Beans in My Ears

“Beans in My Ears” is a song written by Len Chandler that was a hit single in 1964 when covered by The Serendipity Singers. The song was written and sung by protest singer and contributing editor to folk-centric Broadside Magazine, Len Chandler. After it became a hit for the Serendipity Singers in 1964, doctors protested that many children were actually putting beans in their ears so it was banned in some places such as Pittsburgh and Boston. Numerous public health boards reportedly blacklisted the song as well, according to Chandler.[ “Some television shows asked us to do something different,” said Bryan Sennett of the Serendipity Singers. “Understandably so–it was dangerous. Obviously, (the song) was a statement about adults not listening to children.” Pittsburgh radio station KDKA’s program manager Jack Williams imposed the ban due to the number of listener complaints and doctor reports about children putting objects in their ears in the three weeks following the song’s release on the station.