music.wikisort.org - Composition

"The Unicorn" is a song written by Shel Silverstein and was first released in 1962 on his album Inside Folk Songs (Atlantic 8072).[1]

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"The Unicorn"
Song by Shel Silverstein
from the album Inside Folk Songs
Released	1962
Genre	Folk
Label	Atlantic Records
Songwriter(s)	Shel Silverstein
Producer(s)	Jerry Wexler, Al Brackman

Background

The lyrics to the song also appear, printed as a poem, based on the biblical tale, Noah's Ark, in Shel Silverstein's book Where the Sidewalk Ends. In the original version of the song, the Irish Rovers speak half of the lyrics, as well as the part of the fourth chorus. The final line is spoken freely without music: "And that's why you'll never see a Unicorn to this very day".[2]

Irish Rovers recording

"The Unicorn"
Decca 32254
Single by the Irish Rovers
from the album The Unicorn
B-side	"Black Velvet Band" (most releases) "The Rattling Bog" (UK/Ireland)
Released	1968
Genre	Folk
Length	3:18
Label	Decca (most releases) MCA (UK/Ireland) Festival (Australia)
Songwriter(s)	Shel Silverstein
Producer(s)	Charles "Bud" Dant

"The Unicorn" was made very popular by the Irish Rovers in 1968. It remains one of the best-known songs in the Irish Rovers' long career. It sold 8 million copies worldwide and in their native Ireland, the song peaked at #5 on the Irish Singles Chart.[3][4] Elsewhere, "The Unicorn" peaked at #4 in Canada,[5] and in the US, reached #2 on the US Adult Contemporary Chart, and #7 on the Hot 100.[6]

Other cover versions

Silverstein's songbook, "Dirty Feet" (TRO/Hollis Music, 1969), includes a discography saying that, along with the Irish Rovers and Silverstein's versions, "The Unicorn" had been recorded by

• Bill Anderson (Decca)
• Shay Duffin (RCA)
• Robert Goulet (Columbia)
• Bob Turner[7] (ABC)
• Uncle Bill" (Dot). (The record "Uncle Bill Socks It To Ya"[8] was by Burt Wilson, imitating W.C. Fields)
• Will Millar of the Irish Rovers recorded another, earlier version of the song with the St. Michaels Kids.[9] In 1981 Millar opened an Irish pub in Toronto under the name The Unicorn.[10]

Description

According to the song, the unicorn was not a fantasy, but a creature that literally missed the boat by not boarding Noah's Ark in time to be saved from the Great Flood described in the Bible. They are said to be the loveliest of all animals but also silly.[11]

References

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