| "Dueling Banjos" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single byEric Weissberg | ||||
| from the albumDueling Banjos | ||||
| B-side | "End of a Dream" | |||
| Released | December 1972 | |||
| Recorded | 1972 | |||
| Genre | Bluegrass[1] | |||
| Length | 2:10 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith,Don Reno, arranged byEric Weissberg,Steve Mandell | |||
| Producer(s) | Joe Boyd | |||
| Eric Weissberg singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Dueling Banjos" is abluegrass composition byArthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith. The song was composed in 1954[2] by Smith as a banjo instrumental he called "Feudin' Banjos"; it contained riffs from Smith, recorded in 1955 playing a four-string plectrum banjo and accompanied by five-string bluegrass banjo playerDon Reno. The composition's first wide-scale airing was on a 1963 television episode ofThe Andy Griffith Show called "Briscoe Declares for Aunt Bee", in which it is played by visiting musical family the Darlings (portrayed byThe Dillards, a bluegrass group), along with Griffith himself.
The song was made famous by the 1972 filmDeliverance, which also led to a successful lawsuit by the song's composer, as it was used in the film without Smith's permission. The film version was arranged and recorded byEric Weissberg andSteve Mandell, but only credited to Weissberg on a single subsequently issued in December 1972. It went to second place for four weeks on theBillboard Hot 100 in 1973, behindRoberta Flack's "Killing Me Softly with His Song"; it topped theadult contemporary chart for two weeks.[3] It reached No. 1 for one week on both theCashbox andRecord World charts. It reached No. 5 on Hot Country Singles. It peaked at No. 17 in the UK Singles chart and spent 7 weeks in the Top 40.[4] It was nominated for the30th Golden Globe Awards asBest Original Song.[5] The success of the single led toan album of the same name released in January 1973.
At the 16th Annual Grammy Awards in 1974, the song won the Grammy for Best Country Instrumental Performance forSteve Mandell &Eric Weissberg.[6]
This instrumental quotes the first 12 notes of "Yankee Doodle".
InDeliverance, a scene depictsBilly Redden playing it oppositeRonny Cox, who joins him on guitar and ends up having a guitar vs.banjo duel. Redden plays Lonnie, amentally challenged,inbredbut extremely gifted banjo player. Redden could not play the banjo and the director thought his hand movements looked unconvincing. A local musician, Mike Addis, was brought in to depict the movement of the boy's left hand. Addis hid behind Redden, with his left arm in Redden's shirt sleeve. Careful camera angles kept Addis out of frame and completed the illusion. The music itself was dubbed from the recording made by Weissberg and Mandell and was not played by the actors.[7] Two young musicians, Ron Brentano and Mike Russo, had originally been signed to play their adaptation for the film, but instead it was performed by Weissberg and Mandell.[8]
"Dueling Banjos" was arranged and performed for the film byEric Weissberg andSteve Mandell and was included on its soundtrack.[9][10] When Arthur "Boogie" Smith was not acknowledged as the composer by the filmmakers, he sued and eventually won, receiving songwriting credit as well as royalties.[11]
The song was used in the theatrical trailer ofWhat About Bob? and briefly used in a TV commercial for the 2003Saturn Vue.[12]
| Chart (1973) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| CanadianRPM Top Singles | 2 |
| CanadianRPM Adult Contemporary Tracks | 1 |
| CanadianRPM Country Tracks | 9 |
| South Africa (Springbok)[13] | 15 |
| UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[4] | 17 |
| U.S.Billboard Hot 100 | 2 |
| U.S.Billboard Easy Listening | 1 |
| U.S.BillboardHot Country Singles[14] | 5 |
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[15] | Gold | 1,000,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
ComedianMartin Mull spoofed the song with an instrumental "Dueling Tubas" on his 1973 comedy albumMartin Mull & His Fabulous Furniture In Your Living Room.[16]
TheRandy Stonehill song "Big Ideas (In a Shrinking World)," from the albumEquator, contains a brief joke about "Dueling Bagpipes."
British punk bandToy Dolls adapted the song as "Drooling Banjos" on their 1993 albumAbsurd-Ditties.
In "Dueling Pizzas", a production video from Season 7, Episode 19 ofAmerica's Funniest Home Videos, which first aired in 1996, two people pretend to play the song on cheese pulls from pizza slices. The video won the second place prize, $3,000.[17]
The TV showFamily Guy parodied the song in a scene whereMichael Moore and Peter Griffin end up in a farting contest after taking neighboringbathroom stalls.[citation needed]
