Credited to Whistling Jack Smith, the record rose up the UK singles chart.

[7] In America (where listeners may have confused the title character with the other Batman, who had a hit TV series at the time), it peaked at #20 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S.[8] Pat Boone recorded a whistling version of the song in 1967.

A vocal version of the song, as "Ich war der Putzer vom Kaiser", was recorded in German by Die Travellers, in the late 1960s.

[9] The lyrics concern the batman, or Putzer ("cleaner") of the Kaiser, who evades combat because of his position.

It has been suggested that the words derive from a First World War marching song, but that is unconfirmed.