They're Coming To Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!

History

Released on Warner Bros. Records, the bizarre depiction of mental illness became an instant hit in the United States that summer, reaching number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart.

However, it was highly controversial at the time. Some groups protested the apparent mockery of mental illness, while other groups attacked the apparent comparison of Napoleon's wife to a "mangy mutt". The protesters put pressure both on radio stations directly and on the stations' advertisers. This was especially felt in New York City, where Top 40 stalwarts WABC (AM) WABC and WMCA soon dropped the record from airplay and skipped it during their countdown shows, much to the confusion of the young teens who made up a large part of those broadcasters' audience. The record was soon banned from airplay as BMI took the unprecedented step of withdrawing its certification. By the time it had been recertified by SESAC, it had all but disappeared from the Billboard Top 40 play list. ''The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits'', Billboard Publications,

The record was also a success in the United Kingdom, reaching number 4 on the UK Singles Chart.

Remember when you ran away and I got on my knees and begged you not to leave because I'd go berzerk?
Well, you left me anyhow and the days got worse and worse and now you see I've gone completely out of my mind.