Ray Stevens- The Novelty Songs Quiz

Answer: Green and purple

'Jeremiah Peabody's Polyunsaturated Quick-Dissolving Fast-Acting Pleasant-Tasting Green and Purple Pills' are good for neuritis, neuralgia, beriberi, fungus, water on the knee, hammers in your head, and heaps of other stuff, and all for $1.98 a bottle!

It was the longest song title on the charts until it was surpassed by the 1981 release of 'Medley: Intro Venus/Sugar Sugar/No Reply/I'll Be Back/Drive My Car/Do You Want to Know a Secret/We Can Work It Out/I Should Have Known Better/Nowhere Man/You're Going to Lose That Girl/Stars on 45', better known as 'Stars on 45'.

The song was released in 1961 and reached 35 on the Billboard charts. It came from the album '1,837 Seconds of Humor'.

Answer: Fish

Ray and Harold decided to go fishing but Harold got drunk. When he saw the anchor rope in the boat, he thought it was a big snake, and blasted it with a shotgun, blowing a huge hole in the bottom of the boat. Holes in boats are not good, and the boat sank.

When a helicopter arrived to rescue them, Harold thought its searchlight was a sign from God, and immediately swore off the booze for life!

Answer: Trample her with a herd of buffalo

Jones (no first name) is described as slow-walking, slow-talking, long, lean and lanky, and he manages to rescue the damsel each time. How he achieves this is not revealed. The song was originally recorded by The Coasters in 1959, as a sendup of the Western movie of the same name. Ray Stevens sent up the sendup when he released his version in 1969.

Another comedy singer/writer, Roger Miller, warned about rollerskating in a herd of buffalo.

Answer: Teenage Mutant Kung Fu Chickens

The 'Teenage Mutant Kung Fu Chickens' were named Fricassee, Cordon Bleu, Cacciatore, and Stew. They were affected by radioactive water when they were still eggs, but the world is thankful that they on the side of good, because they are angry and BIG! The song did not chart, but it should have.

'Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead' is an actual comedy movie starring Christina Applegate.

The other two wrong answers are just figments of my imagination.

Answer: True

The 1969 album spawned three hit singles- 'Along Came Jones', 'Ahab the Arab' and the title track. The song features him doing the voice of Gitarzan, the high-pitched falsetto of Jane and the bass beat provided by the monkey.

"And their voices unite, in the pale moon light
And it sounds alright, yeah, it's dynamite
It's outta sight",

and I am sure we all agree with that!

Answer: In a U.F.O.

A rather silly song, but quite catchy. Mr R.V. Frisbee was out fishing when a pink UFO materialised in front of him! When the door open, he saw Elvis inside, but he had company- Jimmy Hoffa, Liberace, Colonel Parker, and even Howard Hughes were in there, too.

The aliens were not the standard little green men- they were actually pink and sounded just like the Jordanaires.

The song came from the album, 'Beside Myself'.

Answer: It's Me Again, Margaret

Willard McBane rings Margaret, a stranger, and makes crude comments. She called the police and they tracked him to a phonebox, where he was duly arrested. He was given his one obligatory phone call- can you guess who he called?

'Mr Businessman' is a rather dark song, highlighting the morality, or lack thereof, of corporate America. 'Yackety Yak' was a big hit for The Coasters in 1958 and covered by Ray in 1969. '867 5309' was a one-hit wonder for Tommy Tutone, in 1981.

Answer: Would Jesus Wear a Rolex?

The singer wonders why the preacher is wearing designer clothes, and his wife wears diamonds and furs. He has a second home in exclusive Palm Springs and he drives a fancy car. His Rolex is worth $10,000, and he is asking for donations of $20.

'Sir Thanks A Lot' is the timeworn story of a brave knight rescuing a damsel in distress from a dragon's castle.

Answer: Taylor Swift

'Taylor Swift Is Stalkin' Me' is a fun song (it would not be in my quiz if it wasn't), and a tribute to TayTay. The lyrics quote several of her song titles, including 'I Knew You Were Trouble', 'Love Story', 'You Belong To Me', '22', and 'Tears On Her Guitar' (sic).

The singer is a patient at the Asylum for the Dangerously Daffy and Definitely Delusional, who believe Taylor is watching him, but eventually realises that the only thing watching him is a hootie owl!

Stevens was well into his 70s when he released the album 'Here We Go Again' in 2015, his 121st! His first album came out in 1962.

Answer: Ethel

The song highlighted the fad of nude running that proliferated in the mid 1970s. Sports fields were a favourite location, with streakers flaunting their stuff at the Olympics, Test cricket matches and Superbowl games. Even the Academy Awards were not safe, with the 1974 ceremony interrupted by a man "...showing his shortcomings"- David Niven's words, not mine.

Steven's version tells of the narrator imploring his wife, Ethel, NOT to look as the streaker hurtles past, but to no avail. His cries of "Don't look, Ethel!" are always too late, or ignored. Finally, Ethel get her gear off too, and joins in the show! The song was a Number One hit in many countries, and turned Ray Stevens into a household name.