For some reason I just recalled “Spiders And Snakes” by comedian and musician Jim Stafford, which reached Number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in March 1974.
Not that I remembered that, but a little research goes a long way….
In fact at first I just remembered the line “I don’t like spiders and snakes but that ain’t what it takes to love me like I wanna be loved by you”.
Some things just stick in your mind :-).
Then I found that it was sung by Jim Stafford, and the name was instantly familiar.
So here’s “Spiders And Snakes”:
The previous year, i.e. 1973, he had a chart hit with “Swamp Witch”, another familiar title, which was produced by his friend Kent LaVoie, otherwise known as Lobo:
And in 1975 “Wildwood Weed” peaked at Number 7:
A year later Jim Stafford reached the Top 40 with a song in a similar vein, “I Got Stoned And I Missed It”:
Y’all come back now.
Paul