| "Snoopy vs. the Red Baron" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
&sq=&lang=&file=File:Snoopy_vs_the_red_baron_by_the_royal_guardsmen_US_single_side-A_variant_A.png) One of side-A labels of the US single | ||||
| Single by The Royal Guardsmen | ||||
| from the album Snoopy and His Friends | ||||
| B-side | "I Needed You" (non-LP track) | |||
| Released | November 1966 | |||
| Recorded | Charles Fuller Productions studio, Tampa, Florida | |||
| Genre | Rock, novelty | |||
| Length | 2:40 | |||
| Label | Laurie | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Phil Gernhard and Dick Holler | |||
| Producer(s) | Phil Gernhard and John Brumage | |||
| The Royal Guardsmen singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Snoopy vs. the Red Baron" is a novelty song written by Phil Gernhard and Dick Holler and recorded in 1966 by the Florida-based pop group The Royal Guardsmen. The song was recorded at the Charles Fuller Productions studio in Tampa, Florida, and was released as a single on Laurie Records. Debuting at #122 on the Bubbling Under the Hot 100 on December 10, 1966, the single skyrocketed to #30 on December 17, 1966,[1] shot up again to #7 on December 24, 1966[2] and peaked at #2 on the Hot 100 during the week of December 31, 1966 (behind the Monkees' "I'm a Believer"); made #6 on the Record Retailer (UK) chart in February 1967;[3] was #1 in Australia for 5 weeks from February 1967; and #1 for 3 weeks in Canada.[4] On the Hot 100, "Believer" at #1 kept "Snoopy" at #2 from reaching the Hot 100 summit from December 31, 1966, through January 21, 1967, after which "Snoopy" fell off while "Believer" stayed at the top for another 3 weeks; however the song spent one week at the top of the Record World charts.[5] The song sold close to three million copies.[6]
The Royal Guardsmen went on to record several other Snoopy-themed songs, including two follow-ups to "Snoopy vs. the Red Baron" – "The Return of the Red Baron" and "Snoopy's Christmas" – together with other tunes such as "Snoopy for President".[7] In 2006, they released "Snoopy vs Osama".[8]
- ^ "The Hot 100 Chart". Billboard.
- ^ "The Hot 100 Chart". Billboard.
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 473. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ "RPM Top 100 Singles - January 14, 1967" (PDF).
- ^ "Top Pops". Record World. 21 (1023): 15. 14 January 1967.
- ^ Mendelson, Lee; Schulz, Charles M. (1970). Charlie Brown & Charlie Schulz: In Celebration of the 20th Anniversary of Peanuts. New York: World Publishing. p. 106. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
- ^ Pore-Lee-Dunn Productions. "Royal Guardsmen". Classicbands.com. Retrieved 2016-10-01.
- ^ "'Snoopy vs. Osama' by Ocala's The Royal Guardsmen". Tampa Bay Times. May 2, 2011. Archived from the original on March 13, 2014.