Song #50: "Mother-In-Law" by Ernie K-Doe

Date: May 22, 1961
Weeks: 1

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Is... is this supposed to be a novelty song? It comes across like something I'd expect to hear on a Dr. Demento collection. And the subject matter of a guy singing about his evil mother-in-law seems like it's supposed to be funny. But he sounds so sincere, and novelty songs I've heard from this era are rarely this dry and subtle. But then maybe that's part of the joke. I don't know, 1961, I'm not sure I get your sense of humor.

The song is about the singer's evil mother-in-law. And I don't mean that metaphorically. He actually uses the words "Satan should be her name. To me they're about the same." Ultimately, his problem with his mother-in-law comes down to the stress she puts on his marriage. She criticizes how much money he makes, "she thinks her advice is the Constitution." Yeah, that's a bad situation, I suppose, but I guess the joke of the evil mother-in-law has been worn out by years of situation comedies and beer commercials. And it wasn't that great a joke in the first place, so age and overused has really diminished its charm. I suppose this song manages to balance a kernel of truth (other people commenting on your marriage can make it extra stressful) with an exaggerated joke (she's the Devil), in a way that works okay. I get a bit of wry amusement from the song.

Musically, I really like it. This is basic 1950s R&B, with all the gentle dance bop beat that implies. The guitar and drums are simple and effective. The transitions between verse and chorus are accented with horns effectively. There's a nice piano bridge. Everything is very basic and simple and clean. This is one of the building blocks of rock and roll, here. Ernie K-Doe himself does a fine job singing. His voice is very appealing and he has a good rhythmic sense. His background singers are a little goofier, especially the guy singing bass, but it's not so bad.

My verdict: Like it. The music is basic classic rock and roll and I'd listen to it under any lyrics. The lyrics are kind of silly, and the joke isn't all that funny, but they're fairly inoffensive overall.