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The Bird On My Head
"The Bird on My Head" is a 1958 novelty song by Ross Bagdasarian. Background "The Bird on My Head" was the second charted novelty song to be recorded under the stage name "David Seville" (after six consecutive uncharted singles, starting with "Armen's Theme"), as well as the last song to be recorded before the creation of Alvin and the Chipmunks. Like Seville's first novelty song, "Witch Doctor (song), Witch Doctor", the song has a sped-up voice (albeit slightly slower than the one Seville used for "Witch Doctor"). Although both songs have the same sped-up voices, "The Bird on My Head" did not achieve the success of its predecessor, peaking at No. 34. Lyrics The lyrics describe a man with a bird sitting on his head, sitting in a vacant lot. Throughout the song, the man and the bird sing together talking about where they belong and lamenting their current position — the man lacking a house and wife, and the bird not having a tree. Track listing All songs composed by Ross Bagd ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ross Bagdasarian
Ross S. Bagdasarian (; January 27, 1919 – January 16, 1972), known professionally by his stage name David Seville, was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor, best known for creating the cartoon band Alvin and the Chipmunks. Initially a stage and film actor, he rose to prominence in 1958 with the songs "Witch Doctor" and "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)", which both became ''Billboard'' number-one singles. He produced and directed ''The Alvin Show'', which aired on CBS in 1961–62. Life Bagdasarian was born on January 27, 1919, in Fresno, California to an Armenian-American Family. He had two elder brothers: Richard Sirak (1910–1966) and Harry Sisvan (1915–1989). The novelist William Saroyan was his first cousin, to whom he was very close. Bagdasarian graduated from Fresno High School in 1937. During World War II, he served four years as a control tower operator and rose to the rank of a staff sergeant (SSgt) in the Army Air Forces. His ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Novelty Song
A novelty song is a type of song built upon some form of novel concept, such as a gimmick, a piece of humor, or a sample of popular culture. Novelty songs partially overlap with comedy songs, which are more explicitly based on humor, and with musical parody, especially when the novel gimmick is another popular song. Novelty songs achieved great popularity during the 1920s and 1930s. They had a resurgence of interest in the 1950s and 1960s. The term arose in Tin Pan Alley to describe one of the major divisions of popular music; the other two divisions were ballads and dance music. Humorous songs, or those containing humorous elements, are not necessarily novelty songs. Novelty songs are often a parody or humor song, and may apply to a current event such as a holiday or a fad such as a dance or TV programme. Many use unusual lyrics, subjects, sounds, or instrumentation, and may not even be musical. For example, the 1966 novelty song "They're Coming to Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa! ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Liberty Records
Liberty Records was a record label founded in the United States by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revivals. History 1950s Liberty's early releases focused on film and orchestral music. Its first single was Lionel Newman's "The Girl Upstairs". Its first big hit, in 1955, was by Julie London singing her version of the torch song, " Cry Me a River", which climbed to No. 9 in the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It helped Liberty sell her first album, ''Julie Is Her Name''. In 1956, Liberty signed Henry Mancini and released two singles and several albums by him. He left in 1958, signing with RCA Victor, where his record sales increased. Billy Rose and Lee David's song "Tonight You Belong to Me" reached number 4 (US) and number 28 (UK) when it was performed by teen sisters Patience and Prudence (McIntyre), selling over a million copies. Liberty also s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Witch Doctor (song)
"Witch Doctor" is a 1958 American novelty song written and performed by Ross Bagdasarian, under his stage name David Seville. It became a number one hit and rescued Liberty Records from near-bankruptcy. In the song, the singer asks a witch doctor for romantic advice, the witch doctor responds with a nonsense incantation which creates an earworm. Composition and recording Seville wrote the song, inspired by a book titled ''Duel with the Witch Doctor'' on his bookshelf. In the song, the narrator asks a witch doctor for advice on what to do because he has fallen in love with a girl, and the witch doctor replies with a gibberish line: "Oo-ee, oo-ah-ah, ting-tang, walla-walla bing-bang". Seville had spent 200 dollars, a significant sum at that time, on a tape recorder, and he conceived of the idea of recording himself at different speed to create a dialogue between him and the witch doctor. He sang in his own voice as normal, and then overdubbed the song with the voice of the "witch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)
"The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)" is a novelty Christmas song written by Ross Bagdasarian (under the stage name of David Seville) in 1958. Bagdasarian sang and recorded the song, varying the tape speeds to produce high-pitched "chipmunk" voices, with the vocals credited to Alvin and the Chipmunks, Seville's cartoon virtual band. The song won three Grammy Awards in 1958, for Best Comedy Performance, Best Children's Recording, and Best Engineered Record (non-classical). Commercial performance The song was very successful, reaching No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Pop Singles chart, becoming The Chipmunks' first (and only), as well as David Seville's second and final, No. 1 single. It had the distinction of being the only Christmas record to reach No. 1 on the same chart until Mariah Carey’s " All I Want for Christmas Is You" did so 61 years later in 2019. The single sold 4.5 million copies in seven weeks, according to Ross Bagdasarian Jr. It eventually sold 12 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alvin And The Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for novelty records in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks named Alvin, Simon, and Theodore who are originally managed by their human adoptive father, David "Dave" Seville. Bagdasarian provided the group's voices by producing sped-up recordings of his own, a technique pioneered on the successful "Witch Doctor". Later in 1958 Bagdasarian released the similarly-engineered "The Chipmunk Song" for which he came up with the chipmunk characters and their human father, attributing the track to them. ''David Seville and the Chipmunks'' released several more records over the following decade until Bagdasarian's death in 1972. The franchise was revived in 1979 with the characters' voices provided by his son Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and the latter's wife Janice Karman. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1958 Singles
Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the third overland journey to the South Pole, the first to use powered vehicles. ** Sputnik 1 (launched on October 4, 1957) falls to Earth from its orbit, and burns up. * January 13 – Battle of Edchera: The Moroccan Army of Liberation ambushes a Spanish patrol. * January 27 – A Soviet-American executive agreement on cultural, educational and scientific exchanges, also known as the "Lacy-Zarubin Agreement, Lacy–Zarubin Agreement", is signed in Washington, D.C. * January 31 – The first successful American satellite, Explorer 1, is launched into orbit. February * February 1 – Egypt and Syria unite, to form the United Arab Republic. * February 6 – Seven Manchester United F.C., Manchester United footballers are among the 21 people killed i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Novelty Songs
A novelty song is a type of song built upon some form of novel concept, such as a gimmick, a piece of humor, or a sample of popular culture. Novelty songs partially overlap with comedy songs, which are more explicitly based on humor, and with musical parody, especially when the novel gimmick is another popular song. Novelty songs achieved great popularity during the 1920s and 1930s. They had a resurgence of interest in the 1950s and 1960s. The term arose in Tin Pan Alley to describe one of the major divisions of popular music; the other two divisions were ballads and dance music. Humorous songs, or those containing humorous elements, are not necessarily novelty songs. Novelty songs are often a parody or humor song, and may apply to a current event such as a holiday or a fad such as a dance or TV programme. Many use unusual lyrics, subjects, sounds, or instrumentation, and may not even be musical. For example, the 1966 novelty song "They're Coming to Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa! ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Songs About Birds
A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetition and variation of sections. Written words created specifically for music, or for which music is specifically created, are called lyrics. If a pre-existing poem is set to composed music in classical music it is an art song. Songs that are sung on repeated pitches without distinct contours and patterns that rise and fall are called chants. Songs composed in a simple style that are learned informally "by ear" are often referred to as folk songs. Songs that are composed for professional singers who sell their recordings or live shows to the mass market are called popular songs. These songs, which have broad appeal, are often composed by professional songwriters, composers, and lyricists. Art songs are composed by trained classical composers fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Songs About Loneliness
A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetition and variation of sections. Written words created specifically for music, or for which music is specifically created, are called lyrics. If a pre-existing poem is set to composed music in classical music it is an art song. Songs that are sung on repeated pitches without distinct contours and patterns that rise and fall are called chants. Songs composed in a simple style that are learned informally "by ear" are often referred to as folk songs. Songs that are composed for professional singers who sell their recordings or live shows to the mass market are called popular songs. These songs, which have broad appeal, are often composed by professional songwriters, composers, and lyricists. Art songs are composed by trained classical composer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Songs Written By Ross Bagdasarian
A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetition and variation of sections. Written words created specifically for music, or for which music is specifically created, are called lyrics. If a pre-existing poem is set to composed music in classical music it is an art song. Songs that are sung on repeated pitches without distinct contours and patterns that rise and fall are called chants. Songs composed in a simple style that are learned informally "by ear" are often referred to as folk songs. Songs that are composed for professional singers who sell their recordings or live shows to the mass market are called popular songs. These songs, which have broad appeal, are often composed by professional songwriters, composers, and lyricists. Art songs are composed by trained classical composers fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1958 Songs
Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the third overland journey to the South Pole, the first to use powered vehicles. ** Sputnik 1 (launched on October 4, 1957) falls to Earth from its orbit, and burns up. * January 13 – Battle of Edchera: The Moroccan Army of Liberation ambushes a Spanish patrol. * January 27 – A Soviet-American executive agreement on cultural, educational and scientific exchanges, also known as the " Lacy–Zarubin Agreement", is signed in Washington, D.C. * January 31 – The first successful American satellite, Explorer 1, is launched into orbit. February * February 1 – Egypt and Syria unite, to form the United Arab Republic. * February 6 – Seven Manchester United footballers are among the 21 people killed in the Munich air disaster in West G ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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