When I caught a glimpse of Rita
Filling in a ticket in her little white book
The use of 'meter maid' first appeared in the US in the late 1950s. It was still largely unknown in the UK until The Beatles released Sgt. Pepper on 1 June, 1967.
Paul McCartney wrote Lovely Rita, after receiving a parking ticket from a young woman when returning to his car. The exact circumstances are disputed, see here
Where did Paul get the phrase 'meter maid' form
{ I read} that in America they call traffic wardens ‘meter maids I thought, God, that’s so American! Also maid’ had sexual connotations, like a French maid or a milkmaid,
There’s something good about ‘maid,’ and ‘meter’ made it a bit more official, like the meter in a cab; the meter is running, meter maid. Hearing that amused me. Taken from Many Years From Now
Or perhaps meter maid was easier to rhyme than parking attendant!
