"Mr. Custer" is a novelty song

Novelty song

A novelty song is a comical or nonsensical song, performed principally for its comical effect. Humorous songs, or those containing humorous elements, are not necessarily novelty songs. The term arose in Tin Pan Alley to describe one of the major divisions of popular music. The other two divisions...

, sung by Larry Verne

Larry Verne

Larry Verne was an American novelty song singer. Verne scored two U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart hit singles in 1960: "Mister Livingston" and "Mr. Custer" . "Mr. Custer" was written by Fred Darian, Al DeLory, and Joe Van Winkle. The record sold over one million copies, earning a gold disc. In the...

, and written by Al DeLory, Fred Darian, and Joseph Van Winkle. It was a number-one song in the United States in 1960, topping the Billboard Hot 100

Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

 singles chart for the issue dated October 10, 1960, and remained there for one week. It is a comical song about a soldier's plea to Custer

George Armstrong Custer

George Armstrong Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. Raised in Michigan and Ohio, Custer was admitted to West Point in 1858, where he graduated last in his class...

 at the climactic Battle of the Little Bighorn

Battle of the Little Bighorn

The Battle of the Little Bighorn, also known as Custer's Last Stand and, by the Indians involved, as the Battle of the Greasy Grass, was an armed engagement between combined forces of Lakota, Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho people against the 7th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army...

 against the Sioux

Sioux

The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...

, which he did not want to fight.

"Mr. Custer" was also a No. 12 hit in the UK for Charlie Drake

Charlie Drake

Charlie Drake was an English comedian, actor, writer and singer.With his small stature , curly red hair and liking for slapstick he was a popular comedian with children in his early years, becoming nationally-known for his "Hello, my darlings" catchphrase...

in 1962.