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Description
Novelty is a branch of popular song that foregrounds a "novel" hook—gimmicks, topical jokes, exaggerated sound effects, or playful pastiches—designed to grab immediate attention and often to amuse. It overlaps with comedy songs and musical parody, but not every humorous song is a novelty; the emphasis is on the conceit itself and its instant recognizability.
The term emerged in the Tin Pan Alley era as one of the three big divisions of commercial popular music (alongside ballads and dance numbers), and the style surged in popularity in the 1920s–30s, with later revivals in the 1950s–60s and recurring viral waves in the internet age. (en.wikipedia.org)
Sources: Spotify, Wikipedia, Discogs, Rate Your Music, MusicBrainz, and other online sources
History
Novelty songs crystallized in the commercial ecosystem of Tin Pan Alley, where publishers and vaudeville/music-hall performers prized instantly marketable tunes built around witty conceits, sonic tricks, or topical jokes. As a label, “novelty” was used within Tin Pan Alley to distinguish such fare from ballads and dance songs. (britannica.com)
Between World War I and the early sound-film era, novelty numbers were a staple of revues and records: stuttering or scat hooks (e.g., “K‑K‑K‑Katy,” “I Wanna Be Loved by You”), food and fad jokes (“Yes! We Have No Bananas”), and faux‑exotic set‑pieces like “Oh By Jingo!” and “Nagasaki,” which played up imagined locales for comic effect. Pianist-composer Zez Confrey’s “novelty piano” instrumentals (“Kitten on the Keys,” “Dizzy Fingers”) helped cement the craze. (it.wikipedia.org)
Spike Jones & His City Slickers turned sound‑effect slapstick into chart hits in the 1940s, while the 1950s–60s brought recurring novelty waves tied to seasonal or fad cycles (from chipmunk voices to monster spoofs and dance crazes). The category remained distinct from straight comedy because the production gimmick—the sonic twist, premise, or catchphrase—was the selling point. (en.wikipedia.org)
Radio tastemaker Dr. Demento gave a national platform to novelty in the 1970s–80s, the period that also launched “Weird Al” Yankovic’s long run of parodic hits; charting examples ranged from “Disco Duck” and “The Streak” to Chuck Berry’s “My Ding‑a‑Ling.” The style’s flexibility let rock, country, and R&B artists score one‑off novelty smashes without changing core genres. (en.wikipedia.org)
Social media supercharged novelty’s traditional appetite for memes and catchphrases: Ylvis’s “The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)”, Pinkfong’s “Baby Shark,” and other viral earworms revived the form’s perennial mass‑appeal—often as family or children’s content and holiday chart battles. (en.wikipedia.org)
