The Laughing Policeman (song)
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"The Laughing Policeman" is a music hall song by Charles Jolly, the pseudonym of Charles Penrose.
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[edit] The Song
In 1922, Penrose made the first recording of this song, (Columbia Records FB 1184). The composition of the song is officially credited to his wife Mabel under the pseudonym "Billie Grey"; however, the music and melody are taken from The Laughing Song by George W. Johnson which was originally recorded in the 1890s.[1] The Penroses wrote numerous other laughing songs (The Laughing Major, Curate, Steeplechaser, Typist, Lover, etc), but only "The Laughing Policeman" is remembered today, having sold over a million copies. Its popularity continued into the 1970s, as it was a frequently requested recording on the BBC Radio 1 show Junior Choice. It even had a dance mix made of it, which was released on a 10 inch 45rpm disc, resembling an old-style 78rpm record, with the original version on the other side.
Stikkan Anderson gave the song lyrics in Swedish, as "Den skrattande polisen" ("the laughing police officer"), which was recorded and released in 1955 by Ole Flodin.[2]
[edit] Novel
The song is referenced in the novel and film of the same name: Fictional Swedish detective Martin Beck gets it as a Christmas present from his daughter Ingrid, but doesn't think it is funny. Beck's first laugh after the murder comes when Stenström's death is fully vindicated[clarification needed].
[edit] Other appearances
The chorus (of the singer laughing) has been used twice as a buzzer on the television panel game QI, and in 2007 for a Cuprinol television advertisement.
In The Man who Blew Away, an episode of One Foot in the Grave, the Meldrews are constantly kept awake by a late night party across the road, the worst comes when the partygoers join in the chorus of the song.
In an episode of the BBC police drama City Central criminals stole an officer's radio and used it to broadcast the song continuously, disrupting police communications.
In the BBC detective drama, Bergerac (TV series), the episode Natural Enemies features the song being played on a gramophone in a children's home, as several children laugh at Charlie Hungerford.
[edit] External links
- Cylinder Preservation and Digitization Project Publication information and mp3 of George W. Johnson's recording: "The Laughing Song"
- Library of Congress image of sheet music for The Laughing Song published in 1894
[edit] References
- ^ See this Archive.org collection of George W. Johnson's music. Included are four different (1898–1902) recordings of The Laughing Song. Also included in the archive is a later version of The Whistling Coon, written in 1878 by Sam Devere (listen here for Johnson's 1891 version). This song was originally recorded in 1890 by Johnson, and on the back of its success, he derived The Laughing Song.
- ^ "Svensk mediedatabas". http://smdb.kb.se/catalog/id/000076554. Retrieved 27 juli 2011.
