#1 for week of May 22, 1961.
There is almost no way that a song called "Mother In Law" could be anything but either a corny novelty song or one that was extremely tongue in cheek. Fortunately, it's the latter case and not only that, but the song is actually pretty good! Who'da thunk it?
Novelty or humorous songs haven't had much success or critical acclaim on this list so far. This is because most of them are either not funny, or contain poor musical melodies/singing. However, "Mother In Law" actually has funny rather dark humorous lyrics and a great melody, so you can safely listen to it more than once.
What actually makes the song likable to me is that it comes across as a very Motown-sounding tune with a rock steady instrument track, non-dated backing vocals, and a soulful lead vocal. As an added bonus, the song has the familiar dance shuffle rhythm found in many of Motown's later more uptempo numbers such as "Dancing In The Street".
Allen Toussaint, who wrote the song and played piano on the track would later go on to write such classic R&B hits such as "Fortune Teller", and "Working In A Coalmine". Even though "Mother In Law" hasn't been as well remembered as those two tunes, (and even I hadn't heard it until today), I can certainly say that it is a prime example of a buried gem - a great song which has been swept under the woodwork of more well-known hits.
Final Verdict - A surprisingly fun, funny, and enjoyable tune. If you are a fan of Motown and you have a sense of humor, you'll certainly enjoy hearing it too.
Coming Up Next - "Travelin' Man" by Ricky Nelson.
Until Next Time - I'm Dr. Rock, digging up buried gems just for you.
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