Background
The song is musically a simple folk song based on banjo, but accompanied by guitar, drums and fiddle. The lyrics describe a dead skunk in the middle of a busy road and the smell it produces for people as they drive by. Wainwright has said that the song came out of an actual accident involving a skunk, and that he wrote it in 15 minutes. ("Someone had already killed it, but I ran over it.") Although the single was released in November 1972, it was not until well into 1973 that it caught on with radio stations, and its number 16 peak on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart was not reached until the week ending 31 March 1973. It peaked at number 12 on the ''Cashbox'' charts on April 14. It was the only record to chart for Wainwright. "Dead Skunk" also reached number 8 in Canada and number 12 in Australia. In 1974, a Dutch version was issued called "Een witte eend op het midden van de weg" ("A white duck in the middle of the road"). The song was performed by Ciska Peters & Ronnie Tober.Chart performance
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
References
{{authority control 1973 singles Loudon Wainwright III songs Novelty songs Songs about mammals Songs about death 1972 songs Columbia Records singles