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Hey, here's something fun I did and maybe you all can help fill in the gaps.
Can we collectively tour every state in the U.S. by song title?
No showtunes or official state anthems, please. I'm trying to look for nontraditional original songs.
Alabama - NEIL YOUNG - ALABAMA
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas - DAMIEN JURADO - ARKANSAS
California - LED ZEPPELIN - GOING TO CALIFORNIA
Colorado -
Connecticut -
Delaware - POOKY BLUEM - EVERYONE LOVES DELAWARE (GOING TO WILMINGTON)
Florida - SUGAR - PANAMA CITY MOTEL
Georgia - [I was going to go for any modern version of Georgia on my Mind, but that is a state anthem!]
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois - SUFJAN STEVENS - CHICAGO
Indiana
Iowa - FIERY FURNACES - MASON CITY
Kansas
Kentucky - SHUDDER TO THINK - NO RM. 9, KENTUCKY
Louisiana - FATS DOMINO - WALKING TO NEW ORLEANS
Maine -
Maryland -
Massachusetts - DISMEMBERMENT PLAN - ICE OF BOSTON
Michigan - DAVID BOWIE - PANIC IN DETROIT
Minnesota -
Mississippi -
Missouri - various - KANSAS CITY
Montana - FRANK ZAPPA - MONTANA
Nebraska - BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN - NEBRASKA
Nevada - ELVIS PRESLEY - VIVA LAS VEGAS (don't like this, but if any of you have something better?)
New Hampshire - SONIC YOUTH - NEW HAMPSHIRE
New Jersey - BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN - ATLANTIC CITY
New Mexico - NEIL YOUNG - ALBUQUERQUE
New York - THE AD LIBS - THE BOY FROM NEW YORK CITY
North Carolina -
North Dakota -
Ohio - RANDY NEWMAN - DAYTON OHIO - 1903
Oklahoma -
Oregon -
Pennsylvania - BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN - STREETS OF PHILADELPHIA
Rhode Island - SONIC YOUTH - PROVIDENCE
South Carolina -
South Dakota -
Tennessee -
Texas - FIERY FURNACES - DRIVE TO DALLAS
Utah -
Vermont -
Virginia -
Washington - NIRVANA - FRANCES FARMER WILL HAVE HER REVENGE ON SEATTLE
West Virginia -
Wisconsin - XIU XIU - HELLO FROM EAU CLAIRE
Wyoming - SLIM CESSNA'S AUTO CLUB - CHEYENNE
Oklahoma is easy.
is it Moonlight In or On Vermont?
Bob Dylan - Mississippi
Loretta Lynn - Portland, Oregon
West Virginia: John Denver, "Take Me Home, Country Road"
I like this one better for New York: Frank Sinatra, "New York, New York"
North to Alaska - Johnny Horton
Indiana Wants Me - R.Dean Taylor
... does that John Denver song about West Virginia specifically? The song title doesn't reveal anything.
Anyway...
Sonic Youth gets a third song in our tour...
CHAPEL HILL - from 1992's Dirty album, for North Carolina
Since show tunes aren't allowed, why not "Oklahoma, USA" by the Kinks, which is a nontraditional song about a show tune.
For Kentucky, I would go with "Kentucky Rain" by Elvis.
There are a bunch more Kentucky songs here: http://www.settingthewoodsonfire.com/2008/07/man-in-kentucky-sure-is-lucky.html
It is definitely about WV. The line goes something like, "Country road take me home to the place I belong, West Virginia."
Also, what about "Sweet Home Alabama". I guess that is the official state song.
I noticed your current song for Florida is about Panama City Beach. Keg in the Closet by Kenny Chesney also references PCB. Others for Florida: Miami by Will Smith, Gainsville Rock City by Less Than Jake,
Michelle Shocked's Anchorage talks about Alaska
For Tennessee there's "Sequestered in Memphis" by The Hold Steady.
For my great state of Pennsylvania, I'd suggest "Amish Paradise" I guess? Or Elton John's "Philadelphia Freedom".
I also always thought New York, New York by the Chairman was a showtune? That's of course an obvious choice. If I could manage a whole 50 state list with nothing but quirky indie rock that would be amazing.
Without looking at the link to the Kentucky list, I just thought of
NEIL DIAMOND - KENTUCKY WOMAN
written and recorded by the artist, nonetheless
I should point out that I'm trying to pick songs I actually enjoy listening to. Although I found some very recent entries to my iTunes from mp3 blogs that I'm just beginning to take in (aka Damien Jurardo - Arkansas)
California could also be: Joni Mitchell's California or more recently Joanna Newsom's In California
Oh, Jonah. To represent my home state, you chose a song about That City at the Wrong End of I-45? You break my heart.
Especially when you could have gone with any of these…
Glen Campbell, “Galveston”
Waylon Jennings, “Luckenbach, Texas”
Lyle Lovett, “That’s Right (You’re Not from Texas)”
R.E.M., “Houston”
R.E.M., “Texarkana”
Marty Robbins, “El Paso”
Jimmie Rodgers, “T for Texas (Blue Yodel No. 1)”
Bob Wills, “San Antonio Rose”
ZZ Top, “La Grange”
It is definitely about WV. The line goes something like, "Country road take me home to the place I belong, West Virginia."
Also, what about "Sweet Home Alabama". I guess that is the official state song.
I noticed your current song for Florida is about Panama City Beach. Keg in the Closet by Kenny Chesney also references PCB. Others for Florida: Miami by Will Smith, Gainsville Rock City by Less Than Jake,
Well, "Sweet Home Alabama" isn't the official state song, but yeah, it pretty much is. But for those who may not know the history, it was actually a response to...wait for it...Neil Young's Alabama (complete with namechecking).
For Colorado, "Rocky Mountain High", unless we've already exceeded our quota of John Denver songs. :)
For Nevada, you could pick "Leaving Las Vegas" by Sheryl Crow.
Here's an oddball choice for Nebraska...Richard Marx's "Hazard"
For Georgia, "The Night the Lights Went Out In Georgia"
by Reba McEntire, or "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" by Charlie Daniels.
Grizzly Bear have a song called Colorado on the Yellow House LP.
Just found Stephen Malkmus' latest album in the library...
There's a song called
Baltimore
which takes care of Maryland!