As the years have gone by, I've increasingly found that I have no middle ground with Sir Paul McCartney. Whereas I can feel good, bad or indifferent to the output of just about any other artist, the latter response is absent when considering McCartney's work; simply put, I either like it or I don't. And to continue along this bald statement path, I don't like 'Hey Jude'.It's not always been that way - growing up, I always enjoyed the all together now football terrace chant of the close. But that was then; nowadays all I hear is that vocal and melody meandering from key to key in search of resolution but never managing to meet itself in a satisfying conclusion. And just when all concerned realise that it's probably never going to, another left field change of pace on the "better, Better, BETTER" puts its arm around the song and leads it into the "la la la" mantra of the outro that buries what's gone before like tarmac over grass.
The tale runs that, not keen on being bested by Richard Harris and 'Macarthur Park' as being the longest single, 'Hey Jude' purposely runs one second longer. But I think there's more to it than petty one-upmanship; 'Hey Jude' needs that 'chorus' to give a loose song about nothing much in particular a memorable send off, a hook to hum that otherwise just wouldn't be there and I think a useful comparator is with T Rex and 'Hot Love', another number one with an extended "la la la" ending.
But in the case of Bolan's song, that coda could have faded ten seconds in with no detriment to the song behind it - 'Hot Love' is a tight composition that can stand by itself. Not so 'Hey Jude' and to do the same here would see the song taking on the mantle of an unfinished demo searching for a reason for its own existence. And in that, 'Hey Jude' points toward the chinless wonders reliant on the reputation of their creator for their kudos that would characterise much of McCartney's eighties output.
I am enjoying reading your comments on each of the UK number ones over the years. I don't always agree with your comments, but I appreciate them none-the-less. However, I couldn't let your comments about 'Hey Jude' go unchallenged. To suggest that without the extended coda (which incidently I hear as na,na,na... )'Hey Jude' would take on 'the mantle of an unfinished demo searching for it's own existence' is taking things a little too far 'me thinks'. The lyrics give hope to the listener that they can improve their life ('take a sad song and make it better').... the strength lies within ('the movement you need is on your shoulder').... The first half of the song is sung in a poignant, gentle manner, as if to guide the listener out of the slump they are in ('let it out and let in')... Then Paul raises the intencity of his 'sermon' with the words 'better, Better, BETTER.....' Yes it WILL get better.. no.. BETTER... So I disagree with your statement that 'Hey Jude' is a 'loose song about nothing much in particular'. If it stopped there it would still be a wonderful song. But I do agree that it needs the extended 'chorus' to finish it off, for the 'na,na,na's..' (or 'la,la,la's.. if you like) gives the listener the lift that was promised earlier - a 'sad' song (poignant) made 'better' (joyous). Quite simply the 'chorus' then becomes what the first half of the song promised by demonstrating how joyful life can be by just humming, singing, or 'la,la.. na,na'ing.... All together, a superb song.
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading and thanks for the comment - they're always welcome. I hear what you're saying and I take your point, but I think it involves a leap of faith regarding 'Hey Jude' that I'm not prepared to take (funnily enough, I've always heard that 'the movement you need' line as meaning the comforting hand of a third party rather than any inner strength). Try as I might, I can never hear it as anything other than a demo and guide vocal dressed up and fleshed out into something that only The Beatles would be able to get away with. Of course, the counter of this is to say that only The Beatles would have the talent/vision to be able to pull it off, but when I compare it to other key songs in their catalogue then all I hear is a song of straw.
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