In his excellent column reviewing all the Billboard #1 songs starting in 1958, Stereogum writer Tom Breihan referred to "Mr. Custer" as "an offensive and morally wrongheaded song that also is pretty much unlistenable musically". I only lasted 49 seconds of it, as it features crude Indigenous cultural stereotyping and its narrator sings in a grating high-pitched whine.
Larry Verne (1936-2013) was from Minneapolis. "Mr. Custer" was co-written by Fred Darian, who has an entry of his own on this website. It reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold over a million copies.
Verne later went on to build film sets in Hollywood. Before passing away, he was afflicted by Alzheimer's disease and had suffered three strokes.
Created August 4, 2026.