MacArthur Park
"MacArthur Park" is a song written and composed by Jimmy Webb. Richard Harris was the first to record it in 1968; his version peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number four on the UK Singles Chart.
"MacArthur Park" was subsequently covered by numerous artists, including a 1969 Grammy-winning version by country music singer Waylon Jennings.
Donna Summer recorded a number one Billboard Hot 100 disco arrangement in 1978.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 88 | May 6, 2020 6:27 AM
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Diana Ross & the Supremes:
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 6 | January 13, 2020 4:30 AM
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Henricus Wallace Westlake.
By the way, is MacArthur Park still as dangerous as it used to be, or is Westlake gentrifying? It's such a great location, gentrification seems inevitable.
by Anonymous | reply 10 | January 13, 2020 4:34 AM
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Richard Harris.
Classically trained British actors can recite the phonebook and make it sound like it's about something and that's what he did with MacArthur Park.
And his recording sounds like 1968, when songs with lyrics that conjure up mystical imagery were in vogue. And the orchestration and backup singers also sound like the era.
by Anonymous | reply 11 | January 13, 2020 4:35 AM
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The 17:53 minute Extended Version.
How popular was this in the clubs in 1978?
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 12 | January 13, 2020 4:37 AM
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I just listened to the Sinatra version. He voice was shot by then but damn he knew how to get to the heart of things. It's moving.
by Anonymous | reply 13 | January 13, 2020 4:41 AM
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Richard Harris' version is without a doubt the best version. The entire album that it was on -- A Tramp Shining -- was written by Webb, and is a masterpiece.
by Anonymous | reply 14 | January 13, 2020 4:43 AM
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All the votes for Richard Harris has restored my faith in the DL
by Anonymous | reply 16 | January 13, 2020 5:01 AM
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But Dionne's is simply perfect.
by Anonymous | reply 17 | January 13, 2020 5:05 AM
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There is a chapter on the song in the book "The Wrecking Crew" :
[quote] “As the recording progressed over several days, it all built toward a critical mass, to the one piece that had caught Harris’s attention back in London. Called “MacArthur Park” (written as the final movement of The Cantata), it also put the Wrecking Crew’s skills to the test like no song before it. A spectacular production with innumerable complex chords and polyrhythms, it was the furthest thing possible from a normal rock-and-roll date. And they simply loved it.” ... It was the musical challenge of a professional lifetime; for once, the Wrecking Crew were able to stretch and really strut their stuff.”
At over 7 minutes, DJs refused to play the song. Webb would not allow edits. Eventually, it was one of the first songs over 3 minutes to receive airplay. It was a surprise when the song went to No 2 in America and No 4 in the UK.
by Anonymous | reply 18 | January 13, 2020 5:09 AM
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All that fuss over an ugly-ass cake?
by Anonymous | reply 19 | January 13, 2020 5:21 AM
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Four Tops' excellent version:
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 20 | January 13, 2020 5:23 AM
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[quote] And the orchestration and backup singers also sound like the era.
Definitely, check out the "Selected recordings" section here:
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 21 | January 13, 2020 5:34 AM
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Oh, for F's sake, OP / Donna Summer Fangurl.
NO ONE agreed with you until Post # 22. And there's a reason . . .
by Anonymous | reply 23 | January 13, 2020 6:13 AM
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Although it's not specifically mentioned here, MacArthur Park (the original Harris version) was of the baroque pop genre.
I see the Wrecking Crew that year also did "Classical Gas" another baroque pop piece.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 24 | January 13, 2020 6:38 AM
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The 17 minute Donna wins. Epic.
by Anonymous | reply 25 | January 13, 2020 8:34 AM
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What is the appeal of this song? I just don't get it. The lyrics are bizarre. What's up with the goddamned cake? Was it an ice cream cake?
by Anonymous | reply 26 | January 13, 2020 10:16 AM
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@ R3 - you can see why Jimmy Webb never made it as a singer. God, he was awful.
by Anonymous | reply 27 | January 13, 2020 10:27 AM
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^^^ Substitute a word like "marriage" or "relationship" for "cake," dear. Perhaps that'll clear things up for you.
by Anonymous | reply 28 | January 13, 2020 12:24 PM
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I didn't know there was a book about The Wrecking Crew. Thanks for the heads up, R18. I just downloaded it.
by Anonymous | reply 29 | January 13, 2020 2:40 PM
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Richard Harris for the win, but Liza gives the song some much needed show-biz pizzazz.
