I Was Kaiser Bill's Batman

"I Was Kaiser Bill's Batman" was a hit single in 1967 composed by British songwriters Roger Cook and Roger Greenaway.[1] It was a novelty record, performed mostly by whistling. 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.

"I Was Kaiser Bill's Batman"
Single by Whistling Jack Smith
B-side"The British Grin and Bear"
Released1967
GenreNovelty
Length2:22
LabelDeram 45-DEM-85005
Songwriter(s)Roger Greenaway, Roger Cook

The tune was written by Greenaway and Cook and was originally titled "Too Much Birdseed".[2] It was recorded as a single for Deram Records by record producer Noel Walker, using studio musicians together with the Mike Sammes Singers. 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,[3][4] though other sources credit Noel Walker.[2] The song is noted for its false ending: after the song ends its last chorus, a male voice shouts "Oi" (on the album version) and "Hey" (on the single version); the tune starts up again with the repeated chorus, and fades out.

Credited to Whistling Jack Smith, the record rose up the UK singles chart. When it was featured on Top of the Pops, 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).[5][6] The recording reached #5 on the UK singles chart in March 1967, staying in the chart for 12 weeks,[7] and peaked at #20 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S.[8]

Pat Boone 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, in the late 1960s. The German lyrics were credited to Fred Oldörp, a member of the group.[9] 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 marching song, but this is unconfirmed.[10]

Charts
Chart (1967) Peak
position
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[11] 3
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[12] 5
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[13] 21
Germany (Official German Charts)[14] 4
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[15] 2
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[16] 5
US Billboard Hot 100[17] 20
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[18] 8
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References
  1. Paul Simpson (2003), The rough guide to cult pop, ISBN 9781843532293
  2. Artist Biography by arwulf arwulf, Allmusic.com. Retrieved 10 November 2015
  3. Terry Rawlings (2002-12-01), Then, now and rare British beat 1960-1969, ISBN 9780711990944
  4. Whistling in the wind for a good tune, Western Daily Press, Oct 11, 2005
  5. "I Was Kaiser Bill’s Batman", DangerousMinds.net. Retrieved 23 August 2015
  6. "I Was Kaiser Bill's Batman", Dustbury.com. Retrieved 23 August 2015
  7. "WHISTLING JACK SMITH". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  8. Whitburn, Joel (2003). Top Pop Singles 1955-2002 (1st ed.). Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 654. ISBN 0-89820-155-1.
  9. "Ich war der Putzer vom Kaiser", Discogs.com. Retrieved 10 November 2015
  10. "How old are the lyrics of Kaiser Bill's Batman / Ich War Der Putzer Vom Kaiser ?", Google Groups Retrieved 10 November 2015
  11. "Austriancharts.at – Whistling Jack Smith – I Was Kaiser Bill's Batman" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
  12. "Ultratop.be – Whistling Jack Smith – I Was Kaiser Bill's Batman" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
  13. "Ultratop.be – Whistling Jack Smith – I Was Kaiser Bill's Batman" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
  14. "Swedishcharts.com – Whistling Jack Smith – I Was Kaiser Bill's Batman". Singles Top 100.
  15. "Dutchcharts.nl – Whistling Jack Smith – I Was Kaiser Bill's Batman" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
  16. "Whistling Jack Smith: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
  17. "Whistling Jack Smith Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
  18. "Whistling Jack Smith Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
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