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"The Thing" is anovelty song byCharles Randolph Grean released in 1950. The song received heavy airplay, spending 14 weeks on theBillboard charts. The melody is derived from the English bawdy folk song "The Chandler's Wife", which itself derived its melody from the earlier English folk song "The Lincolnshire Poacher".
The song was recorded byPhil Harris and released on October 13, 1950 as a 78 rpm byRCA Victor, #20-3968. The record first scored theBillboard chart on November 17, 1950, eventually peaking at number one during its several-month stay.[1]
The lyrics are of a first-person narration, describing the discovery on a beach of a large wooden box that is floating in the bay, which the narrator pulls out of the water. Whatever is in the box is never revealed, nor is it called "The Thing" in the lyrics. When the lyrics call for The Thing to be named, the vocals simply pause for three percussive knocks. For example, the first verse ends, "I discovered a [* **], right before my eyes!" The knocks are spaced unequally, occurring on counts 1, 3, and 4 of the song's 6/8 meter. The listener could substitute any three-syllable word or phrase their imagination might suggest that stresses its first and third syllables.
The narrator is overjoyed by this discovery, which repels seemingly everyone else in this world (and the next). He takes the box into a pawnshop in his neighborhood, hoping to sell it, but is rejected by the proprietor with a threat to call the police. "Running for [his] life," the narrator takes the box home to his wife, who also rejects him-- and orders him never to return. Next, the narrator offers the box to ahobo, receiving first his assurance that he'll take "most any old thing," as he is desperate; when the homeless man sees what's in the box, he runs away. The hapless narrator proceeds through the rest of his life unable to rid himself of The Thing, until he dies and arrives at thegates of Heaven, still with the box, only to be ordered bySaint Peter to "take it downbelow". The song closes with the narrator's warning not to open a tempting box found on the beach as he did, or "you'll never get rid of the [* **], no matter whatcha do!"
Other versions were recorded byArthur Godfrey,The Ames Brothers,Danny Kaye,Kidsongs,Ray Charles,Teresa Brewer,Adam West,[2] and Australian orchestra leaderLes Welch. The Arthur Godfrey recording was made during November 1950 and released byColumbia Records as catalog number 39068. The Danny Kaye recording was made on December 1, 1950, and released byDecca Records as catalog number 27350. TheRay Charles recording was made on July 13, 1963, and released byABC-Paramount Records on the albumHave a Smile with Me, as catalog number ABC 495 (mono) / ABCS 495 (stereo). TheTeresa Brewer recording was made during October 1950, and released byLondon Records as catalog number 873. The Les Welch recording was made during January1951 and released by Pacific Records, an Australian company, as catalog number 10-0051. Bill Buchanan recorded a cover version, which featured his voice sounding like a chipmunk in a fast track vocal.
The song was broadcast by radio concurrently with a series of teaser advertisements published weekly inCollier's magazine promotingHoward Hawks' science fiction movieThe Thing from Another World (released April 6, 1951).
Harris performed the song in the movieThe Wild Blue Yonder (1951).
A portion of the Phil Harris version plays during the indoor swimming pool scene in thePeter Bogdanovich movieThe Last Picture Show (1971).[3]
During the song's time on theBillboard charts, it was played many times onYour Hit Parade. At the end of one of song's performances, the words "Income Tax" blinked to the song's rhythm, jokingly referring to its longevity on the charts.
The song was played by Richie's babysitter in theDick Van Dyke Show episode "The Lady and the Babysitter".
Edward G. Robles Jr. wrote a science fiction short story based partially on the song. It involved several homeless men who find an item like the one described by the song. In the story, the item is discovered to be an alien disguised as something nobody wants. It was originally copyrighted by Galaxy Publishing Corp. in 1954.[4]
Chicago Coin released pinball tableThing in 1951 with backglass and playfield art inspired by the song, illustrated by Roy Parker.[5]
| Preceded by | U.S.BillboardBest Sellers in Storesnumber-one single December 2–23, 1950 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Cash BoxBest Sellers number-one song December 16, 1950 | Succeeded by |
