Alvin and the Chipmunks were the brainchildren of the late Ross Bagdasarian, a.k.a. David Seville. He was a Fresno, California boy with deep roots in the local Armenian community, along with fellow local, author William Saroyan. His son, Ross Jr., is keeping the franchise active.

Country singer, Ray Stevens, had a list of goofball comedy songs, such as "The Streak" during the sixties. Fellow singer-songwriter Roger Miller left quite a legacy, culminating in his music for the Broadway show hit, "Big River." Along the way, he left us with "Dang Me" and "You Can't Roller Skate in a Buffalo Herd," among many others. The third member of this group of sixties and seventies folks was the recently departed country guitarist and singer (and sometime actor), Jerry Reed. He grew up admiring Chet Atkins and eventually became a friend and collaborator with him. He was a very respected guitarist in his own right.

Who says the novelty song has gone bye, bye?