'70s Rock Band's Biggest Hit Nearly Never Happened
- - '70s Rock Band's Biggest Hit Nearly Never Happened
Kayla AldecoaFebruary 3, 2026 at 5:20 AM
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Photo by Michael Ochs Archives on Getty Images
"Joy to the World", arguably Three Dog Night's biggest hit, was never supposed to be their song.
Founding member, Danny Hutton explained how the song (written by Hoyt Axxton) was originally written for an animated series.
"I remember Michael Allsup, our guitar player, and our bass player, Joe Schermie...We knew Hoyt Axton," Hutton said during an interview on the Professor of Rock podcast. "Hoyt Axton actually got signed to our management company. So, Hoyt went out as an opening act for us. He was a great big bear of a man, a great guy."
He continued, "Hoyt invited them to a session down in Hollywood in Selma. They heard it and they thought it was pretty good. It was a failed song...he was trying to do a morning cartoon thing with about 11 songs on it and [the show] didn't work."
Once the show failed, Hoyt decided to split up the songs to different artists. Upon hearing the would-be hit, Hutton recalled saying, "Oh God, what the hell is going on here?"
Chuck Negron explained that Hutton "didn't feel it was right for the band."
Hoyt decided to pivot the song into a gospel song, changing the iconic line, "Jeremiah was a bullfrog," to "Jeremiah was a prophet," Negron added.
"I said, well, what was the version he'd been playing for the guys? and he played 'Jeremiah was a bullfrog,'" he continued. "There's something about it that was cool. We just said, 'OK, let's go to the studio.'"
The song went on to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was ranked No. 1 pop single of 1971 by the outlet. "Joy to the World" was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo Or Group.
It seems the only one who knew the song would be a hit was Negron.
"I knew that ['Jeremiah was a bullfrog'] was going to be in everyone's head," he said. "It was just too bizarre."
This story was originally published by Parade on Feb 3, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
