Leaning On A Lamp Post was one of the Noel Gay songs featured in the musical play, Me And My Gal, which was originally staged in London in 1937 but not seen in the U.S. until 1986. Probably the most well-known song from Me And My Gal is The Lambeth Walk, which was the closing number of Act 1.
Our teacher put this on in lesson by my request, and then some kids about a minute later started throwing pens around. The teacher was trying to have a serious conversation with them while this was playing in the background!
its strange how you turn into your dad.inthe sixties when I was listening to the stones,the who etc.i hated this while my dad liked it.now I,m listening to this,al bowelly.richard tauber etc allmy dadsfavourites
In the days when this song was written, few city dwellers - especially those of the working class - had automobiles. Life was very local, and free time was often spent outdoors, there being no TV or air-conditioning to keep people inside during good weather. People walked around, or hung out with friends, or went from one group to another.
So, if a guy was interested in talking to a particular girl, hanging around on the street was a reasonable thing to do. He could chat with friends, wave to others, but still be ready to meet the object of his affections. And from the lyrics, it seems that they have gone out before, although the relationship seems to be in its early days, so it's not a case (as some people in the comments seem to think) of a guy with a crush on a girl who has no idea he is interested.
Our way of life has certainly changed, with suburbs, a proliferation of cars and TV's and with air-conditioning being a common household appliance. So the song appears odd, given what we are used to.
Personally, I consider this one of the greatest love songs ever written. It has endured in the collective memory of British people like very few others from that period. Terribly underrated. Utterly wonderful.
This was my Grandad’s favourite song, when he died we played it at the crematorium. The man who ran the service said in all of the years of doing that job he’d never heard a George Formby song played at a service haha! I can’t help but smile when I hear this song.