It sounds like any minute she's about to change tempo and breakout with a top hat and cane.
by Anonymous | reply 30 | January 13, 2020 5:51 PM
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I love those crazy lyrics. 💋
by Anonymous | reply 31 | January 14, 2020 12:45 AM
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MacArthur Park is now skid row.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 32 | January 14, 2020 12:52 AM
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[quote] I didn't know there was a book about The Wrecking Crew.
The book was a brief, easy read with some new information, although there is a movie that is supposedly better. Their story is pretty incredible and I'm glad these musicians are finally getting some public recognition.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 33 | January 14, 2020 12:58 AM
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Youngsters, there is NO MacArthur Park other than CARMEN'S
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 34 | January 14, 2020 1:06 AM
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The beginning of Jimmy Webb’s original reminds me of the Halloween theme
by Anonymous | reply 35 | January 14, 2020 1:13 AM
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Although the majority of the song's lyrics are atmospheric and metaphorical, one of the verses in the bridge is straightforward and incredibly heartbreaking. It makes me think of my ex. We have been broken up for 30 years have remained friends, but he is the one I think about...
"I will take my life into my hands, and I will use it. I will win the worship in their eyes, and I will lose it. I will have the things that I desire, and my passion flows like rivers through the sky. But after all the loves of my life...oh, after all the loves in my life .. I'll be thinking of you, and wondering why.'
by Anonymous | reply 36 | January 14, 2020 1:19 AM
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[quote]"I will take my life into my hands, and I will use it. I will win the worship in their eyes, and I will lose it. I will have the things that I desire, and my passion flows like rivers through the sky. But after all the loves of my life...oh, after all the loves in my life .. I'll be thinking of you, and wondering why.'
Gorgeous.
by Anonymous | reply 37 | January 14, 2020 1:22 AM
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Manila Luzon performed the definitive version.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 38 | January 14, 2020 1:23 AM
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I was nuts about the baroque rock songs when I was a teenager in the early 80s. I desperately wanted a K-Tel compilation album, which I wanted to call Ba-Rock! Here's another cut.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 39 | January 14, 2020 1:24 AM
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R39 One of the very best.
Here's an obscure one I love, "Pretty Ballerina" from the guys who did "Walk Away Renee"
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 40 | January 14, 2020 1:34 AM
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Not to hijack this thread, but here's another song for the K-Tel Ba-Rock! Collection.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 41 | January 14, 2020 1:40 AM
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God, I hated that song. For some reason everyone covered it. It seemed to be seeking a level of intellectual whatever that was unusual for a pop song, but it really just seemed to be a jumble of ideas and metaphors. Oddly, it makes more sense when Jimmy Webb, the weakest singer of the bunch, does it--his non-singing is the perfect vehicle for sophomoric pretense like this.
by Anonymous | reply 42 | January 14, 2020 1:47 AM
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A little trivia: Jimmy Webb wrote this song about the same woman -- Linda Ronstadt's cousin -- as MacArthur Park. She married shortly after they broke up.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 43 | January 14, 2020 1:49 AM
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And who did leave the cake out in rain?
by Anonymous | reply 44 | January 14, 2020 2:00 AM
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Wunderbar performance and a flawless vocal. That's what Donna delivered on American Idol.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 45 | January 14, 2020 2:01 AM
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[quote]God, I hated that song. For some reason everyone covered it. It seemed to be seeking a level of intellectual whatever that was unusual for a pop song
It was the psychedelic '60s....and pop lyrics began to have a mystical metaphysical twist.
1968 had Richard Harris with "MacArthur Park" and Noel Harrison (Rex's son) with "Windmills of My Mind".
"And the world is like an apple whirling silently in space
Like the circles that you find in the windmills of your mind!"
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 46 | January 14, 2020 2:25 AM
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The Worst that Could Happen at least was coherent. The Fifth Dimension did a really good version that also charted.
by Anonymous | reply 48 | January 14, 2020 2:29 AM
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"Noel Harrison (Rex's son) with "Windmills of My Mind"."
