Mr. Custer

About Mr. Custer

"Mr. Custer" is a march novelty song, sung by Larry Verne, and written by Al De Lory, Fred Darian, and Joseph Van Winkle. It was a No. 1 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. It also reached No. 1 in Canada, September 12, 1960. It is a comical song about a soldier's plea to General Custer before the climactic Battle of the Little Bighorn against the Sioux, which he did not want to fight. In 1964, Verne recorded and released a sequel novelty song entitled "Return of Mr. Custer," which used the same melody and music arrangement but failed to chart. "Mr. Custer" was also a No. 12 success in the UK Singles Chart for Charlie Drake in 1960, his third such chart hit. Novelty/country singer-songwriter Ray Stevens covered this song for his 1969 album Gitarzan. more »