Polythene Pam: Introduction
“Polythene Pam” is a Beatles’ song on their Abbey Road album from 1969. Indeed, it is the fourth part of the long medley on side 2. In brief, the singing is in the form of a Liverpool accent (Scouse). Moreover, it is an unflattering poke at a Liverpool lass or lasses from their gigging days in the Cavern Club and around Merseyside.
In Detail
- Release Date: September 26, 1969 (UK), October 1, 1969 (US)
- Recorded: July 25, 28 & 30, 1969
- Genre: Rock
- Track Duration: 1:12
- Record Label: Apple Records
- Songwriter: Lennon-McCartney
- Producer: George Martin
- Engineers: Geoff Emerick, Phil McDonald
Performers And Instruments
- John Lennon: lead vocal, twelve-string acoustic guitar, also handclaps
- Paul McCartney: backing vocals, bass guitar, pianos (acoustic and electric)
- George Harrison: backing vocals, also the lead guitar
- Ringo Starr: drums, tambourine, maracas, also the cowbell
Where To Find “Polythene Pam”
You can still buy this song because it appears on the following albums:
**If you only need the original version of any Beatles song, try their earliest releases.
Polythene Pam: Background
John Lennon wrote the song while in India, where he was studying transcendental meditation in 1968. The title of the song implies that the subject was a real person, but it probably was a combination of two females in reality.
Polythene Pat?
Firstly, we have a real woman called Pat Hodgett (now Dawson), who was an early Beatles fan. She had a fetish, which would see her eating polythene.
“I started going to see The Beatles in 1961 when I was 14, and I got quite friendly with them. If they were playing out of town, they’d give me a lift back home in their van. It was about the same time that I started getting called Polythene Pat. It’s embarrassing, really.
I just used to eat polythene all the time. I’d tie it in knots and then eat it. Sometimes I even used to burn it and then eat it when it got cold. Then I had a friend who got a job in a polythene bag factory, which was wonderful because it meant I had a constant supply.”
Pat Dawson
A Hard Day’s Write, Steve Turner
Polythene Stephanie?
The Quarrymen once played as a backing group for erstwhile beat poet Royston Ellis in June 1960. Although they went their separate ways, they remained friends. Then, in August 1963, John Lennon met up with Ellis again in the Channel Islands (Guernsey, not Jersey).
“[Polythene Pam] That was me, remembering a little event with a woman in Jersey and a man who was England’s answer to Allen Ginsberg, who gave us our first exposure. This is so long; you can’t deal with all this.
You see, everything triggers amazing memories. I met him when we were on tour, and he took me back to his apartment. I had a girl, and he had one [Stephanie] he wanted me to meet. He said she dressed up in polythene, which she did. She didn’t wear jackboots and kilts; I just sort of elaborated. Perverted sex in a polythene bag. Just looking for something to write about.”
John Lennon, 1980
All We Are Saying, David Sheff
Recording Studio
The Beatles began recording “Polythene Pam” on July 25, 1969, in Studio Two at the EMI Studios in London during the 2.30 p.m.–2.30 a.m. session. In fact, they recorded Polythene Pam/She Came In Through The Bathroom Window as one. Both are about the Apple scruffs, of course.
The band taped 39 takes and chose the last one for overdubs. The overdubbing sessions began on July 28 and included further lead vocals, guitars, tambourine, drums, and piano. In the control room of Studio Two on July 30, the final overdubs took place together with the running order of the long medley on the Abbey Road album.
The 1996 “Anthology 3” album also has a home demo of this song. This recording comes from George Harrison’s home, Kinfauns, in Surrey. The lyrics are slightly different on the demo version. They use the line “Well, it’s a little absurd, but she’s a nice class of bird” instead of “She’s the kind of girl that makes the News of the World.”
Quite a few artists also recorded their version of “Polythene Pam.” For example, there was Booker T. & the MGs (1970), Roy Wood (1976), Atom and His Package (1999), and The Punkles (2006).
Take A Listen To “Polythene Pam”
Finally, listen to the song in question and leave your thoughts below.
