I had something else lined up for tonight, but I read in the Times today that Crispian St. Peters died recently, so I changed my plans. He had precisely one hit here in the States, and truth to tell, it was not such a great song, but it’s one of those tunes that sticks with you. In fact, if you’re not careful you can’t get rid of it. I understand the Germans have a word for the phenomenon (ah, here it is). Mark Twain wrote a very funny short story about the affliction, and how to get rid of it, the events of which took place on Farmington Avenue, a hop, skip and a jump from where I grew up. Anyway, this is one of those songs. Go ahead. Listen to it. Now listen to it again. Once more, maybe. Let it sink in a bit. Now, see if you can get it out of your head in any way other than banging said head against a wall (and even that won’t work) or somehow inflicting it on someone else. It’s called Pied Piper.
I discovered in the Times obituary that before Pied Piper he had a hit in England with You Were on My Mind, which was a hit here by a group called We Five. His version is actually much better, since the We Five (who were also one hit wonders) converted it into a happy song. Here is his version. Maybe, if you already have Pied Piper running through your head, this can help get rid of it, or maybe it will just replace it.
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