Cash |
| 4. Star-Spangled Banner – Jimi Hendrix |
| 5. If You Wanna Be Happy – Jimmy Soul |
| 6. Surfin’ Bird – The Trashmen |
| 7. Fire – The Crazy World of Arthur Brown |
| 8. Tip-Toe Through the Tulips With Me – Tiny Tim |
| 9. I Want My Baby Back – Jimmy Cross |
| 10. My Pal Foot Foot – The Shaggs |
60s Comedy/ Novelty Songs |
| 1. They’re Coming To Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa! – Napoleon XIV |
| 2. Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini – Brian Hyland |
| 3. On Top Of Spaghetti – Tom Glazer |
| 4. Short Shorts – Royal Teens |
| 5. Beep Beep – Playmates |
| 6. Tip Toe Through The Tulips – Tiny Tim |
| 7. Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavor – Lonnie Donegan |
| 8. Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah – Allen Sherman |
| 9. Leader Of The Laundromat – the Detergents |
| 10. Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport – Rolf Harris |
50s Comedy/ Novelty Songs |
| Ross Bagdasarian, better known as David Seville, used the process of speeding up his voice to create the Halloween hit, Witch Doctor. He further refined the technique to create Alvin, Simon and Theodore, the Chipmunks. With them, he created another holiday classic The Chipmonk Song (Christmas Don’t Be Late). Mad with power, he built this one-trick novelty bit into a mini-empire with a prime-time animated TV show. |
| 1. Purple People Eater – Sheb Wolley |
| 2. Banana Boat (Day-O) – Stan Freberg |
| 3. Alvin’s Harmonica – The Chipmunks |
| 4. Stranded In The Jungle – The Cadets (or The Jayhawks) |
| 5. The Naughty Lady Of Shady Lane – The Ames Brothers |
| 6. The Flying Saucer – Buchanan & Goodman |
| 7. The Thing – Phil Harris |
| 8. What It Was, Was Football – Andy Griffith |
| 9. Uh! Oh! – The Nutty Squirrels |
| 10. Nuttin For Christmas – cracked the top 40 in 1955 by Art Mooney & Barry Gordon, Joe Ward, Ricky Zahnd, The Fontane Sisters and Stan Freberg in 1955. |
Pre-50s Comedy/ Novelty Songs |
The earliest novelty song we could find was recorded in the days before CD, Cassette Tapes, even vinyl records. The Laughing Song followed up with The Whistling Coon ware recorded by ex-slave George Washington Johnson in 1891 on a cylinder. His Laughing Song was probably the highest-selling recording of the 19th century. The first-ever actually-recorded song that we have proof of was Thomas Edison singing Mary Had A Little Lamb. In Der Fuehrer’s Face and (There’ll Be A) Hot Time in the Town of Berlin (When the Yanks Go Marching In) meant a lot to freedom-loving American people in the 1940s. |
| A Chicken Ain’t Nothin But a Bird – Cab Calloway |
| Animal Crackers In My Soup – Shirley Temple |
| Bake Dat Chicken Pie – Arthur Collins and Byron Harlan |
| Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy – Andrews Sisters |
| Brother, Can You Spare A Dime? – Bing Crosby |
| Casey At The Bat – DeWolf Hopper |
| Cigarettes, Whiskey and Wild Women – Red Engle |
| Come Take a Trip On My Air-ship – Billy Murray |
| Daddy Won’t Buy Me A Bow-wow – Dan Quinn |
| Daisy Bell (Bicycle Built for Two) – various |
| Dem Golden Slippers – Silas Leachman |
| Der Fuehrer’s Face – Spike Jones |
| Girlfriend of the Whirling Dervish – Johnny Payne |
| Grandfather’s Clock – Burl Ives |
| I Scream You Scream We All Scream For Ice Cream – Fred Waring’s Pennsylvanians |
| I’ll Lend You Everything I Got, Except My Wife – Bert Williams |
| I’m Against It – Groucho Marx |
| I’m Popeye, The Sailor Man – Billy Costello |
| Indian Love Call – Slim Whitman |
| Inka Dinka Doo – Jimmy Durante |
| Courtroom Catastrophe – Amos and Andy |
| Istanbul (Not Constantinople) – The Four Lads |
| K-K-K-Katy (The Stammering Song) – Billy Murray |
| Last Shot Got Him (Great Bloo-is Song) – Eddie Morton |
| Let’s Misbehave – Ben Bernie |
| Mairzy Doates – Merry Macs |
| Makin’ Whoopee – Eddie Cantor |
| Minnie The Moocher – Cab Calloway |
| My Own Grandpa – Lonzo and Oscar |
| Oh Death, Where Is Thy Sing? – Bert Williams |
| Shaving Cream – Benny Bell |
| Shoo-Fly Pie and Apple Pan Dowty – Dinah Shore |
| Shortnin’ Bread – The Andrews Sisters |
| Take Me Out To The Ball Game – Billy Murray and the Haydn Quartet |
| The Alphabet Song – The Three Stooges |
| The Laughing Sing – George Washington Johnson |
| The Naughty Lady Of Shady Lane – The Ames Brothers |
| The Spaniard That Blighted My Life – Al Jolson |
| Three Little Fishes – Kay Kyser |
| Tubby the Tuba – Danny Kaye |
| When You Ain’t Got No More Money, Well, You Needn’t Come Around – Billy Golden |
| Who’s Afraid Of The Big Bad Wolf – various |
| Would You Rather Be a Colonel With an Eagle On Your Shoulder Or A Private With a Chicken On Your Knee? – Arthur Fields |
| Yes! We Have No Bananas – Ben Selvin |
| You Oughta Be in Pictures – Little Jack Little |
