The Big Apple Top Ten: Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters (#1)

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Yes, I can surprise. Yes, I can shock. Yes, I can present a top three song that’ll make you wonder where that came from. This is not one of those days. We bid farewell to the Big Apple with not only my favorite song referencing New York, but my favorite song by the man who sang it. Enjoy this. #1: Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters - Elton John See you tomorrow. On their first trip to New York City, lyricist Bernie Taupin heard gunshots outside his hotel window. (Think about that for a moment: buildings in New York are vertical, so he was a few [probably dozen] floors above the streets where the shooting was happening!) Given what they had experienced early in their career (see “Tower of Babel” on Captain Fantastic), Taupin could see through the façade of the “sons of bankers, sons of lawyers” they were meeting. There’s the line about the Ben E. King “Spanish Harlem” (“there is a rose in Spanish Harlem…it’s never seen the sun”) that is echoed here (“and now I know ‘Spanish Harlam’ are not just pretty words to say” and “unless they see the sky, but they can’t, and that is why they know not if it’s dark outside or light”), painting just as bleak a picture. But, just like that 1960 classic song, this one forges forward in the dirt and grime. This isn’t a negative song about New York City. It’s a negative song about phony people who don’t care about anything or anyone except themselves (“rich man can ride and the hobo, he can drown”). There’s no way I could take just one song to a deserted island (music geeks don’t love one song, they love a thousand or so different sounds), but if you only gave me ten, I’d have to pack this. Even Elton has said this is one of the best songs he ever did. And I totally agree. Thanks for reading. Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters Written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin Recorded by Elton John From Honky Chateau, 1972 NYC LYRICS: Rose trees never grow in New York City