"I Was Kaiser Bill's

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...

" was a hit single in 1967 composed by British songwriters Roger Cook and

Roger Greenaway Roger John Reginald Greenaway, (born 23 August 1938) is an English singer, songwriter and record producer, best known for his collaborations with Roger Cook. His compositions have included "You've Got Your Troubles" and the transatlantic mill ...

. It was a novelty record, performed mostly by

whistling Whistling without the use of an artificial whistle is achieved by creating a small opening with one's lips, usually after applying moisture (licking one's lips or placing water upon them) and then blowing or sucking air through the space. The a ...

. The name Whistling Jack Smith, credited on the most commercially successful recording, was a play on the name of the baritone singer of the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s,

Whispering Jack Smith Jack Smith (born Jacob Schmidt, May 30, 1896 – May 13, 1950), known as "Whispering" Jack Smith, was an American baritone singer who was a popular radio and recording artist. He was at his most popular during the 1920s and 1930s, making a br ...

Production

The tune was written by Greenaway and Cook and was originally titled "Too Much Birdseed". Artist Biography by arwulf arwulf, ''Allmusic.com''
Retrieved 10 November 2015 It was recorded as a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

for

Deram Records Deram Records was a subsidiary record label of Decca Records established in the United Kingdom in 1966. At the time, U.K. Decca was a different company from the Decca label in the United States, which was owned by MCA Inc. Deram recordings w ...

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

Noel Walker, using studio musicians together with the

Mike Sammes Singers Mike may refer to: Animals * Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum * Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off * Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and documen ...

. The whistling on the record was, according to most sources, by John O'Neill, a trumpeter and singer with the Mike Sammes Singers who was known for his whistling skill, though other sources credit Noel Walker. The song is noted for its

false ending A false ending is a device in film and music that can be used to trick the audience into thinking that the work has ended, before it continues. The presence of a false ending can be anticipated through a number of ways. The medium itself might bet ...

: after the last chorus, a male voice shouts "Oi" (on the album version) and "Hey" (on the single version), and the tune starts up again with the repeated chorus, then fades out.

Performances

Credited to Whistling Jack Smith, the record rose up the

UK singles chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. When it was featured on ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British Record chart, music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show ...

'', actor Coby Wells was used to mime the whistling, and later toured as the public face of Whistling Jack Smith. Wells' real name was Billy Moeller, a brother of Tommy Moeller, lead vocalist, guitarist, and pianist with

Unit 4 + 2 Unit 4 + 2 were a British pop band, who had a number one hit on the UK Singles Chart in 1965 with the song "Concrete and Clay". The track topped the UK chart for one week. Career Early days In 1962, Brian Parker, then the guitar player and song ...

. The recording reached #5 on the

in March 1967, staying in the chart for 12 weeks, and peaked at #20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the U.S.

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer and actor. He was a successful pop singer in the United States during the 1950s and early 1960s. He sold more than 45 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and appeared in mo ...

recorded a whistling version of the song in 1967. A vocal version of the song, as "Ich war der Putzer vom Kaiser", was recorded in German by

Die Travellers Die Travellers, originally Die 3 Travellers, were a German musical group known for their novelty, comedy and schlager records. The group formed in Berlin in 1946. The members were Fred Oldörp (bandoneon The bandoneon (or bandonion, es, b ...

, in the late 1960s. The German lyrics were credited to Fred Oldörp, a member of the group. The lyrics concern the batman, or ''Putzer'' ("cleaner") of the Kaiser, who evades combat because of his position. It has been suggested that the words derive from a

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

marching song, but that is unconfirmed. "How old are the lyrics of Kaiser Bill's Batman / Ich War Der Putzer Vom Kaiser ?", ''Google Groups''
Retrieved 10 November 2015

Charts

References

External links

* {{authority control 1967 singles Deram Records singles Songs written by Roger Cook (songwriter) Songs written by Roger Greenaway 1967 songs Novelty songs

Production

Performances

Charts

References

Further reading

External links