[LouSinew]

Dutch rock band 'Focus' debuted their unusual and beloved song, "Hocus Pocus" in 1971. The song, which showcases singer and keyboardist Thijs van Leer's serious yodeling & flutist skills, was ranked as the number one "weirdest song of all time" by American Songwriter.

Other tunes that made the list include “Bike” by Pink Floyd, released in 1967, Napoleon XIV's 1966 song, “They’re Coming To Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!," and “Muffin Man” by Frank Zappa, off the 1975 album, Bongo Fury.

In a 2021 interview with VRP Rocks, Van Leer, now 71, opened up about the creation of "Hocus Pocus." He recalled that one day the band's guitarist Jan Akkerman began playing what ended up being the song's opening notes, which Van Leer described as "one of the greatest licks in guitar history." According to Van Leer, their drummer, Pierre van der Linden, then joined in with a drum solo. The musician said that he eventually began yodeling.

"I started yodeling behind my organ. For the first time in my life. And that was it. That was the song. And we recorded it for the studio. And it became a big hit," said Van Leer in the 2021 interview.

He said that while he had never yodeled before that, he managed to be "kind of in tune."

"I think it was sounding immediately adequate," said Van Leer.

He also said he hasn't been able to sing the high notes in the song, which is off Focus's second album, Moving Waves, for quite some time.

"The high notes, I can not make anymore. Since my 50s. The yodeling I can do, but the go up, it doesn't happen, anymore. The guitarist is helping me and the public [at concerts]," said Van Leer during the interview with VRP Rocks.

Van Leer also noted that the 1971 song got them attention from audiences in the United States. He recalled enjoying being invited on American talk shows to perform "Hocus Pocus" in the early '70s.

"That was kind of nice. Because we had such a small audience," said Van Leer.

This story was originally published by Parade on Feb 16, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section.

https://www.aol.com/articles/1971-ro...012107496.html

Focus is a Dutch progressive rock band formed in Amsterdam in 1969 by keyboardist, vocalist, and flautist Thijs van Leer, drummer Hans Cleuver, bassist Martijn Dresden, and guitarist Jan Akkerman. The band has undergone numerous formations in its history; since December 2016, it has comprised Van Leer, drummer Pierre van der Linden, guitarist Menno Gootjes, and bassist Udo Pannekeet. They have sold one million RIAA-certified albums in the United States.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Focus_(band)

[LouSinew]

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[LouSinew]

Next time I'll get everything into the original post. I promise!

[IvorySmith]

Never listened to the whole thing before; thanks.

Dunno if it's true, but the live performance seemed so incredible because they had to up the tempo by 50% to make their time block. Got that from one of the comments on the video, but it seems accurate.
Thanks for the post(s).

[Guns N' Coffee]

to me none of those songs seemed really weird, maybe its just me

[WonderMomma]

I LOVE THIS SONG!

The live version was supposed to be shortened but they refused and just sped it up significantly to get it all in there. The studio version is pretty amazing too.

EDIT, just saw Ivory already pointed that out.

[William May]

Lou, THANK YOU! for posting the video! I had NEVER seen them play. I also had NO IDEA that he was both playing the flute AND YODELING at the same time during this song! Finally, AFTER 55 YEARS, I learned this!

[WonderMomma]

Originally Posted by WonderMomma ↗

I LOVE THIS SONG!

[LadyNightmare]

OH HELL YES! I love this! I have heard this song many times and now I have it stored on my computer! This is not a weird song, this is an awesome song. I am a huge Frank Zappa fan, so if you want weird songs just look him up!!!!

[AllegedlyHere]

Stoney song