Werewolves of London (1978) – Warren Zevon

“I saw a werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand”
– The line BBC listeners voted as having the best opening line in a song.

Who can forget that scene in The Color of Money when Tom Cruise is strutting his stuff to this song while playing pool? Perhaps it was wrong for me to lead with that, since I don’t want to reduce this gem to a snippet from a movie. I can’t even play the song while I’m writing about it, since it’s just too good not to get into your bones and rattle your core. You can forget thinking about anything else, because the Werewolves of London have got you in their sights.

Do you remember that poor man alone in the subway in the movie An American Werewolf in London, being pursued down the empty passageways of that desolate London station? Well, that’s how enrapturing this song is. People say I exaggerate a million times, but I’m not kidding – this song won’t let go once it’s got a hold of you. They talk about catchy songs, but Werewolves of London takes that whole idea to another level.

I think the first song I heard by Warren Zevon, which I knew was by him, was Keep Me In Your Heart (2003). Yeah, I know, I was a real latecomer to his music. I had, of course, heard Lawyers, Guns and Money and Werewolves of London on the airwaves and whatnot, but I didn’t realise they were his until later. Werewolves of London was Zevon’s one and only Top 40 hit, by the way.

The funny thing is, everyone in music fan circles was raving about Zevon and saying how underrated he was, and I’d say, “Yeah – he did this neat song called Keep Me in Your Heart.” He also wrote many other great songs was what they were probably thinking. So over the next couple of decades I gradually caught up with them, although only in brief opportunities and with plenty of time in between.

Now I get it – just so much great stuff. I can also see why people keep asking when he’s finally going to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. If Bob Dylan covers your music, you know you’ve done something pretty special.

That being said, Warren Zevon never had it easy. He endured years of critical neglect as well as battles with alcohol and drug abuse. Although he enjoyed only modest commercial success, he produced the classic songs that eventually secured his place in rock history. Zevon continued writing and recording right up until his death from mesothelioma in September 2003 at just 56 years of age. I’ll never forget his unforgettable performance of his masterpiece Mutineer on Late Show with David Letterman, less than a year before his death.

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Snippets from Wikipedia:

(Werewolves of London) first appeared on Excitable Boy (1978), Zevon’s third studio album, then it was released as a single, becoming a Top 40 US hit, the only one of Zevon’s career, reaching No. 21 on the US Billboard in May.

The song began as a joke by Phil Everly (of the Everly Brothers) to Zevon in 1975, over two years before the recording sessions for Excitable Boy. Everly had watched a television broadcast of the 1935 film Werewolf of London and “suggested to Zevon that he adapt the title for a song and dance craze.”

Zevon played with the idea with his band members LeRoy P. Marinell and Waddy Wachtel, who wrote the song together in about 15 minutes, all contributing lyrics that were transcribed by Zevon’s wife Crystal. However, none of them took the song seriously.

According to band guitarrist Waddy Wachtel  “Werewolves of London” was “the hardest song to get down in the studio I’ve ever worked on.”…Although 59 takes were recorded, Jackson Browne and Zevon selected the second take for the final mix. Wachtel recalled that the session began in the evening and went into the next morning. The protracted studio time and musicians’ fees led to the song eating up most of the album’s budget.

[Verse 1]
I saw a werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand
Walking through the streets of Soho in the rain
He was looking for the place called Lee Ho Fook’s
Gonna get a big dish of beef chow mein

[Chorus]
Ah-hoo, werewolves of London
Ah-hoo
Ah-hoo, werewolves of London
Ah-hoo

[Verse 2]
You hear him howling around your kitchen door
You better not let him in
Little old lady got mutilated late last night
Werewolves of London again

[Chorus]
Ah-hoo, werewolves of London
Ah-hoo
Ah-hoo, werewolves of London
Ah-hoo, huh

[Verse 3]
He’s the hairy-handed gent who ran amok in Kent
Lately, he’s been overheard in Mayfair
You better stay away from him
He’ll rip your lungs out, Jim
Huh, I’d like to meet his tailor

[Chorus]
Ah-hoo, werewolves of London
Ah-hoo
Ah-hoo, werewolves of London
Ah-hoo

[Verse 4]
Well, I saw Lon Chaney walking with the queen
Doing the werewolves of London
I saw Lon Chaney, Jr. walking with the queen, uh
Doing the werewolves of London
I saw a werewolf drinking a piña colada at Trader Vic’s
And his hair was perfect
Na!

[Chorus]
Ah-hoo
Werewolves of London
Huh, draw blood, uh
Ah-hoo
Werewolves of London

References:
1. Werewolves of London – Wikipedia