"Mr. Custer" is a march novelty song, sung by Larry Verne, and written by Al De Lory, Fred Darian, and Joseph Van Winkle.

Background It is a comical song about a soldier's plea to General Custer before the climactic Battle of the Little Bighorn against the Sioux, to allow him to stay behind, because he had a bad dream about the battle.

Chart performance It was a number-one song in the United States in 1960, topping the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for the issue dated October 10, 1960, and remained there for one week. On the US Hot R&B Sides chart, it went to number 9. It reached number 12 in Canada, also October 10, 1960.

Reception In a retrospective review for his Number Ones column in 2018, Stereogum writer Tom Breihan panned the song, giving it one star out of ten while calling it "offensive", "morally wrongheaded", and "unlistenable musically".

Chart history

Weekly charts Larry Verne Chart (1960)PeakpositionCanada CHUM Chart12U.S. Billboard Hot 100Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - 1U.S. Billboard Hot R&B Sides9U.S. Cash Box Top 100Cash Box Top 100 Singles, October 8, 19603 Charlie Drake Chart (1960–61)PeakpositionNew Zealand (Lever Hit Parade)Flavour of New Zealand, 10 November 19607UK Singles (OCC)12 Ted Lune Chart (1960)PeakpositionNew Zealand (Lever Hit Parade)Flavour of New Zealand, 24 November 19604

Year-end charts Chart (1960)RankU.S. Billboard Hot 100Musicoutfitters.com42U.S. Cash Box Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 24, 196026

Sequel A follow-up record, "Return of Mr. Custer (Please Mr. Sittin' Bull)", was released in 1964, which used the same melody and music arrangement, but it failed to chart.Demented Music Database: Return Of Mr. Custer - Larry Verne

Cover versions La Mesa California band "The Search" covered this in 1967. "Mr. Custer" was also a number-12 success in the UK Singles Chart for Charlie Drake in 1960, his third such chart hit. Novelty/country singer-songwriter Ray Stevens covered the song for his 1969 album Gitarzan.

See also List of Hot 100 number-one singles of 1960 (U.S.)

References