The Monkees’ Supervisor Couldn’t Understand 1 Line From Simon & Garfunkel’s ‘Mrs. Robinson’
The Monkees‘ supervisor said music could be artistic but it was ultimately primitive. Subsequently, he discussed part of Simon & Garfunkel’s “Mrs. Robinson.” Notably, part of the song was an homage to a recently-released song by The Beatles.
The Monkees’ supervisor felt music was primitive and that R&B was about to take over pop music
During a 1968 interview with New York, The Monkees’ supervisor, Don Kirshner, discussed his attitude toward music. “If the melody line is there, it’s like a great painting or a great form of art,” he said. “It’ll last forever.” He said it’s easy to take a piece of music and change its genre completely by making a few changes.
He was asked about pop music trends. “I think there will be all forms,” he opined. “There will be soul music, there’s going to be great jazz pieces. I think the forms that are coming will be very much R&B oriented.”
Even though Kirshner said music could last, he viewed music as primitive. “Every five to 10 years, there’s a new evolution of people but we’re all the same,” he said. “Your ears hear the same type of things. The beat is very primitive.”
Don Kirshner discussed what part of Simon & Garfunkel’s ‘Mrs. Robinson’ ‘really means’
Then Kirshner discussed Simon & Garfunkel’s “Mrs. Robinson.” “So there are certain riffs and handles that grab people,” he said. “You hear ‘Mrs. Robinson’ where they go ‘Kook a choo’ [sic].” The actual lyric is “Coo, coo, ca-choo.”
Kirshner felt the lyrics was meaningless. “I don’t know what it means, I don’t think you know what it means, and even if it meant something, what it really means is there’s a sound there that you can listen for,” he said. “And you can’t wait to hear it again.”
The origin of ‘coo, coo, ca-choo’ in Simon & Garfunkel’s ‘Mrs. Robinson’
According to American Songwriter, Paul Simon took “Coo, coo, ca-choo” from The Beatles’ “I Am the Walrus.” This was meant to be a tip of the hat to the Fab Four. Notably, The Beatles released “I Am the Walrus” in 1967, the same year “Mrs. Robinson” appeared in The Graduate starring Dustin Hoffman. “I Am the Walrus” was very new when Simon decided to take inspiration from it.
Despite this, “I Am the Walrus” and “Mrs. Robinson” are vastly different songs. “I Am the Walrus” is filled with surrealist images that might appear meaningless. On the other hand, “Mrs. Robinson” paints a vivid picture of a wife and mother who is keeping a secret. In The Graduate, the character of Mrs. Robinson is having an affair with a much younger man.
“Mrs. Robinson” is a classic — even if Kirshner felt part of it was meaningless.
