The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana)

"The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana)" was written by N. B. Winkless, Jr. on a rickety piano in the living room of a house in Kenilworth, Illinois. Winkless had many years experience as a jingle writer at Leo Burnett Advertising Agency ("Good Morning, Good Morning" for Kellogg's Corn Flakes and the "Snap, Crackle, Pop" song for Rice Krispies, among dozens of others). For contractual reasons, credit for the Tra-La-La goes to Ritchie Adams and Mark Barkan; Barkan was one of the music directors for the show. Mark Barkan and Ritchie Adams to be the theme song for the children’s television program The Banana Splits Adventure Hour.^[1]

Originally released in 1968 by Decca Records on the album titled We're the Banana Splits, the single release peaked at #96 on the Billboard Hot 100 on February 8, 1969.^[2]

In 1995, Hollywood Library released the 1,000-copy limited-edition CD reissue We're the Banana Splits/Here Come the Beagles which, in addition to the original album version, includes an alternate version on the song.^[3]

Cover versions

American punk rock band The Dickies made the song a hit in the United Kingdom in 1979 with their cover version, marketed by A&M Records as "Banana Splits (Tra La La Song)". The record reached #7 in the UK Singles Chart.^[4] This cover version was later used in the 2010 film Kick-Ass.^[5]

The 1983 Bob Marley song, "Buffalo Soldier" has a bridge (with the lyrics "woy! yoy! yoy!") similar to the chorus of the Banana Splits' "The Tra-La-La Song". There has never been any litigation connected to the similarity.^[6]

References