Log In
Register
Read the original blog post12.44pm
31 March 2008
Offline
‘Jenny Wren’ is the third song on Paul McCartney’s 13th solo studio albumChaos And Creation In The Backyard. See more…
The album was acclaimed as a return to form for McCartney, with ‘Jenny Wren’ singled out as one of its highlights. In a New Yorker interview, Elvis Costello said of the song: “That’s just one melody that could stand next to the greatest songs written while Paul was in The Beatles.”
There’s a canyon in Los Angeles where I particularly like to go walking. You have to drive there, so I often go on my own, and the day I wrote this song I found a quiet parking space along the side of the road in a very rural area and, instead of going on a walk, I thought, ‘I’m going to write a song.’
The following people thank Joe for this post:
Richard, oldfannz, RubeCan buy me love! Please consider supporting the Beatles Bible on Amazon
Or buy my paperback/ebook! Riding So High – The Beatles and Drugs
Don't miss The Bowie Bible – now live!
8.51am
6 November 2023
Offline I just love this – I don’t know why we don’t hear it often, if at all. Unless you have the album, you’d hardly know it existed. It’s often compared to Blackbird and I personally like it about as much. Part of the genius of Paul is the idea of having the duduk solo which adds to the soulfulness of it.
The following people thank oldfannz for this post:
Rube, sir walter raleigh, RichardI'm taking the time for a number of things that weren't important yesterday. (Fixing a Hole)
12.25pm
26 January 2017
Offline It is less effortless than Blackbird in my opinion. Both have very interesting chord progression and beautiful melodies, but Jenny Wren, as with a lot of Chaos and Creation, has very cool chord changes that are surprising , but sometimes feel sudden and forced. I love the album a lot though, it just feels to me that Paul may have written the chords changes as adventurously as he could, and then weaves the melody around these changes. Very interesting and quite beautiful, but at his very best Paul’s chords are serving the melody; sometimes it goes in all sorts of sophisticated directions and sometimes its pretty ordinary harmonically, but the result is always phenomenal. Once again not ragging on this song or album, its great, just my observation from listening in comparison with Blackbird .
The following people thank sir walter raleigh for this post:
oldfannz"The pump don't work cause the vandals took the handles!"
-Bob Dylan, Subterranean Homesick Blues
"We could ride and surf together while our love would grow"
-Brian Wilson, Surfer Girl
12.13pm
7 May 2017
Offline I don’t know anything about chord changes but I love the song. The duduk adds so much extra, as do the Pauls vocals. Probably the best song on an excellent album filled with great tunes like Friends To Go and Anyway.
On the Blackbird comparison: I always believed if Jenny Wren was released exactly the same way in 1968 it would be as famous, influental and lauded today as Blackbird is. But again, I don’t know much about music theory.
The following people thank Monkberry Moon Delight for this post:
Richard, Rube, oldfannzQueen says no to pot-smoking FBI members.
11.27am
6 November 2023
Offline Yes, I also don’t appreciate the musical theory side of things like Sir Walter Raleigh but it’s good to hear from those who can delve into what makes it work! I don’t have the album, actually – I just stumbled upon the song by chance, somehow.
I'm taking the time for a number of things that weren't important yesterday. (Fixing a Hole)
1 Guest(s)