Customer Reviews

25 All Time Novelty Hits

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A whopping 25 hits on one disc usually will merit a 5 star review from me but there are some reasons that this disc is not quite up to par. First of all, it answers a question that I have been asking for years. Is there a master tape of Ray Stevens' 1969 single "Gitarzan" that doesn't have the laugh track overdubs on it? I guess the answer to that question is "no". This disc does include the original mono Monument undubbed single version of "Gitarzan" but, unfortunately, it sounds like it was mastered from an original single, and a well worn copy at that. But I'd rather have a sonically inferior undubbed version that a sonically superior version with that infernal laugh track so I won't say anymore about that. The sound quality throughout the disc is generally good although there are a few tracks here and there ("Mr. Custer", "Surfin' Bird", "Gimme Dat Ding") that sound better on Rhino collections that I own. I've heard better digital transfers of "The Mummy" as well. Then again, "Does Your Chewing Gum Lose It's Flavor" sounds better on here than it does on the Rhino Dr. Demento CD. As for "The Flying Saucer", I prefer the sound quality of Rhino's Billboard 1956 disc because they took the time to remaster the song excerpts that were used, and the extraneous surface noise is only audible on the dialog portion of the record. On this disc, the surface noise is prominent throughout the whole track. One other complaint I have is that the version of "Junk Food Junkie" heard here is not the original 1976 hit version (available on one of Dr. Demento's anniversary compilations) but a re-recording. The liner notes don't tell you this though. It makes you wonder if the compilers even realized they were using the wrong version. It's rare to find this kind of error on a Cary Mansfield produced project. Overall, there's some good stuff here ("Got A Match?", "The Jolly Green Giant") and some bad stuff here ("Juanita Banana" and "Mr. Jaws"), but if you like the novelty hits of yester-year, you're gonna dig this disc.

There are reams of rock-era novelty record CD compilations in the market. Varese's "25 All Time Novelty Hits" contribution to this genre, a sampling of less-than-serious tunes spanning the classic period of rock recording, does stand above the crowd with some distinction. While some of the biggest novelty tunes of the rock era are not represented here, that can be forgiven in that they are easily found on other compilations. That may explain the decision not to bill this piece as the 25 "Greatest" novelty hits.

In its favor is the inclusion of several novelty tunes that did less on the pop charts and a few big records that have up to now never appeared on legitimate domestic CD's. Rarities found here include the Daddy-O's' "Got A Match", the Peels' "Juanita Banana" and a top-10 novelty hit that has yet to see the digital light of day, "Yogi" by the Ivy Three. The majority of the other cuts are top-20 tunes that would be familiar to even casual early rock-era listeners.

Production quality is excellent with all tracks in mono except 12,15,17,21-23,25 which appear in stereo. Interesting liner notes on the included tracks appear in the eight-page liner notes booklet. A well-constructed package, this CD stands out for its generous collection of familiar novelty tunes as well as its inclusion of some previously unavailable-on-CD tunes of the genre.

According to the label's website, here's the tracklist, with highest chart positions for each song:

1 The Flying Saucer (Parts 1& 2) * Buchanan & Goodman Pop #3
2 Western Movies * The Olympics Pop #8
3 Baby Talk * Jan & Dean Pop #10
4 The All-American Boy * Bill Parsons Pop #2
5 The Ballad Of Davy Crockett * Bill Hayes Pop # 1
6 Seven Little Girls Sitting In The Back Seat * Paul Evans & the Curls Pop #9
7 Nee Nee Na Na Na Na Nu Nu * Dicky Doo & The Don'ts
8 Got A Match * The Daddy-O's

9 Shaving Cream * Benny Bell Pop #30
10 Hot Rod Lincoln * Johnny Bond Pop #26
11 Alley-Oop * Hollywood Argyles Pop #1
12 Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavor (On The Bedpost Over Night) * Lonnie Donegan Pop #5
13 Mr. Custer * Larry Verne Pop #1
14 Yogi * The Ivy Three Pop #8
15 The Mummy * Bob McFadden & Dor
16 Surfin' Bird * The Trashmen Pop #4
17 The Jolly Green Giant * The Kingsmen Pop #4
18 Juanita Banana * The Peels
19 Martian Hop * The Ran-Dells Pop #16
20 Gitarzan * Ray Stevens Pop #8
21 Junk Food Junkie * Larry Groce Pop #9
22 Gimme Dat Ding * The Pipkins Pop #9
23 Telephone Man * Meri Wilson Pop #18
24 Mr. Jaws * Dickie Goodman Pop #4
25 They're Coming To Take Me Away Ha Haaa * Napoleon XIV Pop #3

"All-Time" apparently refers to the period 1956-1981, based on the songs on the CD.

Obviously there has to be concentration on the late fifties/early 60's which were the heyday of novelty or humor records. The 70's are represented by Mr Jaws, Gitarzan, Gimme Dat Ding, and Junk Food Junkie, and only the vaguely suggestive Telephone Man is under a quarter century old.

But a few blatent missing entries, such as David Seville's "Witch Doctor", Chuck Berry's "My Ding-A-Ling", Ray Stevens' dated ditty "The Streak", and Buzz Clifford's "Baby Sittin' Boogie" prevent the 5-star rating. Similarly the inclusion of never-charted songs such as Junita Banana or Got A Match don't help. (Will there be a Volume 2?)

Many of these tracks will sound dated, but are still fun to sing along with, with your kids or (shudder) grandkids without having to worry about embarassment or censorship. (Well, maybe "Shaving Cream"...)

Trivia notes: While "All-American Boy" is credited to Bill Parsons, the track was actually performed by later country star Bobby Bare. Bare was drafted after the recording, so the record company sent Parsons on the road to promote the single instead. (Sort of an early Milli Vanilli.) "Dor", who makes the Mummy sounds on track 15 was actually noted 60's love-poet, Rod McKuen. (If you don't know who he is, then you're probably too young for this album.)

Just to correct an earlier review, ALL of these tracks were chart singles. A few, though, charted lower than the Top 30. The chart positions of the others:
7 Nee Nee Na Na Na Na Nu Nu * Dicky Doo & The Don'ts - pop #40
8 Got A Match * The Daddy-O's - pop #39
15 The Mummy * Bob McFadden & Dor - pop #39
18 Juanita Banana * The Peels - pop #59
Hats off to Cary Mansfield for finding and licensing such hard to locate tracks.

If U R a fan of 50s n' 60s comedy tunes then this is the CD for your collection! I considered others but I felt this was the better choice! Check it out!!!!!

This is a valuable compilation for those of us who grew up in the golden age of pop music. Some of the numbers are clever, but others are rather nonsensical nowadays. Funny to think how popular novelty numbers once were. But this is definitely a fun time capsule, and there are some really good ones on here.

I really enjoyed these tunes. They brought back many memories, and I liked the CD quality of the older songs.

This is one of the best compilations of "novelty hits" of days gone by to come out on CD (including a couple of tunes that I'd never seen on CD before). Lots of cool trivia in the booklet, too.

A fun romp for grownups or kids. Buy this for your child instead of Britney Spears! They'll thank you later....

I really like the CD, so many songs I haven't heard in a long time. Would recommend it to anyone who has heard all these songs at one time or another. Just a fun CD to listen too. I am sure others will like the crazy songs too, got to have laughter in our lives and this brings it out.

I bought this cd specificatly for the song Junk Food Junkie, but have enjoyed several others, very funny and I recommend this cd for anyone who likes to laugh