Puppet Man (song)

"Puppet Man"
Single by The 5th Dimension
from the album Portrait
B-side	"A Love Like Ours"
Released	March 1970
Genre	Soul
Length	2:58
Label	Bell Records
Songwriter(s)	Sedaka-Greenfield
Producer(s)	Bones Howe
The 5th Dimension singles chronology
"The Girls' Song" (1970) "Puppet Man" (1970) "Save the Country" (1970)

"Puppet Man" is a song written by Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield. It was originally recorded by Sedaka on his 1969 Australian LP Workin' on a Groovy Thing , which saw a UK release under the title Sounds of Sedaka. In the UK, "Puppet Man" was released as the B-side of the single "Ebony Angel" on the MCA label

The first hit version was by The Fifth Dimension in 1970. The following year it was also a hit for Tom Jones.

The Fifth Dimension's original of "Puppet Man" reached #24 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in the spring of 1970.

Charts

Chart (1970)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report)	19
Canada RPM Top Singles [1]	31
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 [2]	24
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary	31
U.S. Cash Box Top 100 [3]	22

Tom Jones version

"Puppet Man"
Single by Tom Jones
from the album Tom Jones Sings She's a Lady
B-side	"Every Mile" "Resurrection Shuffle"
Released	May 1971
Recorded	1970
Genre	Pop
Length	2:53
Label	Decca (UK), Parrot (US and Canada)
Songwriter(s)	Sedaka-Greenfield
Producer(s)	Gordon Mills
Tom Jones UKsingles chronology
"She's a Lady" (1971) "Puppet Man" (1971) "Till" (1971)

Tom Jones' version was released the following spring. It reached No. 26 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, spending 10 weeks on the chart. For the first six weeks the single was backed with "Every Mile," then was changed to "Resurrection Shuffle", which also became a U.S. top 40 hit, reaching No. 38 and keeping the record on the charts an additional five weeks.

Charts

Chart (1971)	Peak position
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [4]	22
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia) [5]	27
Canada RPM Top Singles [6]	9
UK Singles (OCC) [7]	49
US Billboard Hot 100 [2]	26
US Cash Box Top 100 [8]	14
West Germany (GfK) [9]	36

Other versions

A cover of the song was performed on The Muppet Show in 1980 by a Muppet version of Pinocchio playing into the literal lyrics of the song. ^[10]

References

1. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 1970-05-31. Retrieved 2020-07-16.
2. Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN   0-89820-089-X
3. Cash Box Top 100 Singles, May 31, 1970
4. "Tom Jones – Puppet Man" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
5. "Tom Jones – Puppet Man" (in French). Ultratop 50.
6. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 1971-07-10. Retrieved 2020-07-16.
7. "Tom Jones: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
8. Cash Box Top 100 Singles, July 3, 1971
9. "Offiziellecharts.de – Tom Jones – Puppet Man" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts.
10. Finch, Christopher (1981). Of Muppets and Men. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. ISBN   0394520858.

External links

• Fifth Dimension - Puppet Man on YouTube
• Tom Jones - Puppet Man on YouTube