Happy Together by The Turtles

50 years ago this week, The Turtles were at the top of the charts with their “feel good” pop song “Happy Together.” The song hit the No. 1 spot on March 25th, 1967 taking over from the Beatles’ “Penny Lane” which had enjoyed a one week stay.

That must have felt more than a little ironic to the group who once tried to pass themselves off as a British band just to be able to compete with the British Invasion, but if you take a look at The Hot 100 Billboard Hits for 1967, there were more American acts to hit No. 1 than British that year.

According to one entry on Songfacts, the song is not about a happy relationship at all. It is about unrequited love, and that is why at the end, the singer suddenly asks “How is the weather?”– because the object of his affection can’t really “imagine how the world could be so very fine” with him. When we were teens, we didn’t know that though and we thought they just threw that in there as a goof, rather than sing the “happy together” line another time. Truly, the goofiness of that line made it a favorite of many.

“Happy Together” stayed at the top of the chart for 3 weeks until Nancy Sinatra and her daddy came along with “Somethin’ Stupid.”