This song belongs squarely in the category of Songs About Musicians Having Fun Instead Of Doing Boring Day Jobs. Ironically, its writer, Ray Dorset, composed it in ten minutes while taking a break from his day job at Timex.
Mungo Jerry were from Ashford in the county of Middlesex in England; Dorset was the band's frontman and co-founder. "In The Summertime", their first single, reached number one almost everywhere in the world except the United States, where it reached #3, and Toronto, where it stalled out at #4. It sold a total of somewhere between 8 and 16 million copies worldwide (Wikipedia isn't more precise than this). Presumably, this allowed Dorset to leave his day job.
Mungo Jerry were one-hit wonders in North America only. In Britain, they reached #1 again later in 1970 with "Baby Jump", which is louder and shoutier than "In The Summertime". From 1970 to 1973, the group scored a total of six top-20 hits on the UK charts.
Mungo Jerry has remained in existence ever since, with Dorset being the only constant member. They released their most recent album in 2019.
Created February 3, 2026.