THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

223-Ralph McTell-Streets of London.

1974-Number 2 single.

Best Bit-At 0.36. There are people of a certain age who may know Ralph McTell better for ‘Alphabet Zoo,’ and ‘Tickle on the Tum.’

Ralph McTell was born Ralph May on December 3rd, 1944, in Farnborough, Kent, England, He was named Ralph after the English music composer Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958) as his father Frank May had worked as a gardener for Williams prior to the second World War. The surname McTell was suggested to him by the English Folk music artist Wizz Jones, because of Ralph’s love of the American Blues artists, such as Robert Johnson,(1911-1938) and Blind Willie McTell (1898-1959.) There are at least 60 official Albums of Ralph McTell’s music available, from his first release ‘Eight Frames a Second’ in 1968, through to his latest release ‘Hill of Beans’ in 2019. He has had two top 40 singles in the UK, with ‘Dreams of You’ from December 1975, being the other hit, when reaching Number 36.

Although not a hit until many years later, Ralph McTell had written ‘Streets of London’ in the mid 1960’s while busking and hitchhiking his way throughout Europe. He was especially struck by what he saw in Paris, and for a long time called the song ‘Streets of Paris,’ but eventually chose London, as he realised that was what he was subconsciously writing about, and there was also a famous song called ‘The Poor People of Paris,’ and he didn’t want any confusion.

McTell refused to put the song on his debut Album ‘Eight Frames a Second’ from 1968 as he felt the song was too depressing, but it did first appear on his second release ‘Spiral Staircase’ from 1969 for the first time, after the Album’s producer Gus Dudgeon (1942-2002) (see also best songs 946 and 62) talked him around. The song first became a hit single in the Netherlands in 1972, reaching Number 9 when McTell re-recorded it. It became a hit in the UK in 1974 when re-recorded again, with this time featuring the Folk band ‘Prelude’ on backing vocals. In 2017 McTell officially re-recorded the song for a third time for single release, this time as a duet with Annie Lennox (see also best songs 582) as a charity single for the UK charity ‘Crisis.’

‘Streets of London’ was released in 1974 for the Xmas market, but was kept off the prestigious Xmas Number 1 spot by the band ‘Mud’ (see also best songs 7730 with ‘Lonely This Christmas’ for one week, and then by Status Quo (see also best songs 905 and 108) for one week with their only UK Number 1 ‘Down Down.’ The ‘Streets of London’ contrasts the common problems of everyday people with those of the homeless, elderly, ignored and forgotten members of society, and reminds us that there are others worse off than ourselves. The songs melody has been noted for it’s similarities to ‘Pachelbel’s Canon,’ composed somewhere between 1680-1706 by the German composer Johann Pachelbel (1653- to around 1706.) ‘Pachelbel’s Canon’ has had a big influence in ‘Pop Music,’ with the music producer Peter Waterman (see also best songs 627) describing ‘Canon in D’ as,’Almost the godfather of pop music, because we’ve all used that in our own ways for the past 30 years.’ Other songs which have used ‘Pachelbel’s Canon’s’ chord progression include ‘Basket Case’ by Green Day, and ‘Don’t Look Back in Anger’ from Oasis (see also best songs 1006.)

‘Have you seen the old man in the closed down market picking up the papers with his worn out shoes. In his eyes you see no pride, and hanging loosely at his side, yesterdays paper, telling yesterdays news.’