I was singing this in the shower this morning. I got to thinking about how songs about Swinging London by those who were not from Swinging London were so romanticized as to be totally ridiculous.
This one, is a prime example, though in the main you can't beat a bit of Roger Miller. (I like all singers called Roger - McGuinn, Whittaker, er....). But despite its silliness I've always liked this song. It's so naive.
There's a great one on The In-Kraut, Vol 1, an album of German pop from the late Sixties/early Seventies (which includes the sublime Holiday Time by Hildergarde Knef), which includes a song called Swinging London by the Hazy Oswald Jet Set. This song lists all the places - groovy and non-groovy, but all groovy to them - you can find in London in a German accent. Did Battersea swing? Did Trafalgar Square swing? I doubt it.
I'm Henry The VIII, I Am by Herman's Hermits falls into this 'it's British so we're going mad for it' category, a rich vein all its own. For one brief period you could get away with anything just because it had a British accent or was in some way related to these isles.
Still, enjoy this slice of Millertime.
