Nigh doubtless there was no screwier country-to-pop crossover hit i n 1970--and ever, perhaps--than Jack Blanchard and Misty Morgan's "Tennessee Birdwwalk." Its lyrics about feathered creatures losing so many of their avian characteristics and blocking car traffic with their mistimed springtime southward travel are hilariously absurd (to me, anyway). But its sound is plenty wild, too. The husband and wife couple vocalize together nearly throughout the entire song and over its peppy shuffle beat, Morgan's steel guitar is treated with effects to make it sound otherworldly, psychedelic even. It topped US music trade magazines' country singles charts and went top 25 pop-wise. Before reading this question, were you familiar with Blanchard and Morgan's "Birdwalk"?

As so often happens with musicians who make big breakthroughs with novelty songs, their next attempt at a hit is another funny number. Following that template, Blanchard and Morgan followed up their "Birdwalk" with another goofy tale from an imaginary animal kingdom: "Humphrey The Camel"; you got the title's pun?. It's great, too (and a top five country single), but, to my reckoning, it's not narratively purposeful as its predecessor. Can you think of any music acts who released a follow-up to a biggie for him/her/them that sounds a deal like what came immediately before it?

The couple have numerous other funny songs in their catalog, but it would be shortchanging them to brand Blanchard and Morgan (the later of whom died of cancer at 75 in 2001) as merely a musical comedy duo. They were also capable of poignant, storytelling songs on par with their field's most touching and thought-provoking, often reminding me of Roger Miller and Tom T. Hall. Nor did they only harmonize throughout all of their recordings. When singing solo, Blanchard embodied his nickname of the Velvet Saw: low, cutting, and a bit buzzy. His bride possessed a rich, theatrical alto that well fit the twosome's niche. Regardless of genre, can you think of any other musical acts equally adept at funny and serious material, even if, as in the case of Jack and Misty, from an often skewed perspective?

The twosome continued to record and issue music on their own label after their days of hitting music trade publications' country charts. Especially intriguing to me is their album of keyboard instrumentals. Alas, I can find nothing from it on YouTube, Apple Music nor Spotify. But from the inventive way Blanchard and Morgan co-produced their earlier run of work for other record companies, I'll assume their instrumental album makes for compelling listening, too. Are their any musicians you enjoy for their instrumental prowess as well as their songwriting and vocalizing (which can be considered a type of instrumental ability, too)?

The hype stickers on the shrink wrap covering the jewel cases of the two Blanchard & Morgan anthologies CD's issued by an Australia label in the ate '00's imply that the couple's music was abetted by their use of LSD. I've found no evidence of their having used acid, but I'd like to believe that their artistry came from having peculiar imaginations and sense of humor that needed no psychochemical prompting. My own songwriting can get pretty strange, and I've never taken any illegal, controlled substances. Can you think weird thoughts without ingesting anything, other than basic nourishment, to inspire them?