Dead Skunk In The Middle Of The Road - Loudon Wainwright III (often shortened to "Dead Skunk") Funny song, crazy title
The song is musically a simple folk song based on acoustic guitar, but accompanied by drums and strings. The lyrics, which literally interpreted describe a dead skunk in the middle of a busy road and the smell it produces for pedestrians, have often been seen as an attack on then-president Richard Nixon. Wainwright himself has never confirmed or denied this claim, but has said the song was an accident written in fifteen minutes.
Although the single was released in November 1972, it was not until well into 1973 that it caught on with radio stations, and its number sixteen peak on the Billboard Hot 100 chart was not reached until May 1973. It was the only record to chart for Wainwright.
Trivia note: Loudon Wainwright III appeared three times on M*A*S*H as Captain Calvin Spaulding, who was usually seen playing his guitar and singing.
