THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

119-Richard Harris-MacArthur Park.

1968-Number 4 single.

Best Bit-At 4.52. The odds were totally stacked against this one even seeing the light of day. At 7 minutes and 21 seconds it was far too long to be played on the radio, the lyrics appeared unfathomable, it was written in a Classical Music style, and to top it all off it was sung by an actor.

‘MacArthur Park’ was written by Jimmy Webb (see also best songs 846 and 1) at the request of the music producer Bones Howe, who asked Webb to create a pop song with different movements and changing time signatures. Webb came up with ‘MacArthur Park,’ but the group the ‘Association’ whom Howe had intended the song for refused to record it, stating it was ‘unorthodox.’

The lyrics for ‘MacArthur Park’ were inspired by Jimmy Webb’s breakup with his girlfriend Susie Horton. ‘MacArthur Park’ is in Los Angeles, California, which was where the two of them would sometimes meet for lunch during 1965, Horton worked for a life insurance firm whose offices were located just across the street from the park. Webb has said about the songs lyrics,’It was meant to be symbolic, and referred to the end of a love affair. Everything in the song was visible. There’s nothing in it that’s fabricated. The old men playing checkers by the trees, the cake that was left out in the rain, all of the things that are talked about in the song are things I actually saw. And so it’s a kind of musical collage of this whole love affair that kind of went down in MacArthur Park, back then I was kind of like an emotional machine, like whatever was going on inside me would bubble out of the piano and onto paper.’ Jimmy Webb wrote a number of songs which were inspired by his breakup with Susie Horton, including ‘By the Time I Get to Phoenix’ (see also best songs 1.)

‘MacArthur Park’ was first recorded by the acclaimed Irish actor Richard Harris, (1930-2002) Harris and Webb had first met at a fundraiser in East Los Angeles. At first Webb didn’t take Harris seriously when he suggested that they make a record together, but when sometime later Harris again made the same suggestion, Webb presented Harris with several of his songs, including ‘MacArthur Park.’ Richard St John Francis Harris was born on October 1st, 1930, in Limerick, Ireland, he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease in August 2002, and after being hospitalised with pneumonia he died on October 25th, 2002, at the age of 72. Harris was one of Ireland’s most celebrated actors, with his first starring role being in ‘This Sporting Life,’ (1962) and his final film appearance was as ‘Dumbledore’ in ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.’ (2001.) Harris recorded 14 Albums between 1967-1992, and has appeared on 11 soundtrack and compilation Albums issued between 1988-2008. He has released 17 singles, with ‘MacArthur Park’ being the only one to chart, reaching Number 1 in America, and Canada, as well as reaching the top 10 in many other countries.

Richard Harris recorded ‘MacArthur Park’ for his debut Album ‘A Tramp Shining,’ (1968) which was the first of two Albums that Jimmy Webb wrote and produced for him, the other being ‘The Yard Went On Forever (1969.) ‘MacArthur Park’ has also charted on two other occasions on Billboard in America. In 1971 The Four Tops (see also best songs 650) made Number 38 with their recording, while in 1978 Donna Summer (1948-2012) reached Number 1 with her Giorgio Moroder, and Pete Bellotte (see also best songs 78 and 11) produced ‘Disco’ version.

‘MacArthur’s Park is melting in the dark, all the sweet, green icing flowing down. Someone left the cake out in the rain, I don’t think that I can take it ’cause it took so long to bake it, and I’ll never have that recipe again, oh no.’