His Name Is Legs (Ladies and Gentlemen)

"His Name Is Legs (Ladies and Gentlemen)" is a song by English rock musician George Harrison, released in 1975 as the closing track of his album Extra Texture (Read All About It). The song is a tribute to "Legs" Larry Smith, the drummer with the 1960s satirical-comedy group the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band and one of many comedians with whom Harrison began associating during the 1970s. Smith appears on the recording, delivering a spoken monologue, while Harrison's lyrics similarly reflect the comedian's penchant for zany wordplay. The song serves as a precursor to Harrison's work with Monty Python members Eric Idle and Michael Palin, including his production of the troupe's 1975 single "The Lumberjack Song" and films such as Life of Brian (1979) that he produced under the aegis of his company HandMade Films.

Harrison recorded "His Name Is Legs" at his Friar Park home studio during sessions for his 1974 album Dark Horse. The song remained unfinished until he returned to it the following year while working in Los Angeles on Extra Texture. Aside from Harrison and Smith, the musicians on the recording include Tom Scott, Billy Preston, Willie Weeks and Andy Newmark, all of whom were part of Harrison's 1974 tour band. The song's arrangement reflects Harrison's adoption of the funk genre.

As with the album's humorous artwork, the inclusion of "His Name Is Legs" on Extra Texture marked a rare example of light-heartedness among a collection of mostly downbeat songs. Several commentators view the track as an indulgence by Harrison. These detractors cite the in-joke nature of the composition, together with the largely unintelligible vocals on the recording. Harrison acknowledged that the song's appeal might be limited to "maybe two people".

Background

Although often noted for the serious, religious nature of his song lyrics,Allison, pp. 36–37. George Harrison was an avowed fan of British comedy, beginning with Peter Sellers and Spike Milligan's work in The Goon Show during the 1950s.Clayson, p. 271. In his autobiography, I, Me, Mine, Harrison writes of comedy – specifically, Monty Python's first TV series and the satirical Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band – as having "filled that empty space for me" in the late 1960s, when relationships with his Beatles bandmates had fractured.Doggett, pp. 43–45, 59–61.MacDonald, p. 300. The Bonzo Dog Band (as they became known in 1969) were a favourite of the Beatles,Huntley, p. 127. who cast the group in their 1967 TV film Magical Mystery Tour.Inglis, p. 54. Harrison subsequently performed with the Bonzos' drummer, "Legs" Larry Smith, along with Eric Clapton and other members of Delaney & Bonnie and Friends,Clayson, pp. 282, 350. at John Lennon's "Peace for Christmas" charity concert,Leng, p. 67. held at London's Lyceum Ballroom in December 1969.Miles, p. 362. In I, Me, Mine, Harrison suggests an alternative scenario to the Beatles' 1970 break-up: "What should have happened is that the Bonzos and the Beatles ... turned into one great Rutle band with all the Pythons and had a laugh."George Harrison, pp. 64–65.MacFarlane, pp. 106, 111.

By 1973, SellersClayson, pp. 333–34. and MilliganOlivia Harrison, pp. 322, 362. were among the comedians who formed part of Harrison's social circle at his Friar Park estate in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire.Carol Clerk, "George Harrison 1943–2001", Uncut, February 2002, p. 56; available at Rock's Backpages (subscription required). This period coincided with the end of his marriage to Pattie Boyd,Doggett, pp. 208–09. who has described their home as "a madhouse" during their final year together.Boyd, p. 175. Harrison became reacquainted with Smith through longtime Beatles aide Terry Doran.Clayson, p. 350. Harrison admired Smith as "a wonderfully eccentric person", a quality that had similarly inspired him about Sir Frank Crisp,Boyd, pp. 144, 163. the original owner of Friar Park.Clayson, pp. 300–01.Greene, pp. 165–66. Author Dale Allison suggests that Smith became a court jester figure for Harrison,Allison, p. 144. who wrote the song "His Name Is Legs (Ladies and Gentlemen)" as a tribute to Smith. In his autobiography, Harrison terms the composition "a piece of personal indulgence, like some other of my songs about things nobody else knows or cares about, except maybe two people".

Composition

Harrison wrote "His Name Is Legs" around Christmastime in 1973, on a piano at Friar Park. Author Ian Inglis describes it as a song "peppered with oblique references and in-jokes about [Smith's] idiosyncratic mannerisms and behavior". Harrison's lyrics incorporate some of Smith's favourite sayings, the first verse beginning:George Harrison, pp. 303, 304.

Examples of Smith's penchant for zany wordplay include the lines "Never over-sits he under-stands" and "Get lined up come Sikh come Czar" – the latter being partly a misappropriation of the French phrase "comme ci comme ça". In the second verse, the line "People think he's loopy loo when they look at his shoes" refers to the comedian's unusual dress sense, which included "toy cows grazing on his shoes", according to Harrison biographer Alan Clayson, while "rocking sausage roll" was Smith's phrase for rock 'n' roll.

The song title appears in the two bridge sections, the first of which states:George Harrison, p. 307.