Windmills of YOUR Mind was written by Michel Legrand and Alan and Marilyn Bergman for the 1968 film, The Thomas Crown Affair. It was covered by Noel Harrison, the song was not "his."
by Anonymous | reply 49 | January 14, 2020 2:31 AM
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Jimmy Webb came from a Baptist background and according to wiki has returned to it. He's the guy that Sally Field she woke up and found screwing her.
by Anonymous | reply 50 | January 14, 2020 2:36 AM
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When I was a kid in the 60s, my father had a restaurant with a jukebox, and when the record guy would come to switch out the records, I would get to keep the old ones. So I had lots of singles, including the Richard Harris one. I was baffled by it, but I played the hell out of it.
I forgot Donna covered it!
by Anonymous | reply 51 | January 14, 2020 2:37 AM
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OP's video of Donna Summer is astonishing. What a voice!
by Anonymous | reply 52 | January 14, 2020 2:44 AM
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"Noel Harrison (Rex's son) with "Windmills of My Mind"." Windmills of YOUR Mind was written by Michel Legrand and Alan and Marilyn Bergman for the 1968 film, The Thomas Crown Affair. It was covered by Noel Harrison, the song was not "his.""
Bub, are you able to read?
First of all I corrected my typo.
Second: I did not use the word "his".
1968...Noel Harrison (Rex's son) with Windmills of Your Mind.
"With". Got it?
by Anonymous | reply 53 | January 14, 2020 2:47 AM
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I love Donna, but her version is definitely not the definitive one. That song belongs to Richard Harris, who (even though he can't sing) hits all the right emotional notes.
As for "Windmills Of Your Mind", the absolute best version was Dusty Springfield.
by Anonymous | reply 54 | January 14, 2020 2:50 AM
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Disco, country, soul, jazz, R&B, pop, and rock.
One of those rare songs with superb versions across many genres.
by Anonymous | reply 55 | January 14, 2020 3:05 AM
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R48 -- The lyrics to a lot of Webb's songs were more atmospheric than linear or coherent. Wichita Lineman. Galveston. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. But some were very linear, such as By the Time I Get to Phoenix, and, my absolute favorite, Adios. MacArthur Park is his masterpiece.
by Anonymous | reply 56 | January 14, 2020 3:12 AM
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"Favorite version?" None of them. That was a truly awful song. But go figure, it became this huge hit. A prime example of an awful song that became a huge success.
by Anonymous | reply 57 | January 14, 2020 3:16 AM
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R51 "forgot" that Summer had even covered MAP.
Maybe that's because her version was so - oh, I dunno - forgettable?
by Anonymous | reply 58 | January 14, 2020 3:25 AM
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The bridge of the song is very beautiful, but I can't take the Richard Harris version at all. It's best as a dance song. The lyrics are too over the top to be anything else.
by Anonymous | reply 59 | January 14, 2020 3:25 AM
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Oh well, everything has to be dumbed down today.
by Anonymous | reply 60 | January 14, 2020 3:32 AM
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In my opinion, no one can touch Levi Stubbs (The Four Tops), his voice always gives me instant chills. Talk about talent!
by Anonymous | reply 61 | January 14, 2020 3:58 AM
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I really don't like the song, but "I recall the yellow cotton dress, foaming like a wave on the ground beneath your knees" is a great line.
by Anonymous | reply 62 | January 14, 2020 4:16 AM
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I was born after the Richard Harris version, but my family had Donna's Live & More double LP, and the "Macarthur Park Suite" took up an entire side. To me it was like a glorious, dramatic, mysterious sound-universe that my preteen self never wanted to leave.
Of course the lyrics are a little silly and pretentious, but that's part of the fun.
by Anonymous | reply 63 | January 14, 2020 7:53 AM
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I like the version used in “Pricilla Queen of the Desert” on Broadway
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 64 | January 14, 2020 1:06 PM
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I'm with R57. A stupid song.
by Anonymous | reply 65 | January 14, 2020 1:49 PM
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I'm a fan of the song...love it... but it is kitsch. It's awful and fabulous at the same time. I think either you get it or you don't.
by Anonymous | reply 66 | January 14, 2020 5:41 PM
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I need to know what exactly what kind of cake was left outside, in the rain no less, before I make a judgement.
