This is a seemingly slight song, somewhere between the reveries of "Cloudy" and the nonchalance of "Feelin' Groovy."
But there is a bit of history in the song, and trouble in the paradise it loosely describes.
"Sunny" was spun off of a song called "Lover Lover, Come Back," in which Simon was working with some Caribbean tropes. "Lover Lover" eventually became (what else?) "Mother and Child Reunion," and the leftover verses became "Was a Sunny Day," likewise an island-inflected tune.
The line "not a negative word was heard" seems to borrow both syntax and sense from the famous cowboy song "Home on the Range," where "seldom is heard/a discouraging word."
Newport News is a real town, in Virginia, and there is a Navy port there.
But our man Earl? Well, a band called The Cadillacs had a lead singer named Earl Carroll; his nickname was Speedo. In 1955, they recorded their biggest hit, "Speedo": "Well now, they often call me Speedo/ But my real name is Mr. Earl." (Speedo swimwear, incidentally, dates as far back as 1927!)
Our Earl exclusively dates a "girl" named Lorelei (her fidelity is not described). Her name is that of a mythical mermaid whose siren song leads men to their watery graves. The only other thing we know about her is that she peaked in high school, where she was a "queen," possibly of the prom or homecoming. Since her life is all downhill from here, she has "nothing, really, left to lose." And so, nothing to live for.
He is a sailor; she, a mermaid. She is going down, and it seems she is going to drag him down to the depths of her eventual depression with her.
But why dwell on that? Right now, it's "sunny" and cloudless, with Nature's "birdies" and mankind's "radio" singing in harmony.
The song is important, to the degree that it is, for its music more than its lyrics. It pulls from the 1950s rock that Simon loves, and yet it is another successful foray into the Caribbean songs that entrance him.
An autobiographical reading of the song might be: Simon, as the stolid Navy man, his transistor radio still plugged into the crew-cut sound of the past. The island music is the siren, the seductress that pulls him astray... but what a way to go.
(From a sheer quality standpoint, there is an exponential growth from the lumbering "Why Don't You Write Me" to the breezy "Was a Sunny Day"... and in just three years.)
Musical Note: The backing vocals are by sisters Maggie and Terre Roche. With the addition of another sister, Suzzy, they soon became The Roches, an excellent and quirky vocal ensemble; Simon produced their debut album. The song was covered by many other acts, including Rosemary Clooney!
Next song: Learn How to Fall
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How about the musical interlude after the lines, "Just a come–on from the whores
ReplyDeleteOn Seventh Avenue I do declare,There were times when I was so lonesome (25) I took some comfort there Lie–la–lie . . . " ? It sounds, in my appraisal,that this musical symbolism ties in the lure of the Sirens to the deception of not listening to reason for the “poor boy”.
Thanks for your comment, although I am wondering why it is posted under this song...?
ReplyDeleteIt makes sense that the song of a siren, a non-human creature, would be wordless. On the receiving end, sailors may be of any nationality, and what good is a siren song in English to a French sailor?
I am unclear about the boy not listening to reason. Where do you see this?
Just a note re typo, para 7, line 2: "He name is that of a mythical mermaid..."
ReplyDeleteFixed, thanks!
ReplyDeleteIn 1979 I was living in Brazil and remember hearing a radio show using this song to teach the English language. I thought it was a strange choice then and 30+ years later I still do.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the laugh. I do agree that is an unusual choice. Perhaps they were "led on" by the music and the simple-sounding lyrics. I wonder what the Brazilians made of the lines about "Newport News" and "high-school queen." I am not sure that I would use any Simon song to teach basic English, now that I think about it.
ReplyDeleteWhat's with the Hawaiian Slack Key (Taro patch tuning) on Was a Sunny Day? That is not Carbbean - the reggae portion is - it is most definitely a slice of Hawaiian Slack Key. Lived in Hawaii. This stuff is authentic. Where the heck did he pick up that idea?? Neva hear da bugga play Taro patch li'dat. Anyone know where that inspiration came from? Aloha :)
ReplyDeleteSteve and Camilla-- You know, I never really paid attention, so I went back and listened to it again. The whole deal is clearly meant to be Caribbean, especially the Jamaican-ish way the words are sung. But yeah, after that intro, you expect more Hawaiian music, not a shift eastward several time zones.
