"Mississippi" is a song by Dutch country pop band Pussycat. Written by Werner Theunissen and produced by Eddy Hilberts, "Mississippi" was the group's first number-one single in their home country, as well as their only number-one single in most countries worldwide. In New Zealand and South Africa, "Mississippi" was their first of two number-one singles; it was the best-selling single of 1977 in the latter nation.
Werner Theunissen wrote "Mississippi" in 1969 after being inspired by the Bee Gees song "Massachusetts". The song grabbed EMI Bovema's attention, and they decided to sign the band. By December 1975, the song had topped the Dutch Singles Chart.[2] Its international success came in 1976, when it reached number one in Belgium, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, as well as number two in Australia, number four in Austria, and number six in Sweden. In South Africa, "Mississippi" was the highest-selling single of 1977.[3] It is estimated to have sold five million copies worldwide.[4] Outside the Netherlands, Pussycat would later achieve more number-one singles in New Zealand and South Africa,[5][6] but in most territories, "Mississippi" was their highest-charting effort.
Swedish dansbandVikingarna covered the song in Swedish, with lyrics by Margot Borgström, in April 1976, less than six months after the original release. The Swedish song title was also "Mississippi", and it appeared on the band's album Kramgoa Låtar 3 the same year.[32]
^Mississippi (Dutch 7-inch single sleeve). Pussycat. EMI. 1975. 5C 006-25 312.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
