"Mayor of Simpleton" is a song written by
Andy Partridge of the English band
XTC, released as the first single from their 1989 album ''
Oranges & Lemons''. The single reached No. 72 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 singles chart, No. 1 on its
Alternative Songs
Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-played ...
chart, and No. 15 on its
Mainstream Rock chart,
becoming the band's best-performing single in the United States.
Background
The song began as a
reggae tune and went through numerous iterations. Partridge settled on its final arrangement after discovering a C major to D major picking pattern that he thought resembled
Blue Öyster Cult's "
(Don't Fear) The Reaper
"(Don't Fear) The Reaper" is a song by American rock band Blue Öyster Cult from the band's 1976 album ''Agents of Fortune.'' The song, written and sung by lead guitarist Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser, deals with eternal love and the inevitabili ...
" (1976). Unlike many other XTC songs, he instructed a specific bass part to
Colin Moulding: "Colin had to work very hard to get that bass line. It's very precise. It took me a long time to work it out, because I wanted to get into the
J.S. Bach mode of each note being the perfect counterpoint to where the chords are and where the melody is. The bass is the third part in the puzzle." Its lyrics are sometimes criticised for its similarity to
Sam Cooke
Samuel Cook (January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964), known professionally as Sam Cooke, was an American singer and songwriter. Considered to be a pioneer and one of the most influential soul artists of all time, Cooke is commonly referred ...
's "
Wonderful World" (1960), but Partridge denied copying the song intentionally.
Lyrically, the song describes a man who is looked down upon by his girlfriend's peers for being reportedly uneducated and non-intellectual, stating that despite this, he is devoted to her; one lyric from the chorus is "I may be the mayor of Simpleton, but I know one thing and that's I love you."
Charts
See also
*
List of Billboard number-one alternative singles of the 1980s
References
External links
"Mayor of Simpleton" on ChalkhillsWhat makes this song great?
- Rick Beato
1989 songs
1989 singles
XTC songs
Songs written by Andy Partridge
Virgin Records singles
Jangle pop songs
{{1980s-rock-song-stub