His Name Is Legs (Ladies and Gentlemen)

Concluding George Harrison's fourth post-Beatles studio effort, 1975's Extra Texture, is the somewhat silly but nonetheless thoroughly entertaining "His Name Is Legs (Ladies and Gentlemen)." The "Legs" in question is none other than "Legs" Larry Smith, onetime drummer for the surrealistic Dadaist musical/comedy troupe the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band. This wasn't Smith's only guest spot on a prominent rock platter, either, as he had contributed tap dancing (of all things) to Elton John's spry and sarcastic "I Think I'm Gonna Kill Myself" from 1972's Honky Chateau. "His Name Is Legs (Ladies and Gentlemen)" wraps up an album of primarily heavier numbers, allowing Harrison the opportunity to close the disc on a lighter note and unleash his admittedly askew and undeniably rich sense of humor. Nowhere is this more evident than the spoken yet entirely unintelligible gibberish that presumably Smith extols during the instrumental break. Fittingly, the lyrics are partially nonsensical and otherwise a free-for-all bout of wordplay. Examples abound and include lines such as "Never over-sits, he understands" and "He's a rocking sausage roll/He gets it in the goal/Healthy little 'brown affair'/And when he washes his hair/He'll get a round or a square." The personnel on the track are worthy of mention, as the core rhythm section of drummer Andy Newmark and bassist Willie Weeks, along with pianist Billy Preston, don't appear elsewhere on Extra Texture. They were, however, primary participants in Harrison's previous outing, 1974's Dark Horse, suggesting that "His Name Is Legs (Ladies and Gentlemen)" may have been held over from that project.