Musically, the composition is in the funk rock style,Leng, p. 186. while the device of introducing Smith to listeners recalls the show tune aspect of Harrison's collaboration with Mal Evans, "You and Me (Babe)",Inglis, pp. 54, 56. which closed former Beatle Ringo Starr's 1973 album Ringo.Rodriguez, p. 35. In the lyrics to "His Name Is Legs", Harrison biographer Simon Leng recognises the same "nonsense word games" favoured by Monty Python. Leng comments that the latter's composition "The Lumberjack Song" particularly resonated with Harrison during this period, as he sought to challenge the public's perception of him as a Beatle, in the same way that Michael Palin's character in the Python song challenged the stereotypes associated with an "all-action" lumberjack.Leng, pp. 185–86.

Recording 1974 basic track

Harrison taped "His Name Is Legs (Ladies and Gentlemen)" during sessions for his 1974 album Dark Horse,Spizer, p. 275.MacFarlane, p. 100. but it was one of a number of tracks he left unfinished.Michael Gross, "George Harrison: How Dark Horse Whipped Up a Winning Tour", CIrcus Raves, March 1975; available at Rock's Backpages (subscription required).Kevin Hewlett, liner-note essay, Extra Texture (Read All About It) CD booklet (Apple Records, 2014; produced by George Harrison), p. 9. The sessions took place at his Friar Park studio, FPSHOT, in August–September that year,Leng, p. 147. with Phil McDonald as recording engineer.Madinger & Easter, pp. 442, 453. Harrison played piano and electric guitar on the recording;Leng, p. 185. the other musicians were Billy Preston (electric piano), Tom Scott (saxophones), Willie Weeks (bass) and Andy Newmark (drums).Castleman & Podrazik, p. 376. These four musicians then joined Harrison for tour rehearsals in Los Angeles,Olivia Harrison, pp. 298–99. where he rushed to complete Dark Horse before undertaking a much-anticipated North American tour with Ravi Shankar.The Editors of Rolling Stone, pp. 44, 126.Lavezzoli, pp. 195–96. With Peter Sellers among his entourage,Clayson, p. 340. Harrison alternatively adopted comedy and his Hindu-aligned spiritual goals as a defence against expectations related to his Beatle past during the tour.Ben Fong-Torres, "George Harrison: Harrison in the Haight", San Francisco Chronicle, 2 December 2001; available at Rock's Backpages (subscription required).

When discussing "His Name Is Legs" with BBC Radio 1 DJ Paul Gambaccini in September 1975, Harrison said that after recording the basic track, he invited Smith to sing the first two lines of each of the bridges. Smith did these vocal parts in two takes, and improvised dialogue through the rest of the song each time. In Clayson's description, Smith sang the bridge sections in English "officer-and-gentleman tones" and adopted an American accent for the monologues.

1975 overdubs

Harrison returned to the track in April 1975 when recording his album Extra Texture (Read All About It) at A&M Studios in Los Angeles.Madinger & Easter, pp. 451, 453. The sessions coincided with a period that author Gary Tillery describes as a "spiritual funk" for Harrison,Tillery, p. 116. in reaction to scathing reviews for his 1974 tour and the Dark Horse album.Greene, pp. 213–15.Leng, pp. 178, 179. Harrison's despondency was alleviated by his new relationship with Olivia Arias,Tillery, pp. 115–16.Rodriguez, pp. 280, 384, 424. and a friendship begun with Monty Python star Eric IdleGeorge Harrison, p. 65. immediately after the Los Angeles premiere of the film Monty Python and the Holy Grail.Woffinden, p. 104. Idle has spoken of them sharing "a dialogue that went on for about 48 hours" following the premiere,George Harrison: Living in the Material World DVD, Village Roadshow, 2011 (directed by Martin Scorsese; produced by Olivia Harrison, Nigel Sinclair & Martin Scorsese), Disc 2; event occurs between 59:20 and 59:29. which led to Harrison producing a re-recording of "The Lumberjack Song" in London, in October 1975,McCall, p. 44. for release as a UK single.The Editors of Rolling Stone, p. 194. The pair then wrote a comical sea shanty called "The Pirate Song"George Harrison, p. 314. for a sketch in Rutland Weekend Television,MacFarlane, p. 107. Idle's TV show with Neil Innes, Smith's former bandmate.

Overdubs on the 1974 basic track for "His Name Is Legs" included tack piano, played by Canadian musician David Foster, and a new horn arrangement, played by Scott and Chuck Findley,MacFarlane, p. 101. another member of Harrison's tour band the previous year.Leng, p. 167. Scott and Findley recorded their contributions at A&M Studios over 2–3 June,Madinger & Easter, p. 453. with each musician overdubbing two horn parts.George Harrison interview, Rockweek, (retrieved 13 September 2013).

The released recording begins with an introductory bass riff from Weeks, which is then joined by Foster's tack piano. Commentators note the lack of clarity in the mix,Rodriguez, p. 184. which author Elliot Huntley attributes to the "three-pronged piano attack" and the low level of Harrison and Smith's vocals.Huntley, pp. 127–28. At times during the sections featuring Smith's improvised dialogue, Harrison let both recorded takes run simultaneously, and he admitted to Gambaccini that he chose to mix the track in this way "so people have to strain with headphones to hear what it is".George Harrison interview, Rockweek, (retrieved 13 September 2013).Badman, pp. 164, 165.

Release and reception