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I never had it, I never wanted it, I never had your beauty mark
Nor did I have your black hair and hazel eyes
My early childhood was not as simple as yours, set in the country
No, I did not have a fear of nuns who dressed in black
But I do have your tastes
I had no radio show, nor did I have home-made clothes,
Home-made curtains of the same material
I never had it, I never wanted it
I never had your beauty mark, beauty mark
But I do have your tastes, and I do have your red face and long hands
I think Callas sang a lovely "Norma," you prefer Robson in "Deep River"
I may not be so manly, but still I know you love me
Even if I don't have your beauty mark, beauty mark! |
- this song is about Rufus' mother, Kate McGarrigle
- "home-maid clothes" and "curtains of the same material" - from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical film, The Sound of Music (1965), when governess Maria used curtains to make uniforms for the Captain's children (also a 1959 Broadway production)
- Callas - Maria Callas (1923-1977) was an American-born Greek dramatic coloratura soprano and perhaps the best-known opera singer of the post-World War II period
- Norma - Maria Callas made her opera debut in 1956 as this character in Bellini's Norma
- Robson - could be Paul Robeson, a famous African-American athlete/singer/actor
- Deep River - Paul Robeson sang both "Deep River" and "Ol' Man River"
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- "That's about my mother. We spar a lot. She'll write a song, I'll write a song; she'll put me down, I'll put her down. I'd written a bunch of stuff she thought was terrible (and she was right). But 'Beauty Mark' won her over - it was my comeback. I had to rise to her challenge. I said to myself, 'Okay, I'm gonna write a perfect little classy thing. I'll show mama!' It's the happiest song on the album."
- The demo version from a 1995 DreamWorks tape is also in circulation
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