The Lyric Paul McCartney Wrote with an Assist from His Dad

Paul McCartney has balanced as well as anyone the demands of being a worldwide rock star with a devotion to family life.  The reason for that could stem from the fact that McCartney came from a loving family when he was growing up.

On the lovely song “Put It There,” which is found on his outstanding 1989 album Flowers in the Dirt, McCartney pays it back by immortalizing a saying that his father James used often. And in so doing, he paints a winning portrait of love and support.

Wise Words

Flowers in the Dirt represented a sort of rededication to excellence by Paul McCartney. He had been disappointed by the commercial and critical reaction to his 1986 album Press to Play. It was a record where he tried to stay current with pop trends of the day, but ended up with a somewhat forgettable batch of songs.

With Flowers in the Dirt, he seemed to focus on the songwriting aspect of the equation to a greater degree, and the album was much better for it. Much was made of McCartney writing a few songs on the album with Elvis Costello, one of his first major collaborations of that sort in a while.

But most of the record consisted of McCartney-only compositions, including “Put It There.” McCartney revealed in his book The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present he needed only look back to his youth to get the inspiration:

“‘Put it there’ is an expression my dad Jim often used. He was loaded with colourful expressions, as so many Liverpool people still are today. He loved to play with words, juggle them in his head, and he had loads of little sayings that were sometimes nonsensical, sometimes functional, but always rather lyrical. When he was shaking your hand he would say, ‘Put it there if it weighs a ton.’”

Parsing the Lyrics to “Put It There”

McCartney also speculated in the book about whether the song might be dealing with unresolved feelings he had about John Lennon, in essence trying to atone for some of the bad blood between the two in the direct aftermath of The Beatles’ breakup. Whether that subconscious vibe gets through to the listeners is hard to say.

What is clear is “Put It There” delivers nothing but warmth and emotional support into the atmosphere every time it’s cued up. The narrator immediately states his amiable purpose in the world: Give me your hand, I’d like to shake it / I’d like to show you I’m your friend. McCartney insists that It’s all that matters in the end, and as he sings gently over the acoustic melody, how can you argue with him?

The second verse doesn’t make it quite clear if the narrator is referring to a confrontation between two fellow acquaintances, or if he’s involved in the dispute. He just wants it over: If there’s a fight, I’d like to fix it. McCartney’s trademark optimism then comes in to sweep away any leftover animus: The darkest night and all its mixed emotions / Is getting lighter, sing along.

The chorus rehashes the elder McCartney’s advice and the context in which Paul first heard it: Put it there if it weighs a ton / That’s what a father said to his young son. He then seems to take that advice and pass it on through the ages to whomever is there to listen: As long as you and I are here / Put it there. It certainly seems like Jim McCartney would endorse that message from son Paul, especially since it’s expressed so wonderfully in this charming song.

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Photo by Neville Marriner/Daily Mail/Shutterstock