3 Bizarre 1960s Songs That Somehow Became Hit Singles

Novelty and experimental songs were everywhere in the 1960s, but songs of that particular ilk rarely became charting hits. That is, except for the following three bizarre hits that took over the charts in the 60s. There’s no explaining it, apart from the fact that 1960s listeners were maybe a bit more receptive to weird and unusual music, considering the psychedelic era. Let’s take a look, shall we?

“They’re Coming To Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!” by Napoleon XIV (1966)

I’ll probably always be baffled by this one. “They’re Coming To Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!” by Napoleon XIV is weird on so many levels. The lyrics trick the listener into thinking the narrator is singing about a lost love, rather than a dog, and he describes how excited he is to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital. The overall sound and instrumentation of the song are peculiar, as is Napoleon XIV’s mysterious and strange appearance, complete with a mask. Even the B-side of this song is weird, as it’s literally just the A-side but played backwards. And yet, “They’re Coming To Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!” topped the Cash Box Top 100 chart in the US and made it all the way to No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

“Tiptoe Through The Tulips” by Tiny Tim from ‘God Bless Tiny Tim’ (1968)

This oddball ukulele-based tune became something of an internet meme in the last couple of decades, thanks to its use in a famous horror movie. But back in 1968, the falsetto-voiced Tiny Tim had a smash hit on his hands with “Tiptoe Through The Tulips”. A cover of a 1929 pop song, Tiny Tim’s slightly unsettling version reached No. 17 on the Hot 100 chart.

“The Legend Of Xanadu” by Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich from ‘If No-One Sang’ (1968)

Those bizarre whicrack samples, unusual trumpets, and overall psychedelic vibe… “The Legend Of Xanadu” wasn’t the most unheard-of psychedelic pop song of the 60s. But it was a pretty strange one to make it so far on the charts. This entry on our list of experimental songs from the 1960s was an enormous global hit, reaching the Top 20 almost everywhere. It topped the UK Singles chart and a number of other European charts, though it didn’t quite make it to the Hot 100 stateside. 

Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

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