Jud Strunk
Encyclopedia
Jud Strunk was an American
singer, songwriter
and comedian
.
, New York
, he was raised in Buffalo
, New York, where as a small boy his showmanship became evident. After he learned to play the banjo
, Strunk began entertaining locals and went on to wide recognition after appearances on national television
network shows such as Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
.
In 1973, he wrote and recorded the song "A Daisy a Day," which made the Billboard Top 20 on both the country
and pop music
charts. He also wrote and recorded three humorous songs that made it into the country music charts, and he toured with the Andy Williams Road Show
. One of these songs, which continues to be played on the Dr. Demento
show, is "The Biggest Parakeets in Town," a tongue-in-cheek story of a woman who is a bird fancier. Its central joke is the unspoken pun of "parakeets/pair o'tits" used in the title and carried throughout the song. Other lesser singles, such as "Next Door Neighbor's Kid" and the patriotic "My Country," appeared on various Billboard surveys.
Although much of Strunk's material was humorous, his most popular song was not. "A Daisy a Day" is a gentle, sentimental ballad in 3/4 time, describing the relationship between a boy and girl as they grow up together and ultimately grow old together. For every single day of their joined lives, he gives her a daisy as a sign of their love. In the last verse, she has died but her widower husband continues to make daily visits to her grave... and he still gives her a daisy a day.
When Strunk performed this song on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (seated on a stool and accompanying himself on banjo), a bizarre decision was made to film his performance on a set resembling a lunar landscape, apparently to remind the audience that this song had been played on the moon. Jud Strunk was a regular member of the Laugh-In cast during its last season; he often reported fictitious sporting events direct "from Farmington, Maine."
Strunk became a folk hero of sorts in Maine
and in 1970 he narrowly lost the election for a Senate seat in the state legislature. He was also a private pilot and purchased a 1941 Fairchild M62-A. Unfortunately, on 5 October 1981, he suffered a heart attack
while taking off in the aircraft at the Carrabassett Valley Airport in Maine and was killed instantly along with his passenger, local businessman Dick Ayotte. He was 45 years old.
Jud's sons continue to contribute to the Sugarloaf Community, with Jud's grandson performing onstage at The Rack on Sunday afternoons.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
singer, songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
.
Biography
Born Justin Strunk, Jr. in JamestownJamestown, New York
Jamestown is a city in Chautauqua County, New York in the United States. The population was 31,146 at the 2010 census.The City of Jamestown is adjacent to Town of Ellicott and is at the southern tip of Chautauqua Lake...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, he was raised in Buffalo
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, New York, where as a small boy his showmanship became evident. After he learned to play the banjo
Banjo
In the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
, Strunk began entertaining locals and went on to wide recognition after appearances on national television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
network shows such as Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In is an American sketch comedy television program which ran for 140 episodes from January 22, 1968, to May 14, 1973. It was hosted by comedians Dan Rowan and Dick Martin and was broadcast over NBC...
and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson is a talk show hosted by Johnny Carson under the Tonight Show franchise from 1962 to 1992. It originally aired during late-night....
.
In 1973, he wrote and recorded the song "A Daisy a Day," which made the Billboard Top 20 on both the country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
and pop music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
charts. He also wrote and recorded three humorous songs that made it into the country music charts, and he toured with the Andy Williams Road Show
Andy Williams
Howard Andrew "Andy" Williams is an American singer who has recorded 18 Gold- and three Platinum-certified albums. He hosted The Andy Williams Show, a TV variety show, from 1962 to 1971, as well as numerous television specials, and owns his own theater, the Moon River Theatre in Branson, Missouri,...
. One of these songs, which continues to be played on the Dr. Demento
Dr. Demento
Barret Eugene Hansen , better known as Dr. Demento, is a radio broadcaster and record collector specializing in novelty songs, comedy, and strange or unusual recordings dating from the early days of phonograph records to the present....
show, is "The Biggest Parakeets in Town," a tongue-in-cheek story of a woman who is a bird fancier. Its central joke is the unspoken pun of "parakeets/pair o'tits" used in the title and carried throughout the song. Other lesser singles, such as "Next Door Neighbor's Kid" and the patriotic "My Country," appeared on various Billboard surveys.
Although much of Strunk's material was humorous, his most popular song was not. "A Daisy a Day" is a gentle, sentimental ballad in 3/4 time, describing the relationship between a boy and girl as they grow up together and ultimately grow old together. For every single day of their joined lives, he gives her a daisy as a sign of their love. In the last verse, she has died but her widower husband continues to make daily visits to her grave... and he still gives her a daisy a day.
When Strunk performed this song on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (seated on a stool and accompanying himself on banjo), a bizarre decision was made to film his performance on a set resembling a lunar landscape, apparently to remind the audience that this song had been played on the moon. Jud Strunk was a regular member of the Laugh-In cast during its last season; he often reported fictitious sporting events direct "from Farmington, Maine."
Strunk became a folk hero of sorts in Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
and in 1970 he narrowly lost the election for a Senate seat in the state legislature. He was also a private pilot and purchased a 1941 Fairchild M62-A. Unfortunately, on 5 October 1981, he suffered a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
while taking off in the aircraft at the Carrabassett Valley Airport in Maine and was killed instantly along with his passenger, local businessman Dick Ayotte. He was 45 years old.
Jud's sons continue to contribute to the Sugarloaf Community, with Jud's grandson performing onstage at The Rack on Sunday afternoons.
Albums
| Year | Album | Chart Positions | Label | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
|||
| 1970 | Downeast Viewpoint | — | — | Columbia |
| 1971 | Jones' General Store | — | — | MGM |
| 1973 | Daisy a Day | 18 | 138 | |
| 1977 | A Semi-Reformed Tequila Crazed Gypsy Looks Back | — | — | MCA |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart Positions | Album | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
US AC Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States... |
CAN Country | CAN Canadian Singles Chart The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays.... |
CAN AC | |||
| 1973 | "Daisy a Day" | 33 | 14 | 4 | 18 | 3 | 5 | Daisy a Day |
| "Next Door Neighbor's Kid" | 86 | — | — | 85 | — | 50 | ||
| 1974 | "My Country" | — | 59 | — | — | — | — | singles only |
| 1975 | "The Biggest Parakeets in Town" | 51 | 50 | — | 20 | 71 | — | |
| 1976 | "Pamela Brown" | 88 | — | — | — | — | — |