"The Pied Piper" is a

pop song Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former describe ...

written by the duo

The Changin' Times The Changin' Times were an American songwriting and performing duo, consisting of Artie Kornfeld and Steve Duboff. Their most famous song was "The Pied Piper The Pied Piper of Hamelin (german: der Rattenfänger von Hameln, also known as the P ...

, consisting of Steve Duboff and

Artie Kornfeld Arthur Lawrence Kornfeld (born 1942) is an American musician, record producer, and music executive. He is best known as the music promoter for the Woodstock Festival held in 1969. Kornfeld is also known for his collaborations with Artie Kaplan. ...

, who first recorded it in 1965. Their version reached #87 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. However, when British pop singer Crispian St. Peters recorded it, he scored a major hit during the summer of 1966. It went to #4 in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, #5 in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, and #1 in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. The song's title refers to a fairy tale from German folklore, the titular character of which is

The Pied Piper of Hamelin The Pied Piper of Hamelin (german: der Rattenfänger von Hameln, also known as the Pan Piper or the Rat-Catcher of Hamelin) is the title character of a legend from the town of Hamelin (Hameln), Lower Saxony, Germany. The legend dates back to ...

Chart history

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Later uses

An advertisement for the first-generation

Toyota Echo The is a supermini/subcompact car sold by Toyota since 1999, replacing the Starlet and Tercel. Up to 2019, Toyota had used the Yaris nameplate on export versions of various Japanese-market models, with some markets receiving the same vehicle ...

in Australia and New Zealand. The song has been used in three episodes of the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

series ''

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo County ...

'', where it is sung karaoke by

Dinesh Dinesh (Devanagari: ') is a common Hindu male given name. The Sanskrit word ' is a compound of ' 'day' and ' 'lord', meaning 'day-lord', an epithet of the Sun. Notable people with the name include: * Dinesh, Indian film actor * Dinesh Baboo, Ind ...

. Used in advertising for Traeger Smokers.

Other versions

* In

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

a well-known

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

was made, with the title "Bandiera gialla" ("Yellow flag"), sung by local artist

Gianni Pettenati Gianni Pettenati (born in Piacenza, Italy on 29 October 1945) is an Italian singer and musical critic. He is most famous for his Italian cover versions of great international hits. He is also the author of plays and books on the history of Italian ...

and the theme song of a popular radio program of that era targeted to the young people. *Jamaican reggae duo

Bob and Marcia Bob and Marcia were a Jamaican vocal duo, that consisted of Bob Andy and Marcia Griffiths.Larkin, Colin (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae'', Virgin Books, , p. 33 They had a #5 UK hit single in 1970 with "Young, Gifted and Black". The ...

had a Top 20 hit with their version, taking the song to UK #11 in July 1971.Bob and Marcia, "Pied Piper" chart position
Retrieved June 18, 2015. *

Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...

also covered the song on her 1966 self-titled album. * In

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Sheila Sheila (alternatively spelled Shelagh and Sheelagh) is a common feminine given name, derived from the Irish name ''Síle'', which is believed to be a Gaelic form of the Latin name Caelia, the feminine form of the Roman clan name Caelius, meanin ...

covered the song in French the same year, with the title "Le pipeau". *

Rita Marley Rita may refer to: People * Rita (given name) * Rita (Indian singer) (born 1984) * Rita (Israeli singer) (born 1962) * Rita (Japanese singer) * Eliza Humphreys (1850–1938), wrote under the pseudonym Rita Places * Djarrit, also known as Rita, ...

covered the song in 1967.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pied Piper, The 1965 songs 1965 singles 1966 singles 1971 singles Songs written by Artie Kornfeld Crispian St. Peters songs Del Shannon songs The Ventures songs London Records singles RPM Top Singles number-one singles Number-one singles in South Africa Decca Records singles Jamie Records singles