(The Hit Hammer is where I'm reviewing each #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100. Starting from when the chart started in 1958 and eventually working my way to the present. To see my inspiration and more information about this blog, please CLICK HERE)
Peter, Paul & Mary - "Leaving On a Jet Plane"
Hit Number 1: December 20, 1969
Stay at Number 1: 1 Week
In the late 1960's, the Vietnam War was the reason for many young men to be forced to pack up their stuff and go overseas. Needless to say, it was likely a very surreal feeling for not only them, but their families too. I can't imagine what that must be like. One day you're minding your own business and enjoying your youth, and the next you're plucked away from your home, and there's nothing you can do about it. In case that wasn't enough, you don't even know if you'll survive overseas. Many young men's last memories were being killed by foreigners in a foreign land. Not a good way to go. I rant about this, because I'm sure that's what helped "Leaving On a Jet Plane" become a #1 hit. The song never mentions going off to war, but it does capture the sad feelings of those leaving their homes, and the lyrics make it seem like someone is leaving that wonders if they'll ever come back again. That kind of stuff sticks with you, man.
"Leaving On a Jet Plane" was written in 1966 by everyone's favorite outdoorsy dude, John Denver. Denver, who will appear in this blog a few times, was just getting his foot in the door in the music industry. He hadn't created any of his songs about the great outdoors yet, and instead wrote "Leaving On a Jet Plane", a song that's very obviously not about the great outdoors. His song was originally called "Babe, I Hate to Go", but at the suggestion of his producer, he changed the title to "Leaving On a Jet Plane". It wasn't until three years later that Denver finally recorded his song, and his version is more of a sweet ballad about someone going away. His version sounds almost happy, and it gives me the impression that the person going away might just be going on vacation, or a business trip, or something else that isn't that dramatic. His version is alright, but it's Peter, Paul and Mary's version that was the big hit, and if you dive into it, it shouldn't be that hard to see why.
Peter, Paul and Mary, who are arguably one of the greatest folk groups of all time, weren't strangers to chart success, even though they hadn't scored a #1 hit to this point. They came close twice, with "Blowin' In the Wind" and "Puff, the Magic Dragon" both peaking at #2 earlier in the 1960's. (Those songs are an 8, and a 6 respectively) Since they likely knew Denver pretty well, they recorded his "Leaving On a Jet Plane" in 1967, though the song didn't have a single release until 1969, the same year Denver created his version. It didn't matter, I'm sure the song would have hit in 1967 the same way it did in 1969. Peter, Paul and Mary's version is a slick, powerfully sincere song that never indicates the possibility of someone going off to war, but the song has somber and sad vibes to it that make it seem that way. Here's the scenario: We have a song's lyrics that describe how someone is leaving and they don't know if they'll ever come back again, with some sad musical production, during a time when the Vietnam War was claiming people's lives who were forced to leave their homes. I have little doubt that that's why "Leaving On a Jet Plane" hit the way it did.
But it doesn't get to #1 if the musical production is lacking, which it isn't. Peter, Paul, and Mary absolutely rock the song. Mary Travers has one of those crisp and clean contralto voices that are very easy to listen to, and Peter and Paul's harmonies to her lead vocal are top-notch. Their voices always blended together very well, but on "Leaving On a Jet Plane" those harmonies are hypnotic. They aren't flashy or loud, but they still grab your attention. The instrumentation isn't very powerful, but it doesn't need to be when you have the trio's harmonies doing all the work. (I will say though that the baseline is incredible) Their performance of "Leaving On a Jet Plane" paints a picture inside my brain. I can imagine a guy either talking to his lover or his family, for what he fears might be the last time he'll ever see them. He gets all the right words out, and says everything he wants to say before he leaves. The lyric "hold me like you'll never let me go" really hits me hard.
While Peter, Paul and Mary's performance was about as great as it could've been, you can't take anything away from John Denver. He wrote an incredible song that really fit with the times. He just needed to find the right person/people who could do the song justice. To hell if Peter, Paul and Mary didn't accomplish that.
GRADE: 9/10
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