When I was growing up there were 3 popular 'movements' that were incomparable to any others...and as far as I can tell...incomparable to anything since. They were Elvis Presley, the Beatles, and Davy Crockett.
Part of the Davy Crockett craze was the theme song “The Ballad of Davy Crockett.” According to Wikipedia, the first recording of the song was made by Bill Hayes, quickly followed by versions by Fess Parker and Tennessee Ernie Ford, all in 1955. All three versions made the Billboard charts: Hayes' version made #1 on the weekly chart and #7 for the year, Parker's reached #6 on the weekly charts and #31 for the year, while Ford's peaked at #4 on the weekly country chart and #5 on the weekly pop chart and charted at #37 for the year. Over ten million copies of the song were sold.
It ultimately had 17 verses; but the only one anybody ever knew was the first verse:
Born on a mountain top in Tennessee, The greenest state in the land of the free. Raised in the woods so's he knew ev'ry tree. Kilt him a b'ar when he was only three.
With us kids, the song was mercilessly parodied, and for some strange reason, all the versions involved parricide.
Trouble began almost immediately as the last line of this verse became a mondegreenism. People, mostly kids, I guess, heard:
Killed in a bar when he was only three.
The version I remember most as a kid was this one, or something close to it:
Born on a mountain top in Tennessee The greenest state in the land of the free Killed his ma when he was only three Ended up in a penitentiary.
I discovered another one, not unlike ours:
Born on a mountain top in Tennessee, Killed his Ma when he was only three, Killed his Pa when he was only four, And now he's looking for his brother-in-law.
And another version:
Born on a table top in Joe's Café, * Dirtiest place in the USA Killed his father when he was only three, Polished off his mother with DDT.
*Some authorities substitute “East L.A.” for “Joe’s Café.”
As an aside, kids of that age loved to sing about DDT: I remember the parody of the Bosco chocolate syrup jingle:
I love Bosco, it's made with DDT My mommy put it in my milk to try to poison me But I fooled mommy and put it in her tea And now there's no more mommy To try to poison me!
Funny… another song about parricide.
Anyway, here’s the best parody of the Davy Crockett song, probably not the work of a child:
Born on a mountaintop in Palestine Raised on gefilte fish and Mogen David wine He was bar mitzvahed when he was only 9, But his name wasn't Crockett, it was Finklestein
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Part of the Davy Crockett craze was the theme song “The Ballad of Davy Crockett.” According to Wikipedia, the first recording of the song was made by Bill Hayes, quickly followed by versions by Fess Parker and Tennessee Ernie Ford, all in 1955. All three versions made the Billboard charts: Hayes' version made #1 on the weekly chart and #7 for the year, Parker's reached #6 on the weekly charts and #31 for the year, while Ford's peaked at #4 on the weekly country chart and #5 on the weekly pop chart and charted at #37 for the year. Over ten million copies of the song were sold.
It ultimately had 17 verses; but the only one anybody ever knew was the first verse:
Born on a mountain top in Tennessee,
The greenest state in the land of the free.
Raised in the woods so's he knew ev'ry tree.
Kilt him a b'ar when he was only three.
With us kids, the song was mercilessly parodied, and for some strange reason, all the versions involved parricide.
Trouble began almost immediately as the last line of this verse became a mondegreenism. People, mostly kids, I guess, heard:
Killed in a bar when he was only three.
The version I remember most as a kid was this one, or something close to it:
Born on a mountain top in Tennessee
The greenest state in the land of the free
Killed his ma when he was only three
Ended up in a penitentiary.
I discovered another one, not unlike ours:
Born on a mountain top in Tennessee,
Killed his Ma when he was only three,
Killed his Pa when he was only four,
And now he's looking for his brother-in-law.
And another version:
Born on a table top in Joe's Café, *
Dirtiest place in the USA
Killed his father when he was only three,
Polished off his mother with DDT.
*Some authorities substitute “East L.A.” for “Joe’s Café.”
As an aside, kids of that age loved to sing about DDT: I remember the parody of the Bosco chocolate syrup jingle:
I love Bosco, it's made with DDT
My mommy put it in my milk to try to poison me
But I fooled mommy and put it in her tea
And now there's no more mommy
To try to poison me!
Funny… another song about parricide.
Anyway, here’s the best parody of the Davy Crockett song, probably not the work of a child:
Born on a mountaintop in Palestine
Raised on gefilte fish and Mogen David wine
He was bar mitzvahed when he was only 9,
But his name wasn't Crockett, it was Finklestein
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