Recorded 1967 Length 2:29 | Genre Novelty | |
Released 28 February 1968 (United Kingdom) Label Philips Records BF 1640 (UK) Writer(s) Mason Williams, Nancy Ames | ||
"Cinderella Rockefella" is a novelty song written by Mason Williams and Nancy Ames, and most famously released as a single by the Israeli duo Esther and Abi Ofarim, at the time a married couple, in 1968. They recorded their version in 1967 and made an appearance on The Eamonn Andrews Show to promote it. An April 1967 performance on the CBS television variety program The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, introduced a U.S. audience to the song. Co-Composer Williams was a writer for the series. The track peaked at No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart in February 1968, where it remained for three weeks.
The single features yodelling and a somewhat 1920s-style arrangement. The song is structured like a twelve-bar blues.
According to Radio Caroline DJ Andy Archer, the song was the last to be played on Radio Caroline South on the night of 2-3 March 1968, before its radio ship (like that of its sister station Radio Caroline North) was towed into harbour over unpaid debts on the morning of 3 March.