Paul McCartney Sometimes Doesn’t Perform the 2nd Verse or What He Calls Richard Nixon’s ‘Mafia Send-off’ in ‘Junior’s Farm’
Paul McCartney revealed he sometimes doesn’t perform the second verse of Wings’ “Junior’s Farm.” He calls the verse Richard Nixon’s “Mafia send-off.” Here’s what the singer-songwriter said about the song.
The singer-songwriter escaped to his farm in Scotland following The Beatles’ split
After Paul and his first wife, Linda, eloped, they went to the farm Paul had acquired in Scotland a few years before. They craved privacy and quiet during one of the most stressful times in their lives. The Beatles were breaking up. Initially, Paul hadn’t been keen to go to Scotland, but Linda was, and eventually, he realized it was worth it.
In The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present, Paul wrote that his wife opened his eyes to how beautiful the place was and what it had to offer their growing family. The farm became “a refuge of sorts, and it was nice to get away from London and everything – both the good and bad – that comes with the city,” he wrote.
Paul drove a tractor and tended to the family’s animals, including their Shetland Pony, Jet, who Paul named his famous song after. Meanwhile, Linda experimented with vegetarian dishes and started writing her cookbooks. Their kids got to grow up in a private bubble.
Paul had loved nature since he was a kid, and being at the farm gave him the freedom to just think after a hectic 10 or so years of being with The Beatles. It inspired Paul to write “Junior’s Farm,” specifically lyrics like: “Down to Junior’s Farm where I want to lay low.”
“It was such a relief to get out of those business meetings with people in suits, who were so serious all the time, and to go off to Scotland and be able just to sit around in a T-shirt and corduroys,” Paul wrote. “I was very much in that mindset when I wrote this song. The basic message is, let’s get out of here. You might say it’s my post- Beatles get-ting-out-of-town song.”
Paul McCartney said he doesn’t perform the second verse of ‘Junior’s Farm’ anymore
Paul didn’t record “Junior’s Farm” until about four years later when he was with Wings. He added lyrics that spoke about the times. However, one lyric has slipped through the cracks over the years for no apparent reason.
In The Lyrics, Paul confessed that he doesn’t always sing the second verse of “Junior’s Farm” when he plays it live. Sometimes it’s not included in the lyrics.
The second verse reads: “At the Houses of Parliament/ Everybody’s talking about the President/ We all chip in for a bag of cement/ Ollie Hardy should have had more sense/ He bought a gee-gee and he jumped the fence/ All for the sake for a couple of pence.”
Paul and Wings recorded “Junior’s Farm” in the summer of 1974 and released it in October. Around that time, President Richard Nixon was experiencing his impeachment hearings. He resigned from office, becoming the first U.S. president to do so, on August 9.
Paul’s idea in “Junior’s Farm” was to give him the “so-called Mafia send-off.” However, considering it, Paul doesn’t think there’s any reason why he doesn’t perform the verse now. “It may just be that it makes the song too long and we get through around forty songs in our sets,” Paul rationalized.
Whether he sings the second verse or not, Paul believes “Junior’s Farm” remains a good live song. He usually plays it at the start of the set because it has many elements that work well. There’s a recognizable introduction, a good, steady, rock ‘n’ roll beat, slightly surreal lyrics, and an upbeat chorus of “Let’s go, let’s go,” which gets a crowd going.
Paul had other inspiration for ‘Junior’s Farm’
Besides his own farm and Richard Nixon’s resignation, Paul had other inspirations for “Junior’s Farm.” He decided to get “into a fantasy” for the verses.
Bob Dylan’s “Maggie’s Farm,” which came out about a decade before, influenced the song. Dylan’s Mighty Quinn from ‘Quinn the Eskimo” also inspired Paul’s “Eskimo.”
The verse “I took my bag into a grocer’s store/ The price is higher than the time before” was inspired by the times too. Everyone was feeling “the pinch” at the supermarkets.
Many things inspired Paul on “Junior’s Farm.” That’s what makes the song great. Different aspects of the lyrics still hold up today, even if Paul doesn’t sing them live anymore.
