Boa Constrictor (song)

"Boa Constrictor"
Dutch release picture sleeve
Single by Johnny Cash
from the album Everybody Loves a Nut
A-side"Boa Constrictor"
"Bottom of a Mountain"
Released1966 (1966)
GenreCountry, novelty
Length1:45
LabelColumbia 4-43763
SongwriterShel Silverstein[1]
ProducersDon Law and Frank Jones
Audio
"Boa Constrictor" on YouTube

"Boa Constrictor" is a song written by Shel Silverstein[2] and originally featured on his 1962 album Inside Folk Songs.[3]

Johnny Cash version

The song was covered by Johnny Cash for his 1966 comedy album Everybody Loves a Nut.[4]

Released as the third single from the album (Columbia 4-43763, with a non-album track "Bottom of a Mountain" on the opposite side),[4][5][6][7] the song reached number 39 on the U.S. Billboard country chart.[8][9] and number 33 on the Cash Box country chart.[10]

In January 1967 the song was re-released as a single with "The One on the Right Is on the Left" on the other side.[9]

Lyrical analysis and background

"Boa Constrictor" is another song written by Shel Silverstein. It has a similarly frantic feel to Cash's earlier recording of Silverstein's "25 Minutes to Go." In this song, the singer is being swallowed by a boa constrictor and counting down the body parts the snake is consuming along the way. [...] The snake's burp at the end is priceless.

— John M. Alexander. The Man in Song: A Discographic Biography of Johnny Cash[2]

The third single, “Boa Constrictor,” was the second Shel Silverstein song Cash recorded (the first being "25 Minutes to Go"). It fared even worse than "Everybody Loves a Nut," reaching only #43 [sic!] on the Country chart and #107 on the Pop chart (Cash's last Pop chart entry for over a year). The song would live on, though, in Silverstein's 1974 bestselling collection of poems, Where the Sidewalk Ends. The B-side was a non-album track called "Bottom of [a] Mountain," featuring the acoustic work of Norman Blake and Bob Johnson.

— C. Eric Banister. Johnny Cash FAQ: All That's Left to Know About the Man in Black[4]

Other versions

According to John M. Alexander and his book The Man in Song, the song "was also famously covered by the folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary".[2]

Track listings

7" single (Columbia 4-43673,[1] 1966)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Bottom of a Mountain"Don McKinnon2:23
2."Boa Constrictor"Shel Silverstein1:45
7" single (Columbia 4-33109,[11] 1967)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."The One on the Right Is on the Left"J. H. Clement2:46
2."Boa Constrictor"Shel Silverstein1:45

Charts

Chart (1966) Peak
position
US Bubbling Under Hot 100 (Billboard)[12]107
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[13]39

References

  1. 1 2 "Johnny Cash – Bottom Of A Mountain / Boa Constrictor". Discogs. 1966. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  2. 1 2 3 John M. Alexander (16 April 2018). The Man in Song: A Discographic Biography of Johnny Cash. University of Arkansas Press. pp. 168–. ISBN 978-1-61075-628-0.
  3. ↑ "Boa Constrictor by Shel Silverstein – Samples, Covers and Remixes". WhoSampled. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
    "Boa Constrictor – Composition by Shel Silverstein – Discogs Tracks". Discogs. Retrieved 2019-01-20.
  4. 1 2 3 C. Eric Banister (1 August 2014). Johnny Cash FAQ: All That's Left to Know About the Man in Black. Backbeat. pp. 136–. ISBN 978-1-61713-609-2.
  5. ↑ John L. Smith (1 January 1999). Another Song to Sing: The Recorded Repertoire of Johnny Cash. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-3629-7.
  6. ↑ Steve Turner (2005-10-30). The Man Called CASH: The Life, Love and Faith of an American Legend. Thomas Nelson. pp. 245–. ISBN 978-1-4185-7809-1.
  7. ↑ Tim Neely (2004-05-01). Goldmine Records & Prices. Krause Publications. ISBN 978-0-87349-781-7.
  8. ↑ Joel Whitburn (2002). Top Country Singles, 1944 to 2001: Chart Data Compiled from Billboard's Country Singles Charts, 1944–2001. Record Research. ISBN 978-0-89820-151-2.
    Joel Whitburn (2005). Joel Whitburn's Top Country Songs: 1944–2005, Billboard. Record Research. ISBN 978-0-89820-165-9.
  9. 1 2 Peter Lewry (2001). I've Been Everywhere: A Johnny Cash Chronicle. Helter Skelter. p. 52. ISBN 978-1-900924-22-1.
    10 September
    "Boa Constrictor" was probably one comedy single too many and it only manages to spend five weeks in the charts with a high of #39.
    1967
    January
    "The One On The Right Is On The Left"/"Boa Constrictor" (Columbia 4-...
  10. ↑ George Albert (1984-01-01). The Cash Box Country Singles Charts, 1958–1982. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-1685-5.
  11. ↑ "The One On The Right Is On The Left/Boa Constrictor". Discogs. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  12. ↑ "Johnny Cash Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard.
  13. ↑ "Johnny Cash Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2019-01-20.
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