Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard

"Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard"
Single by Paul Simon
from the album Paul Simon
B-side"Congratulations"
ReleasedMay 1972
Recorded1971
Genre
Length2:44
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Paul Simon
Producer(s)
Paul Simon singles chronology
"Mother and Child Reunion"
(1972) 		"Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard"
(1972) 		"Duncan"
(1972)
Music video
"Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard" on YouTube

"Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard" is a song by American singer-songwriter Paul Simon. It was the second single from his second, self-titled studio album (1972), released on Columbia Records.

Lyrical subject

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In a July 20, 1972 interview for Rolling Stone, Jon Landau asked Simon: "What is it that the mama saw? The whole world wants to know." Simon replied "I have no idea what it is... Something sexual is what I imagine, but when I say 'something', I never bothered to figure out what it was. Didn't make any difference to me."[1]

Simon described the song as "a bit of inscrutable doggerel" in an October 2010 interview,[2] while the "radical priest" has been interpreted as a reference to Daniel Berrigan,[3][4][5] who was featured on the cover of Time on January 25, 1971,[6] near when the song was written. The song mentions "Rosie, the queen of Corona", referring to Corona, a neighborhood in Queens near where Simon grew up.[7]

Record World said that the "effervescent tune tells of growing up absurd in Queens, N.Y." and called the song "a sheer delight."[8]

Recording

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The percussion sound in the song, unusual for American pop, was created with a cuica, a Brazilian friction drum instrument often used in samba music.[9]

Music video

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In 1988, Simon released a music video for the song to promote his greatest hits compilation Negotiations and Love Songs. The video was filmed at Mathews-Palmer Park in Hell's Kitchen, which was standing in for Halsey Junior High School in Forest Hills, Queens, the neighborhood in which Simon grew up and met Art Garfunkel in high school. Many of the children featured in the video were from that same school; Kia Jeffries, who sang on Simon's The Rhythm of the Saints album and cast the video, had attended as well.

It features an introduction by hip hop MC's (and then-fellow Warner Bros. Records label mates) Big Daddy Kane and Biz Markie. Main Source member Large Professor also makes a cameo towards the end.[10] The video depicts adults interacting with the youth of an inner-city schoolyard. It shows Simon playing basketball and stickball with the children, and it also features basketball player Spud Webb, baseball player Mickey Mantle, and football coach-commentator John Madden giving tips to young athletes.

Personnel

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Cover versions

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German singer Peter Rainford covered the song in 1973, releasing the single entitled as "Lady Pyjama" in Germany and The Netherlands.[11] It was translated into German and arranged by Uli Roever.[12]

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The song appears in a montage in the 2001 film The Royal Tenenbaums directed by filmmaker Wes Anderson. It also appears in the film A Home at the End of the World, over the opening credits of Maid in Manhattan, in The Simpsons episode "Holidays of Future Passed", within the film The Muppets, and in the trailer for Missing Link.[13][14][15][16][17][18]

In 1977, Simon himself performed the song on Sesame Street.[19]

The song plays in the second episode of Saturday Night Live, during a Weekend Update segment where Simon plays basketball. It was also featured in an SNL skit paying homage to Wes Anderson as a trailer of a horror film (titled The Midnight Coterie of Sinister Intruders) in his distinct style.[20]

Simon performed the song with Stephen Colbert on the September 11, 2015, episode of The Late Show.[21]

Charts

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[32] Silver 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Notes

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References

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  1. ^ Landau, Jon (July 20, 1972). "Paul Simon: The Rolling Stone Interview". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  2. ^ Paul Simon, "Isn't It Rich", The New York Times Book Review, October 31, 2010, p. 10.
  3. ^ Gibson, David (April 1, 2016). "Daniel Berrigan, anti-war priest, dies at 94". Religion News Service. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  4. ^ Lewis, Daniel (April 30, 2016). "Daniel J. Berrigan, Defiant Priest Who Preached Pacifism, Dies at 94". The New York Times. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  5. ^ "Daniel Berrigan, leading Catholic pacifist, dead at 94". Crux. April 1, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  6. ^ "Rebel Priests: The Curious Case of the Berrigans". TIME.com. January 25, 1971. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  7. ^ Tellerman, Robert (September 22, 2020). "The King Of Corona: Paul Simon Says Goodbye At Flushing Meadows". NYS MUSIC. Retrieved December 24, 2020. During the Goodbye Rosie part in "Me and Julio," the crowd went crazy when he said "Queen of Corona" Paul's wife Edie Brickell joined him on stage for the whistling solo. After the song, he said to the crowd "How much fun is it to sing a song about Corona, in Corona?!"
  8. ^ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. April 1, 1972. p. 1. Retrieved April 1, 2023.
  9. ^ McGowan, Chris; Pessanha, Ricardo (1998). The Brazilian Sound: Samba, Bossa Nova, and the Popular Music of Brazil. Temple University Press. pp. 170. ISBN 9781566395458. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
  10. ^ "SEE, HEAR: Paul Simon ft. Biz Markie & Big Daddy Kane — "Me and Julio Down By The Schoolyard" Music Video (1988)". article. egotripland.com. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  11. ^ "Dutch Charts - dutchcharts.nl".
  12. ^ "Pete Rainford – Lady Pyjama (1973, Vinyl)". Discogs. November 26, 1973.
  13. ^ "The Music of Wes Anderson Films: The Royal Tenenbaums". MTV News. Archived from the original on May 16, 2016. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  14. ^ A Home at the End of the World (2004), retrieved November 28, 2018
  15. ^ "Soundtracks from Paul Simon - Maid in Manhattan". www.paul-simon.info. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  16. ^ "The Simpsons" Holidays of Future Passed (TV Episode 2011), retrieved November 28, 2018
  17. ^ "'Muppets' Movie Soundtrack Features Feist, Flight of the Conchords, Andrew Bird". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  18. ^ "Missing Link Trailer: Laika's Latest Teams Hugh Jackman & Zach Galifianakis". MovieWeb. November 8, 2018. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  19. ^ "Sesame Street: Paul Simon Sings Me & Julio". YouTube. July 30, 2008. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  20. ^ Saturday Night Live (April 18, 2019). Wes Anderson Horror Trailer - SNL. Retrieved June 13, 2024 – via YouTube.
  21. ^ Rosenbaum, Marty (September 14, 2015). "Stephen Colbert Brings Paul Simon "Tribute" Band Troubled Waters To Late Show [Watch] « WXRT". Wxrt.cbslocal.com. Retrieved October 7, 2016.
  22. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  23. ^ "RPM100: Singles" (PDF). RPM. 17 (15). Ottawa: Library and Archives Canada. May 27, 1972. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
  24. ^ "The Programmers' MOR Playlist" (PDF). RPM. 17 (16). Ottawa: Library and Archives Canada. June 3, 1972. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
  25. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
  26. ^ "Paul Simon – Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
  27. ^ [Flavour of New Zealand, July 24, 1972]
  28. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 499. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  29. ^ "Paul Simon Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
  30. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, May 20, 1972". Archived from the original on November 16, 2019. Retrieved July 9, 2017.
  31. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1999). Pop Annual. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. ISBN 0-89820-142-X.
  32. ^ "British single certifications – Paul Simon – Me and Julio Down by the School Yard". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved September 24, 2020.

Sources

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