FADE IN: A LIVERPOOL SCHOOLYARD, 1955.
A group of teenage ruffians, among them PAUL McCARTNEY, decked in nice cardigans and donning loosened ties, puff on cigarettes as they practice a new insult-based game they recently discovered.
RUFFIAN #1: Yo momma’s so fat, when she weighs herself, the scale says “To Be Continued”!
RUFFIAN #2: Yo momma’s so dumb, she asked what’s the number for 999!*
PAUL McCARTNEY: Yo momma’s so old, she was born after a hit song that we should all get up and dance to!
The other two ruffians look at each other, puzzled.
RUFFIAN #1: Did…did he just win?
*Remember, this scene takes place in Liverpool. That’s the equivalent of 911 for them. You’re probably asking yourself, “Is anyone outside the U.S. reading this, Anthony? We can handle an anachronism for the sake of clarity.” Shut up, xenophobe.
That is, essentially, the basis for “Your Mother Should Know,” a borderline novelty song from the 1967 film Magical Mystery Tour. In the opening line, Paul McCartney implores listeners to “get up and dance to a song that was a hit before your mother was born, though she was born a long, long time ago” and from there…well, it’s basically one of those charming Paul McCartney ditties that would be unbearably cloying from anyone else. There aren’t too many of them left on the countdown, although one is going to pop up next.
Anthony Cusumano 