Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
Today’s classic song that mentions Memphis in the lyrics of the day is “Gypsys, Tramps and Thieves” by Cher. The lyric in question is in the second verse and it goes like this: Picked up a boy just south of MobileGave him a ride, filled him with a hot mealI was sixteen, he was twenty-oneRode with us to MemphisAnd papa…
Today’s classic song that mentions Memphis in the lyrics of the day is actually named for a different city, sort of. The song is “City of New Orleans,” written by Steve Goodman and performed in its most well-known version by Arlo Guthrie. The City of New Orleans mentioned in the song isn’t actually the city of New Orleans, its a…
This week we’re focusing on songs with “Memphis” in the lyrics. Our classic “Memphis” song of the day is “Daisy Jane” by America, which starts out with the line, “Flyin’ me back to Memphis, got to find my Daisy Jane.” “Daisy Jane” was America’s seventh and final Top 20 single, following “A Horse With No Name” (#1), “I Need You”…
Your Memphis-flavored song of the day is “Walking in Memphis” by Marc Cohn. This song, released in 1991, was a career maker and a career highlight for Mr. Cohn, hitting #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #12 on the Adult Contemporary chart. It was also nominated for a Grammy for Record of the Year, losing to Natalie Cole’s duet…
After spending a week dissecting Dusty Springfield’s Dusty in Memphis album a few weeks back, let’s kick off a week of songs with the word “Memphis” in the title or lyrics. We’ll start with the most obvious one, Chuck Berry’s classic “Memphis, Tennessee.” Mr. Berry recorded this one in September 1958 but never released it as a single in the…
We’re wrapping up our week-long tribute to the late Cynthia Weil with one of her later songs, “Somewhere Out There,” a duet by Linda Ronstadt and James Ingram. Cynthia and her husband Barry Mann, along with James Horner, wrote this one for the soundtrack of the animated movie An American Tail. This is one of those songs that brings chills…
Continuing to honor the memory and the songwriting of the late Cynthia Weil, it’s time to turn our attention to former Mama, Cass Elliot, and the three hits she had with Barry Mann/Cynthia Weil tunes. We’re talking about, in chronological order, “It’s Getting Better,” “Make Your Own Kind of Music,” and “New World Coming.” The first of these tunes, “It’s…
Continuing our appreciation of the late Cynthia Weil, today’s classic song of the day is “Uptown,” by the Crystals. It’s one of the earliest Barry Mann/Cynthia Weil collaborations, released in 1962. It was a hit for Phil Spector’s Philles Records, hitting #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #10 on the Cash Box Top 100. “Uptown” is a ostensibly a…
Continuing our week honoring the late Cynthia Weil, we come to “We Gotta Get Out of This Place.” This song, recorded by the Animals, was released in August of 1965 (in the U.S.; a month earlier in the UK) and went to #13 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and #2 on the UK Singles Chart. “We Gotta Get Out…
Continuing our overview of the career of songwriter Cynthia Weil, today’s classic song of the day is “Only in America” by Jay and the Americans. This one has a controversial history. “Only In America,” written in 1963, was the second collaboration between the teams of Barry Mann/Cynthia Weil and Jerry Leiber/Mike Stoller. That’s a good thing; their previous collaboration, “On…