ReplyDeleteI hate to say Simon was ignorant about various guitar styles and said, "It's tropical, close enough," although earlier in his career that may well have been the case. On the other hand, the 1960s were rife with Tiki kitsch, due to Hawaii's being made a state in '59, among other things; Elvis' Blue Hawaii movie was released in '61 and Don Ho's first LP was released in '65. So by the 1970s, people (especially musicians) knew what that sound was.
So my answer would have to be that it was purposeful, to make the song sound "tropical" in general, rather that pegging it to one part of the tropics. Newport News is in Virginia, after all-- hot but not tropical, so there is no "reason" the song needs to be Caribbean. Hey, at least he kept it to the same hemisphere, right?
I'm glad I know nothing about music or art. I just know what I like. I like this happy melody, which seemed to be Caribbean or "Island music". I like the story, I was a Sailor in the U.S. Navy so that caught my ear, and the part about the girl being named Lorelei ( a mermaid) I missed that, but I like it now. Here is what my wife thought when I played it for her. The part about " not a negative word was heard" she says it meant Mr. Earl (Speedo)was black, Lorelei was white, but no one said any thing negative on that sunny day. Too bad critics can't seem to enjoy music. Their self important thoughts about this or that are of no interest to me. I'd rather hear from people who enjoy the song for what it is.
ReplyDeleteEntertainment. Hope it's a sunny day where you are.
I also assumed the song was about marriage between a black man and white woman.
DeleteAnon-- First, please let me thank you for your service to our country.
ReplyDeleteI like your wife's interpretation. Why mention that nothing negative was said... unless something negative might have been said..?
It's possible for critics to be self-important, I suppose. For me, the really important person is the artist, in this case, Simon. My role, as I see it, is to help people enhance their enjoyment of his songs by explaining their references and sources. If that's important to you, fine-- if not, there is nothing wrong with just enjoying a song at face value.
Thank you for these comprehensive posts, Paul. Happy 80th to Paul Simon. I hope you celebrate with some of his lovely songs. I put together a listicle on Stereogum ranking his top 10. I'm not sure how you'd feel about the order, but I did give you a mini shoutout. https://www.stereogum.com/2163407/paul-simon-best-songs/lists/10-best-songs/?page&category_name=lists%2F10-best-songs
ReplyDeleteAlex-- Thank you so much! Always nice to have the blog mentioned (and to have traffic steered my way...). And a very appropriate way to celebrate Simon's birthday.
ReplyDeleteAs to your choices? I think, very solid!
I was sad that you left off what I consider his very best lyrical effort-- Cool Cool River-- but The Coast is also amazing.
Was a Sunny Day is a tropical breeze of a song, not meaty but very pleasant in a "Cloudy" and "Feelin' Groovy" mode.
"Still Crazy" is a gimme, as is "Me & Julio"...
"St. Judy's Comet" "Duncan," and "Peace Like a River" are very powerful choices and show a deep knowledge and understanding of Simon's work.
"Mother and Child," I know is a favorite of many but not of mine, personally. I won't get into why, but in the objective case it is a key song.
Same with "Johnny Ace." For my money, better songs off that album are "Rene... Magritte" and the title track. But "Ace" has a historic sweep and impressive mid-song style changes going for it.
And "Graceland" is a solid choice for #1. It combines the poetry, introspection, world-music influences, and sheer joy of music-making that mark so much his best work.
I think it was brave and correct to leave off such crowd pleasers as "50 Ways," "Kodachrome," and "Slip Slidin'."
But some of his more recent, post-Rhythm of the Saints stuff like "Cool Papa Bell," "Wartime Prayers" and "Wristband" are also good.
It would have been very easy to just look at one of his (too) many solo-greatest-hits collections and pick 10 songs with recognizable titles. This list shows the depth and range of Simon's solo work, and as I said a knowledge thereof.
Glad to be part of it!
