"Ferry Cross the Mersey", "Strawberry Fields Forever", "Penny Lane", "Waterloo Sunset": some of the leading British songwriters of the sixties (and Gerry Marsden) really leaned into the trend of putting actual places into compositions. And it sure worked. Though none of the above managed to top the UK charts, these singles still performed well and were critically acclaimed and earned the praise of songwriters everywhere.
I'm a little surprised this practice didn't become even more commonplace, especially after the Fab Four's unbeatable double A side of "Strawberry Fields" and "Penny Lane". Pete Townshend — and, indeed, none of his other mates in The Who — doesn't appear to have written one of his own. (I spent far too long the other day trying to rationalize "I Can See for Miles" as maybe an attempt on his part but it isn't and I wish I hadn't bothered trying to circle that particular square) Neither did Graham Nash, the soon-to-be ex-Hollie. Over on the other side of the Atlantic, Gerry Goffin and Carole King's "Pleasant Valley Sunday" was kind of an equivalent, albeit one that far more sneering than the much more drug-fueled and pacified English numbers above.
So, is "Itchycoo Park" an attempt by Small Faces members Steve Marriott and Ronnie Lane to immortalize yet another spot on the map? Yes but with some caveats. The first thing worth pointing out is that this park of theirs isn't a real place. Some sleuths have tried to find real London parks that might have inspired it and I'm sure Marriott and Lane used their childhood memories and experiences as adults on acid to come up with a composite grassland/woodland for this song. Does it matter that Itchycoo Park isn't real when Lennon and McCartney wrote "Strawberry Fields Forever" and "Penny Lane" respectively from their memories and at a considerable distance from these two Liverpool landmarks?
The other thing to consider is that it doesn't perform the same tasks as its related compositions. "Penny Lane" is an exercise in absurdity — as is "Pleasant Valley Sunday" though it is also drenched in cynicism — while both "Ferry Cross the Mersey" and "Waterloo Sunset" rely on sentimentality. "Strawberry Fields" is the one "Itchycoo Park" is closest to but even then the former is dark and introspective while the latter trades in a muddied mix of joy ("...have fun in the sun") and sorrow ("...well, I cried"). When Lennon implores you to "let me take you down", it's on the sort of trip you'd hesitate to take; whereas Marriott urges the listener to bunk off school ("Why go to learn the words of fools?") so they can get high together. Nothing frightening going on there.
Comparing even the very best that Marriott and Lane were capable of with Lennon and McCartney and Ray Davies does them no favours but "Itchycoo Park" is still a more than worthy attempt to compete with them, especially when you consider that they produced it as well. (Davies did likewise but "Waterloo Sunset" isn't a studio triumph to anywhere near the same extent) If the lyrics are a little scattered and directionless, then musically every key change hits beautifully. Their deeply uninteresting 'East End R&B' is nowhere to be seen, as is their over-reliance on music hall. Instead, their finest three minute pop song has an agreeable groove with plenty of psychedelic rock to aid the visit to this non-existent park of theirs. (That said, their roots aren't ignored entirely: while not a completely effective cover, British dance-pop act M People's version extracts the song's soul and gospel backbone which is easy to ignore in the original)
I grew up in the nineties, the perfect age to be into Brit-pop. (Though geography didn't help since indie music from the UK had bottomed out in North America, even as a niche market) Canadian and American music critics were largely dismissive of the genre, putting down as all hype on the part of a suddenly patriotic British press. I had no time for this load of crap for the most part - yeah, American critics wouldn't debase themselves to over-hype all those terrible jam bands of the era - with one unexpected exception. Q Magazine printed an article on the Small Faces, describing them as the "most perfect group in history" or something equally overcooked. Though seldom if ever overrated in their own time, there now seemed to be this desire to overdo the praise as Brit-pop forefathers. I was keen to give them a listen but very little of their stuff clicked with me. The early work failed to excite and even their supposed masterpiece — and swansong — Ogden's Nut Gone Flake didn't do anything for me. (I will say I am willing to give it another try, it could very well grow on me) But with "Itchycoo Park" they just about manage to deliver something that holds up next to their superiors, as well as those they'd one day influence.
Score: 8
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