| Laughing | |
| Cover: | LaughingUndun.jpg |
| Border: | yes |
| Caption: | Cover of the 1969 German single |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | The Guess Who |
| Album: | Canned Wheat |
| B-Side: | Undun |
| Released: | July 1969 |
| Recorded: | 1969 at RCA Studio A, New York, New York |
| Genre: | Pop rock[1] |
| Label: | RCA Victor |
| Producer: | Jack Richardson |
| Prev Title: | These Eyes |
| Prev Year: | 1968 |
| Title2: | Undun |
| Next Title: | No Time |
| Next Year: | 1969 |
"Laughing" is a popular song by Canadian rock band The Guess Who. It peaked at #1 on the Canadian Singles Chart for a single week[2] and at #10 on the United States' Billboard Hot 100, becoming the band's second single to reach the Top 10 on the latter.[3] It became their second of three gold records in the United States and also made the Top 20 on singles charts in New Zealand and South Africa.
It appeared on their 1969 album, Canned Wheat, and was released as a single that year. It sold more than 350,000 copies in the first three weeks of release.[4]
Dave Bist of The Montreal Gazette has written that "These Eyes" and "Laughing" gave its audience the impression that the group only made music for the money. "Undun", the group's third "biggie", and "No Time", he wrote, changed that impression.[5]
A rare black and white music video for the song exists.[6]
| Chart (1969) | Peak position | |
|---|---|---|
| Canada RPM Top Singles | 1 | |
| Canada RPM Adult Contemporary[7] | 3 | |
| New Zealand[8] | 19 | |
| South Africa (Springbok Radio)[9] | 20 | |
| 10 | ||
| U.S. Cash Box Top 100 | 4 |
| Chart (1969) | Rank | |
|---|---|---|
| Canada[10] | 30 | |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[11] | 96 | |
| U.S. Cash Box Top 100[12] | 84 |
The song has been covered by saxophonist Dave Pell.[13]
An edited version of the song is used in an Instagram post by film director Todd Phillips as foreground music of a camera test for 2019's Joker, featuring Joaquin Phoenix starring as the DC Comics character The Joker.[14]
It was also used in trailers for the 2017 horror film Jigsaw; the sequel/soft-reboot of the Saw film series.
