Baseball related songs: “Mrs. Robinson” by Simon and Garfunkel
In this episode of Baseball related songs, we pay attention to Mrs. Robinson, performed by Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel, which was released in 1968.
Originally the song appeared on the soundtrack of the movie “The Graduate”, starring Anne Bancroft and Dustin Hoffman. Bancroft played the character of Mrs. Robinson who tried to seduce her neighbor, played by a young Dustin Hoffman.
The story goes that the director of the “Graduate”, Mike Nichols, was fascinated by Simon and Garfunkel, listening to them non-stop during the recording of the movie. After two weeks, Nichols asked Columbia records for permission to use Simon and Garfunkel music for his film. The record company agreed, but Paul Simon had his reservations. Nevertheless, he eventually agreed as well after he was impressed by the script and Nichols wit.
Several weeks later, Simon re-emerged with two new tracks, “Punky’s Dilemma” and “Overs”, but Nichols wasn’t very fond of those two songs. Nichols asked if the duo had any more songs to offer, and after a break from the meeting, they returned with an early version of “Mrs. Robinson”. They had been working on a track titled “Mrs. Roosevelt“, and returned to perform it for Nichols. He was ecstatic about the song, as he later commented, “They filled in with dee de dee dee de dee dee dee because there was no verse yet, but I liked even that.”[5] Garfunkel later expanded upon the song’s placement in The Graduate:
“Paul had been working on what is now ‘Mrs. Robinson’, but there was no name in it and we’d just fill in with any three-syllable name. And because of the character in the picture we just began using the name ‘Mrs. Robinson’ to fit […] and one day we were sitting around with Mike talking about ideas for another song. And I said ‘What about Mrs. Robinson.’ Mike shot to his feet. ‘You have a song called “Mrs. Robinson” and you haven’t even shown it to me?’ So we explained the working title and sang it for him. And then Mike froze it for the picture as ‘Mrs. Robinson’.”
The inclusion of coo coo ca choo is a referral to “I am the Walrus” of the Beatles.
Unlike songs like Glory Days by Bruce Springsteen or Cheap seats by Alabama, Mrs. Robinson doesn’t tell a baseball story. The one and only referral to baseball in this song are the phrases “Where have you gone Joe DiMaggio, our nation turns its lonely eyes to you Wu wu wu, What’s that you say, Mrs. Robinson, Jolting Joe has left and gone away Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey.”
Knowing that Paul Simon was a big fan of Mickey Mantle, this may come as a surprise. But according to Simon it was all about syllables and the name of Mickey Mantle (who replaced DiMaggio after the latter’s retirement) did not fit into the melody.
Rumor has it that Simon met DiMaggio accidentally in a New York City restaurant, and the two immediately discussed the song. DiMaggio said “What I don’t understand, is why you ask where I’ve gone. I just did a Mr. Coffee commercial, I’m a spokesman for the Bowery Savings Bank and I haven’t gone anywhere!” Simon replied “that I didn’t mean the lines literally, that I thought of him as an American hero.”
Mrs. Robinson earned two Grammies in 1969 and also became the first rock song to become Record of the Year. It was also awarded the Grammy for Best Contemporary-Pop Performance – Vocal Duo or Group.
The lyrics of Mrs. Robinson are as follows:
And here’s to you, Mrs. Robinson,
Jesus loves you more than you will know
Wo wo wo
God bless you, please, Mrs. Robinson
Heaven holds a place for those who pray
Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey
We’d like to know a little bit about you for our files
We’d like to help you learn to help yourself
Look around you all you see are sympathetic eyes
Stroll around the grounds until you feel at home
And here’s to you, Mrs. Robinson,
Jesus loves you more than you will know
Wo wo wo
God bless you, please, Mrs. Robinson
Heaven holds a place for those who pray
Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey
Hide it in the hiding place where no one ever goes
Put it in your pantry with your cupcakes
It’s a little secret just the Robinson’s affair
Most of all you’ve got to hide it from the kids
Koo-koo-ka-choo, Mrs. Robinson,
Jesus loves you more than you will know
Wo wo wo
God bless you, please, Mrs. Robinson
Heaven holds a place for those who pray
Hey, hey, hey hey, hey, hey
Sitting on a sofa on a Sunday afternoon
Going to the candidates’ debate
Laugh about it, shout about it
When you’ve got to choose
Every way you look at this you lose
Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio
Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you Wu Wu wu
What’s that you say, Mrs. RobinsonJolting Joe has left and gone away
Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey