Spiders & Snakes – Jim Stafford | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning
Chart Performance: Pop (#3); 1974
Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne
In 1971 Roland Kent Lavoie, a.k.a. Lobo, reached #5 with Me And You And A Dog Named Boo and then hit #2 with I’d Love You To Want Me the following year.
Ten years since had passed since he and fellow members of The Legends played around Tampa, Florida, and that bit of background info might have been the group’s only trivia except for two other Legends tales.
The first one involved guitarist Jim Stafford, who moved onto Nashville where he broke into the Top 40 with Swamp Witch in 1974. Spiders & Snakes, a deliciously salacious song co-written with David Bellamy of the soon-to-be-hitmaking Bellamy Brothers, was up next.
Jim originally offered Spiders to Lobo, who suggested that Jim record it instead. Third musician in question was the legendary Gram Parsons of the Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers whose influence on rock and country music is still felt today, 30 years after his untimely death.
This content and all Song Meaning articles were created and written by Top 40 Contributing Editor Ed Osborne. © 2024 Ed Osborne. All Rights Reserved. In addition to these song meaning articles, Ed has written our “Year in Music 1960s-1990s” articles.
Produced by:
- Phil Gernhard
- Lobo
Lyrics Written by:
- Jim Stafford
- David Bellamy
Ed Osborne
Hi. I got my first record at age two and never looked back, spending a decades-long career in radio and the music business. Even after years of reading about and listening to all types of music, I am still fascinated by it. Apart from that, I’m endlessly intrigued by art, nature, and the inner lives of people (and dogs).