Allan Sherman was the borscht-belt Bob Dylan for my parent’s generation. He was a brilliant writer and song satirist who pretty much brought the East Coast Jewish aesthetic to the top of the charts in the early 1960s. His first album, “My Son, The Folk Singer” was released in 1963 and was one of the fastest selling records of its time surpassing a million copies within a month of its release. Its two follow-ups were also released in 1963 and quickly went gold. His biggest hit of all came during the summer of 1963 in the form of “Hello Mudduh, Hello Fadduh (A Letter From Camp)” which spawned a Grammy Award, a children’s book, a board game and a cartoon. This song is from Sherman’s second album, “My Son, The Celebrity” and along with Harry Belafonte’s “Calypso,” Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass’ “Whipped Cream (And Other Delights),” Barbra Streisand’s “My Name Is Barbara” and the Original Broadway Cast Recording of “Fiddler On The Roof,” it was standard issue in any early 1960s Jewish home. If you think of other records I left off of this list, feel free comment and create a list. Without Allan Sherman, there would be no Weird Al Yankovic today.
