"The Swiss Maid" was a 1962 hit for Del Shannon

Del Shannon

Del Shannon was an American rock and roll singer-songwriter who had a No. 1 hit, "Runaway", in 1961.- Biography :...

. The single only made #64 on the US Billboard Charts

Billboard charts

The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...

, whereas on the UK charts

UK Singles Chart

The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

, it fared much better and made #2. It spent 3 weeks at the top of the Australian charts.

The song was written by country singer/songwriter Roger Miller

Roger Miller

Roger Dean Miller was an American singer, songwriter, musician and actor, best known for his honky tonk-influenced novelty songs...

, who recorded it in 1961 under the title "Fair Swiss Maiden".

Del Shannon's recording featured a distinctive yodel by the artist, popularly used in some country music

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...

of the time. It was the only record of Del Shannon's early career to cross to the Billboard "Easy Listening" survey.