One Hit Wonder … Sheb Wooley

 

ARTIST: Sheb Wooley

SONG: Purple People Eater

YEAR: 1958

"Purple People Eater" is a novelty song, written and performed by Sheb Wooley, that reached #1 in the Billboard pop charts in 1958. It remained at No 1 for 6 weeks.

" Purple People Eater" tells how a strange creature, described as a "one-eyed, one-horned, flying, purple people eater", that descends to Earth because it wants to be in a rock 'n' roll band. The premise of the song came from a joke told by the child of a friend of Wooley's and he finished composing it within an hour.

The creature isn't necessarily purple but rather it eats purple people, as shown in the following excerpt:

"I said Mr Purple People Eater, what's your line?

He said eating purple people, and it sure is fine

But that's not the reason that I came to land

I wanna get a job in a rock 'n roll band"

 

Track Listings

1. The Purple People Eater

2. Walkin' Guitar

3. Wild And Wooley, Big Unruly Me

4. Josie (Brown)

5. The Birth Of Rock 'N' Roll

6. Honey I'm Lonesome (The Telegraph Song)

7. A King Or A Clown

8. You Can Do It

9. Purple People Eater #2

10. Hyoom

11. I Found Me An Angel

12. Pygmy Love

13. Mirage

14. Do I Remember

15. Running With The Night Crowd

16. The Taste Of Ashes

17. Let The Big Wing Blow

18. Santa Claus Meets The Purple People Eater

19. Crazy Butterfly

20. Skin Tight, Pin Stripped, Purple Pedal Pushers

21. The Who Who Wallidinks

22. Star Of Love

23. Never Look Down

24. Reach For The Moon

25. Sixteen Violins

26. Monkey Jive

27. The Chase

28. Luke The Spook

29. I Can't Believe You're Mine

30. Google Eye

31. Are You Satisfied