Radio ... and Me – 18

Song parodies have always been a staple of the world’s cultures. In medieval Anglo-Saxon culture, we know that parodies were sung by minstrels who traveled from place to place. Shakespeare even uses parodies in some of his comedies.
In our time, we can cite the works of “Weird Al” Yankovic, who has just released an excellent video send-up of Lady Gaga. He is famous, of course, for the video, “Eat It”, based on the hit, “Beat It,” by Michael Jackson, back in the 1980s. Novelty songs on radio, such as “The Streak,” by Ray Stevens, as well as “Tiptoe Through the Tulips,” by Tiny Tim, also come to mind.
Radio in the 1950s and 60s ran excellent parodies by many performers, two of the whom were Stan Freberg and Alan Sherman. (Some of the articles in “Mad” magazine of the same time poked fun at (President) Kennedy's clan, using lyrics based on the patter songs of Gilbert and Sullivan.)
What got me thinking of song parodies recently is the fact that many youngsters, at this time of year, are taking part in summer camp.
And, to me, summer camp is forever linked to the song, “Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah,” the magnum opus by Alan Sherman. In case you’re not familiar with the song, he reads a letter from camp -- set to the tune of Ponchielli's "Dance of the Hours" -- by a young Jewish kid from the city who is terribly lonesome, after attending “one, whole, day.”
However, Dear Reader, that song was only part of a string of his hits.
Early in 1962, his album, “Alan Sherman’s Mother Presents: My Son, the Folk Singer,” introduced a string of brilliant parodies, each with a special twist … they had all-Jewish characters. Check out the full entries on Wikipedia,
Here, briefly, are my all-time favourites from Allan Sherman:
-- "The Ballad of Harry Lewis" ("The Battle Hymn of the Republic"), about a tailor;
-- "Shake Hands with Your Uncle Max" ("Dear Old Donegal", a.k.a. "Shake Hands with Your Uncle Mike"), replete with Jewish surnames (..."Humburger, Schlumberger, Minkus, and Pincus, and Stein with an 'e-i' and Styne with a 'y.'" The last two words of the song ("Welcome home"), however, are sung with an Irish accent, a tribute to the original song;
-- "Sir Greenbaum's Madrigal" ("Greensleeves") about a Jewish knight;
-- "My Zelda" ("Matilda"), a calypso number;
-- "The Streets of Miami" ("The Streets of Laredo"), the cowboy’s lament, moved to the streets of Miami, now telling the sordid story of a money-wasting businessman. A great line: “On the company’s checkbook, he’s quick on the draw”;
-- A classic poem by Robert Burns now has a Jewish deli manager training a new line cook to be generous on portions: "Do not make a stingy sandwich, pile the cold cuts high;/ Customers should see salami comin' thru the rye";
-- “Marianne,” another calypso number, contained the line, “All day, all night, Cary Grant”;
-- A blues standard received the excellent Sherman treatment, as Queen Victoria pleads: “Won't you come home, Disraeli?”;
-- Even the French party song, “Alouette,” was not exempt. Now called, “Al’n Yetta,” and listed the variety of TV shows that the couple enjoyed watching.
Sherman performed these songs alone on stage, note-perfect and dead-pan, accompanied by a big orchestra and chorus. He would appear on network TV shows, such as “Ed Sullivan,” wearing a business suit and horn-rimmed glasses.
At the next Yuletide season, he produced a wonderful version of the Olde English / Bing Crosby classic: “The Twelve Days of Christmas.”
Here are some of the items he receives:
-- A statue of a lady with a clock where her stomach ought to be,
-- A simulated alligator wallet,
-- A calendar book with the name of my insurance man,
-- Green polka dot pajamas,
-- And a Japanese transistor radio.
(You can follow the lyrics, here, and sing along.)
Of course, Dear Reader, these are the items he's ... going to exchange!