Thank you for your kind words. I really spent about a month going deeper than I ever had, walking on the treadmill and listening to each and every album over and over. In retrospect, I may have swapped out "Was a Sunny Day" for something great from the latter part of Simon's career (I really like "Getting Ready for Christmas Day"). I've always loved "Johnny Ace" because I'm a huge, huge Philip Glass fan and I love that Paul and Phil are friends and have collabed together (a few times). (You might like (or already like) Glass' Songs from Liquid Days as it features Simon and Vega.) I'm sure you know that already, though. Anyway, I appreciate the reply. The comments on my list were, though predictable, a bit vitriolic. Or at least disgruntled so I was delighted when I returned here and saw you had given me such thoughtful words.
DeleteAlex-- Wow, a whole month of Simon's albums over and over. I don't think even I have ever done that; I did try to listen to each song before blogging about it, though.
ReplyDeleteI agree, and "Christmas Day" is a good song." I know I have said that Simon has issued too many greatest hits compilations but I wonder if it is time for another; the box set only goes to 1993, so there could be another collection for after that year-- it would call attention to that material; 5 albums' worth starting with Capeman. Even "best of the 21st Century" gets you 4 albums plus the remixes of Blue Light.
Yes, I know about the Liquid Days album and wrote about his songs on it (and on Vega's songs on it for my blog about HER songs). I knew that the two had collab'ed more than once but not that they were buds! How cute is that.
Publishing a list is putting a target on yourself. Between the "why is this here" and "why is this not here" and "why is this not higher on the list" you can't please anybody, let alone everybody... But it was good that you celebrated Paul's big 8-0 and called attention to some of his under-appreciated songs while you were at it.
Fun fact: The custodian of my son's school (on the Upper West Side of Manhattan) was none other than Mr. Earl. And that's what the kids called him. He was a sweet guy who sneaked the kids candy. A few years before my son was there, the Parent's Association organized a fundraiser with Speedo as the top billing.
ReplyDeleteDeri-- Now that IS a "fun" fact! You never know where people are going to end up when the hits (music or movies or whatever) stop coming. But finding out that your custodian used to be a genuine hitmaker sounds like a movie plot all by itself.
ReplyDeleteMany years ago I searched the internet to find any references to Mr. Earl, Speedo and Lorelei without succeding, wondering what was the historical context and eventy\ually deeper meaning. On this gray morning of February in Oslo, Norway I kept singing this tune. and had to try once more! Thanks a lot!
ReplyDeleteHummel-- Greetings from America! Glad I could help. Wishing you many more Sunny Days.
ReplyDeleteThe song, in my view, is one of Simon's best. The cheerful "sunny day" lyrics, intoned to a downbeat Carribean rhythm, contrast poignantly with the theme of a woman (" a high school queen with nothing really left to lose") whose husband is unfaithful. The last point is confirmed by two different things: (1) her name is Lorelei (after the young woman who, by myth, threw herself into the River Rhine in despair over an unfaithful lover, a sailor), and (2) she knows her husband as "Speedoo, whose Christian name is Mr. Earl." This obviously refers to the 1950's doo-wop song by the Cadillacs, celebrating a self-proclaimed ladies' man, ("They often call me Speedoo, but my real name is Mr. Earl") "who don't believe in takin' it slow." The substitution of "Christian" for "real" prior to the name of "Mr. Earl" further highlights the depth of the betrayal by suggesting the element of hypocrisy and the violation of what were presumably shared values between the man and his "only girl." The underlying sorrow of the song is intensified by the suggestion that on this beautiful sunny day the former high school queen with nothing really left to lose, like the Lorelei of legend, might be contemplating a watery grave.
ReplyDeleteOld Mose-- Thank you for adding some useful detail to the song's references. I hadn't realized that hers was about a cuckolded woman, and his about a womanizing man. I understand how you deduce that the man is cheating, but I don't agree. It's the narrator who insists "she was his only girl," and we have no reason to doubt his honesty or motives.
ReplyDeleteOne clue that all is not happy in this paradise is the very first word of the song: "Was." The whole sunny scene is set in the past. So it WAS like this... meaning that it may not be like this now.
I agree that this is a snapshot of young love that may contain elements of its own eventual downfall. We disagree on whose "fault" it is, that's all-- I say she's depressed; you say he's the cause of her depression.