The name of the song comes from a street, located high in the Hollywood Hil… Read Full Bio ↴The name of the song comes from a street, located high in the Hollywood Hills overlooking Sunset Boulevard, which affords panoramic views of Hollywood and much of the Los Angeles Basin. It is reached from downtown Los Angeles via a complicated street route, which is all the harder to navigate on a foggy night — thus creating the backdrop for the opening lines of the song:

"There's a fog upon L.A. / And my friends have lost their way"

According to Harrison: "Derek Taylor got held up. He rang to say he'd be late. I told him on the phone that the house was in Blue Jay Way. And he said he could find it OK... he could always ask a cop. So I waited and waited. I felt really knackered with the flight, but I didn't want to go to sleep until he came. There was a fog and it got later and later. To keep myself awake, just as a joke to pass the time while I waited, I wrote a song about waiting for him in Blue Jay Way. There was a little Hammond organ in the corner of this house which I hadn't noticed until then... so I messed around on it and the song came."

The song was recorded on 6 September 1967, with overdubs on 7 September and 6 October. The record employs flanging, an audio delay technique, and the stereo and mono mixes differ noticeably. For the stereo version, a full-length copy of the song was played backwards and faded in at key points in the mix. This was not done for the mono or film versions. The television film, Magical Mystery Tour, included the mono mix; the 1990s remastered version used a new stereo mix, sounding closer to the mono mix. The music video for the Magical Mystery Tour film was shot at West Malling and Weybridge in Surrey on 3 November, the day filming was completed.

At the end of the song, there is what might be perceived as a malfunction of the cello tape loop. It is in fact a cover-up of what had been planned to occur in the music video featured in the Magical Mystery Tour film; in the planned ending George was supposed to be hit by the Magical Mystery Tour bus. That ending was never shot, and the revised repeated ending is shown instead. A session musician played the cello.

Blue Jay Way
Secret Machines Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

There's a fog upon L.A.
And my friends have lost their way
We'll be over soon they said
Now they've lost themselves instead.

Please don't be long
Please don't you be very long
Please don't be long

For I may be asleep.

Now it only goes to show
And I told them where to go
Ask a policeman on the street
There's so many there to meet.

Please don't be long
Please don't you be very long
Please don't be long
For I may be asleep.

Now it's past my bed I know
And I'd really like to go
Soon will be the breath of day
Sitting here in Blue Jay Way.

Please don't be long
Please don't you be very long
Please don't be long
For I may be asleep

Please don't be long
Please don't you be very long
Please don't be long

Please don't be long
Please don't you be very long
Please don't be long

Please don't be long
Please don't you be very long
Please don't be long

Don't be long, don't be long, don't be long
Don't be long, don't be long, don't be long

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Secret Machines’ “Blue Jay Way” describe a feeling of disorientation, confusion, and impatience. The singer is waiting for some friends who have gotten lost, and they are taking a long time to arrive. The city is covered in fog, adding to the sense of disorientation. The sense of urgency in the repeated plea “Please don’t be long” underscores the singer’s anxiety, as they are tired and want to go to bed. However, the friends still haven’t arrived, and the singer tries to direct them to their destination: asking the police for help.

Musically, the song builds tension with its repetitive, driving rhythm, swirling guitar lines, and droning background vocals. The distorted guitar and pounding drums convey a sense of urgency and frustration. The chorus, with its simple and insistent mantra of “Please don’t be long,” is catchy and anthemic, enhancing the sense of longing and impatience in the lyrics.

“Blue Jay Way” was featured on Secret Machines’ album “Ten Silver Drops” (2006), and is likely a reference to the street in the Hollywood Hills where George Harrison owned a house in the 1960s. Harrison wrote a song of the same name, which was featured on The Beatles’ “Magical Mystery Tour” soundtrack (1967). The similarities between the two songs are limited to their titles, but the psychedelic sound and themes of confusion, disorientation, and waiting are similar.

Line by Line Meaning

There's a fog upon L.A.
Los Angeles is covered in fog.

And my friends have lost their way
The singer's friends are lost in the fog.

We'll be over soon they said
The singer's friends promised to arrive soon.

Now they've lost themselves instead.
The artist's friends ended up getting lost.

Please don't be long Please don't you be very long Please don't be long For I may be asleep.
The artist is worried about falling asleep before their friends arrive.

Now it only goes to show And I told them where to go Ask a policeman on the street There's so many there to meet.
The singer gave their friends directions, suggesting they ask a police officer for help.

Now it's past my bed I know And I'd really like to go Soon will be the breath of day Sitting here in Blue Jay Way.
The singer is tired and wants to go to bed, but is waiting for their friends to arrive. They are sitting in a place called Blue Jay Way, anticipating the dawn.

Don't be long, don't be long, don't be long
The artist is repeating their plea for their friends to arrive quickly.

Don't be long, don't be long, don't be long
The artist repeats their plea, growing more anxious.

Don't be long, don't be long, don't be long
The artist repeats their plea once more, hoping their friends will arrive soon.

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: George Harrison

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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