The Chicken Song

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"The Chicken Song"
"The Chicken Song" cover
Single by Spitting Image featuring The Wet Gits
Released 1986
Format 7"
Recorded 1986
Genre Pop
Chart positions

"The Chicken Song" is a song by the British parody/satire comedy program Spitting Image.

The song was a parody of summer holiday disco songs such as "Agadoo" or "Do The Conga" which were in vogue during the mid 1980's. The song made specific reference to the group Black Lace who performed those songs with the opening verse of: Its the time of year / Now that Spring is in the air /When those two wet gits / with their girly curly hair [parodying the appearance of Black Lace] / Make another song for moronic holidays / That nauseate-ate-ates / In a million different ways.

The chorus, repetitions of which make up most of the song, runs:

"Ho-old ... a ... chicken in the air;
Stick a deckchair up your nose;
Buy a jumbo jet
And then bury all your clothes!
Paint your left knee green
And extract your wisdom teeth;
Form a string quartet
And pretend your name is Keith!"

These nonsense lyrics were written by Rob Grant and Doug Naylor.

The song featured heavily during the 1986 season of Spitting Image, playing recurrently in the background and being hummed by characters. At one stage, the puppet of Pope John Paul II played it on a banjolele.

A subsequent release as a single reached number one in the official UK Singles Chart for three weeks in 1986.

The B-side of the single was another popular song from the TV series, entitled I've Never Met A Nice South African, which mocked the apartheid-era nation's inhabitants.

An E.P. of the Chicken Song was also released. The B-side of this contained I've Never Met A Nice South African and a parody of Phil Collins called Hello, I Must Be Going.

Released on the "Spit In Your Ear" CD is the "Celebrity Mega Mix", which features celebrities like Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan and Tina Turner singing the lyrics.

Preceded by
"Rock Me Amadeus" by Falco
UK number one single
May 11, 1986
Succeeded by
"Spirit In The Sky" by Doctor and the Medics