by Anonymous | reply 67 | January 14, 2020 5:52 PM
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It was a green cake, with all the sweet green icing flowing down. Pistachio.
by Anonymous | reply 68 | January 14, 2020 11:03 PM
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Hands down, Richard Harris. I was obsessed with the song when it came out and thought it was "poetry." Then I grew up and in middle-age visited MacArthur Park and just cracked up laughing at what a totally unlovely place it is. Now if my husband wants to make me laugh, he starts singing it in fake English accent.
by Anonymous | reply 69 | January 14, 2020 11:09 PM
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Richard Harris was in the movie version of "Camelot." Other than that and this album, did he ever do anything else musical?
by Anonymous | reply 70 | January 14, 2020 11:12 PM
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Yes, he sang on the soundtrack album for "Mack the Knife" (1989), a film adaptation of "The Threepenny Opera". He appeared on Broadway in a revival of "Camelot", and sang occasionally on TV specials.
by Anonymous | reply 71 | January 14, 2020 11:34 PM
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Donna's 1978 Live version:
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 72 | January 15, 2020 12:09 AM
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The good thing about Donna Summer's version is that she basically ignores the phrasing and basically uses the lyrics to fill time.
by Anonymous | reply 73 | January 18, 2020 3:15 AM
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Interesting that all of the covers (except Sinatra and the Idol performance) were before Donna's version.
Just some additional evidence that Donna's version was perfection.
by Anonymous | reply 74 | January 19, 2020 3:51 AM
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Donna Summer, the most underrated voice in pop music.
She turns it into a Donna Summer disco number and it's great, but still: no one tops Richard Harris' original version IMHO.
But Donna Summer's is a solid second.
by Anonymous | reply 75 | January 19, 2020 4:07 AM
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Is there any other song where the original singer gets the title wrong when it appears in the lyric?
by Anonymous | reply 76 | January 19, 2020 4:24 PM
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I mean, why didn't anyone during the recording session tell Harris he was getting the name of the park wrong. "Richard, it is not a possessive or plural. It is MACARTHUR--singular. Can you speaksing that, luv?"
by Anonymous | reply 77 | January 19, 2020 5:33 PM
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Donna Summer's version was my first exposure to the song. All other version's pale in compassion.
Donna's rendition is one of my Top 10 favorite songs of all time.
by Anonymous | reply 78 | January 19, 2020 10:03 PM
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[quote]I need to know what exactly what kind of cake was left outside, in the rain no less, before I make a judgement.
It was a cake of shit. A huge, brown, odiferous cake of shit. Much like the stupid song itself.
by Anonymous | reply 79 | February 3, 2020 5:18 PM
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Webb offered the song to The Association, but they rejected it. I'm with r54 about Dusty Springfield's version of "Windmills of Your Mind." She turns that song into quite a psychodrama.
by Anonymous | reply 80 | February 3, 2020 5:30 PM
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It's a shame Dusty didn't cut it around the same time as Richard Harris. It would have suited her and we'd have a well sung version with an orchestration similar to the original.
by Anonymous | reply 81 | February 3, 2020 6:11 PM
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They all suck because this song sucks.
by Anonymous | reply 82 | February 3, 2020 6:14 PM
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[quote] I mean, why didn't anyone during the recording session tell Harris he was getting the name of the park wrong. "Richard, it is not a possessive or plural. It is MACARTHUR--singular
This was mentioned in the Wrecking Crew book.
[quote] After Harris added his dramatic vocal reading, where through either stubbornness or too much alcohol—with a pint next to him at all times—he incorrectly kept singing the lyrics as “MacArthur’s Park,” the recording was almost complete.
by Anonymous | reply 83 | February 4, 2020 4:27 AM
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Worst Song in Every Way Ever---no matter who recorded it.
by Anonymous | reply 85 | May 5, 2020 3:58 PM
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Donna's hit version leaves parts out, that makes it inferior.
by Anonymous | reply 86 | May 6, 2020 4:40 AM
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The Association was the intended artist and they said it was awful. This from a group who recorded Windy about a girl with flatulence.
by Anonymous | reply 87 | May 6, 2020 4:42 AM
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It would have suited Dusty Springfield.
by Anonymous | reply 88 | May 6, 2020 6:27 AM
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