"Down by the Lazy River" is a song written by Alan and Merrill Osmond and performed by The Osmonds, it was produced by Alan Osmond and Michael Lloyd.[1] "Down By the Lazy River" was released on January 15, 1972 and appeared on the band's 1972 album, Phase III.[2] It was certified Gold by the RIAA on March 24, 1972. In 2021, the song was featured in the South Park episode "South ParQ Vaccination Special".
| "Down by the Lazy River" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 U.S. 7" single | ||||
| Single by The Osmonds | ||||
| from the album Phase III | ||||
| B-side | "He's the Light of the World" | |||
| Released | January 15, 1972 | |||
| Recorded | July 29, 1971 | |||
| Length | 2:37 | |||
| Label | MGM | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Alan Osmond, Merrill Osmond | |||
| Producer(s) | Alan Osmond, Michael Lloyd | |||
| The Osmonds singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Chart performance
The song was ranked No. 36 on Billboard magazine's Top Hot 100 songs of 1972.[12] Cash Box had it at No. 30 for the year.[11] The song, like almost all of the Osmonds' discography,[13] was largely left out of recurrent rotation as radio stations no longer play the record; of all of the Osmonds' songs, "Down by the Lazy River" fared the worst relative to its popularity at the time.[14]
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[15] | Gold | 1,000,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
Cover versions
- 1973 - The Barron Knights, on the album Barron Knights[16]
- 1974 - Society of Seven[17]
- 2002 - Montezuma's Revenge[17]
- 2002 - Wonderboy, on the compilation album Right to Chews - Bubblegum Classics Revisited[17]
- 2007 - Rytterne Röj, a Swedish band[17]