Mayor of Simpleton

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On the waveform that was created, there was no attack – it was all ring. I didn't even catch the front of the sample – and Andy loved it so much that it turned out to be almost on the entire record. We'd painstakingly tune the snare drum to the pitch, and then get this sample to the pitch, and then we'd lock 'em in together. That's on a lot of the songs. I know it's on "Mayor" and on "King for a Day".

Pat Mastelotto [5]

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" (1976). Unlike many other XTC songs, he instructed a specific bass part to Colin Moulding, who replaced the sequenced bass pattern that was previously recorded. [4] [5] "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." [4]

While the band was conducting overdubs, Moulding presented a new bass part for the song's coda. This part was a relatively late addition to the song and was integrated after the live drums were recorded. [5] Partridge said that he received criticism for the song's similarity to Sam Cooke's "Wonderful World" (1960), but Partridge denied copying the song intentionally. He said that the lyrics were partially autobiographical and related to his waning interest in school as a teenager. [4]

Charts

"Mayor of Simpleton"
The Mayor of Simpleton.jpg
Single by XTC
from the album Oranges & Lemons
B-side "One of the Millions"
ReleasedJanuary 1989
Genre Jangle pop [1]
Length
  • 3:58
  • 2:47 (early version)
Label Virgin
Songwriter(s) Andy Partridge
Producer(s) Paul Fox
XTC singles chronology
"You're a Good Man Albert Brown (Curse You Red Barrel)"
(1987)
"Mayor of Simpleton"
(1989)
"King for a Day"
(1989)
Audio sample
Chart (1989)Peak
position
Australia (ARIA) [6] 89
Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) [7] 42
UK Singles (OCC) [8] 46
US Billboard Hot 100 [9] 72
US Album Rock Tracks ( Billboard ) [10] 15
US Modern Rock Tracks ( Billboard ) [11] 1

See also

References

  1. "Oranges & Lemons - Geffon". CMJ New Music Report. 164. 24 February 1989.
  2. "Billboard > Artists / XTC > Chart History > Mainstream Rock Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 17 September 2016.
  3. Raggett, Ned. "The Mayor of Simpleton". AllMusic .
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Bernhardt, Todd (7 January 2007). "Andy discusses 'Mayor of Simpleton'". Chalkhills.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Bernhardt, Todd; Mastelotto, Pat (6 June 2010). "Pat Mastelotto remembers "Oranges and Lemons"". Chalkhills. Retrieved 2 June 2025.
  6. "Response from ARIA re: chart inquiry, received 12 September 2016" . Retrieved 17 September 2016 via Imgur.
  7. RPM Top Singles - April 17, 1989, p. 6 RPM magazine
  8. "XTC: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  9. "Billboard Hot 100". Billboard . 20 May 1989. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  10. "Mainstream Rock Airplay" . Billboard. 29 April 1989. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  11. "Alternative Airplay". Billboard. 1 April 1989. Retrieved 4 September 2023.