"Penny Lane"

We are having a week of clean at Word & Song. Perhaps it’s all the work we have been doing since arriving at our 150 year old cottage that made us think of our word this week. But whatever brought the word to mind, it immediately put me in mind of a song. Why Penny Lane? If you recall the lyrics, you already know. If not (and even if you do know), read on.

It’s no secret that Sometimes a Song is a little tribute I do each week to my dear mother, whose beloved Big Band music and recordings by the mid-century crooners filled our home all while I was growing up. But that music was a bit out of step with the times by then, and in the 60’s and 70’s rock ‘n roll was “in.” I was too young to be listening to The Beatles when they first arrived in the US, but of course I heard their music in the air with the rest of the musical mix in those days. I recall that when I was a young child my Dad commented on them, from their appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. He thought that their hair needed cutting and that “they’d never be as good as The Four Seasons.” (Dad liked the famous quartets of the 40’s and 50’s, such as The Mills Brothers and The Ames Brothers.) I took Dad’s word for it. And besides, The Four Seasons had a hit song that I had heard called, “Rag Doll.” Haha!

Dad’s opinion notwithstanding, the Beatles did fill the airwaves, and their output did beat out that of The Four Seasons. And to give my father credit, he did like some of their music, mainly the ballads, such as “Yesterday” and “Michelle.” What he thought of “Penny Lane” I don’t exactly recall. I’m sure that by the time the song was released in 1967 I was hearing it daily on the bus radio on my way to and from school every day. Our bus driver did not set the dial to “easy listening,” for sure.

I’ve talked before about the Lennon-McCartney partnership and the deal-of-a-lifetime for John Lennon, who shared credit and royalties 50/50 with Paul McCartney for all the hits the two produced together — even when the bulk of the work was done by Paul, and there’s no secret about that. But however the work was divided, the two were working in the second part of the 1960’s on songs which would be released on their album, “Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts’ Club Band.” And one thing that that collaboration produced were songs that Paul called works of “recent nostalgia” based upon his and John’s not-so-distant childhood memories of growing up in Liverpool. The notable result of this effort was a (very rare) single 45 RPM release with TWO “A-sides”: Penny Lane on one A-Side and “Strawberry Fields” on the other A-Side. The first song was mostly the work of Paul and the latter was mostly the work of John, who considered it the best song he ever did with The Beatles. Some musicologists now consider this double-A side 45 to be the greatest single release of all time.

And what has all of this to do with our Word of the Week, clean? First there are the lyrics, in which Paul coined a phrase he was really proud of, “clean machine. ” That’s what I first thought of when Tony suggested the word. And second — I was surprised to learn this — Paul’s ambition with “Penny Lane” had been to produce a “clean, American sound” on a par with pieces by The Beach Boys. “Penny Lane” and songs such as “California Girls” share a contrasting verse-chorus form popularized by Stephen Foster in the mid-19th century. Commenting on his hopes for the song when he conceived of it, Paul said that he’d been looking for that clean American folk style. Hmm? I’m so glad he said that!

And for some additional insights into the song, I have attached a couple of short videos by The Man himself, below, and of course the song for your listening pleasure. And yes, there is a deep sense of nostalgia about “Penny Lane” that even someone with my father’s musical taste could appreciate. I hope everyone will enjoy this clean sound from a great talent.

Word & Song is an online magazine devoted to reclaiming the good, the beautiful, and the true. We publish six essays each week, on words, classic hymn, poems, films, and popular songs, as well a weekly podcast, alternately Poetry Aloud or Anthony Esolen Speaks. To support this project, please join us as a subscriber.