Songs about obscure places.

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colinr

 
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Re: Songs about obscure places.

by colinr » Sat Dec 15, 2012 8:57 am

About a year and a half ago, I traveled scenic New Mexico State Highway 456, paralleling the Dry Cimmaron River between Folsom, New Mexico (near Capulin Volcano National Monument) and the highpoint of Oklahoma, Black Mesa (near Kenton). Seventeen miles of that highway consists of red dirt, which is the main thing that sparsely populated and lightly traveled area is known for. If it weren't for all the attention Cimmaron County, Oklahoma gets for being the epicenter of the Dust Bowl, it would be just about as obscure an area as can be. There are lots of other songs about the region's dusty past, some by famous songwriters, but most don't get very specific about place names beyond listing well known cities, or states that folks fled to, through, or from. Of course, highpointers are fond of the far northwestern portion of the panhandle, and the obscure part of New Mexico just across the border has some nice red rock and scenic volcanic mesa terrain, but that doesn't mean many songs focus on more than dust and its results.
Last edited by colinr on Sat Dec 15, 2012 9:21 am, edited 1 time in total.

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colinr

 
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Re: Songs about obscure places.

by colinr » Sat Dec 15, 2012 9:42 am

^^^^^Cool song; it led me to a Johnny Cash cover of it I hadn't heard before. I bet the Man in Black sang some more tunes about obscure places.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ov4epAJRPMw[/youtube]

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dadndave
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Re: Songs about obscure places.

by dadndave » Sat Dec 15, 2012 11:36 pm

The original version of "I've been everywhere" is Australian. Written by Geoff Mack back in 1959.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UAh7ogwAYQ[/youtube]

'Orrible song, but then again,I hate both kinds of music.
The strawman is evil and must be punished,

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lcarreau

 
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Re: Songs about obscure places.

by lcarreau » Sun Dec 16, 2012 1:18 am

Solsbury Hill ... Peter Gabriel ... 8)

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GimLuOUVkxg[/youtube]

"Climbing up on Solsbury Hill ..
I could see the city light.
Wind was blowing, time stood still ..
Eagle flew out of the night ..."
"Turkey Vultures always vomit when they get nervous."

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Ammon Hatch

 
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Re: Songs about obscure places.

by Ammon Hatch » Sun Dec 16, 2012 4:35 am

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7ciiU6FD7E[/youtube]

That's obscure, right?

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MarkDidier

 
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Re: Songs about obscure places.

by MarkDidier » Sun Dec 16, 2012 5:56 am

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=te7KW4K-00E[/youtube]

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Andrew Rankine

 
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Re: Songs about obscure places.

by Andrew Rankine » Sun Dec 16, 2012 4:09 pm

Here are a few from the Aussie band Midnight Oil:
Mountains of Burma (about Burma):
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3p0K06L93Ms[/youtube]

Kosciuszko (about the area around the highest peak in Oz):
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQVdBAU_p2w[/youtube]

Stars of Warburton (about Warburton, Oz):
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_tqPW2tPUU[/youtube]

And I couldn't forget one from Rush...
A Passage to Bangkok:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWmqfyE4M6o[/youtube]

Plus one from Paul McCartney (this one is about Paul and amigos getting arrested while recording in Lagos, Nigeria).
Band on the Run:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7D65IomNYY[/youtube]

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Re: Songs about obscure places.

by jdzaharia » Sun Dec 16, 2012 5:02 pm

Fascinating thread. I've got some music-listening to do.

McCannster wrote:Also, pretty much any song by CW McCall.

A song that describes the route between Wiggins and Pagosa Springs via Wolf Creek Pass.
One about the route between Ouray and Telluride via the Black Bear Road.
Another describing some travels east of Council Bluffs, crossing the Nishnabotna River.
Some more I can't think of off the top of my head.

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Re: Songs about obscure places.

by MoapaPk » Sun Dec 16, 2012 5:40 pm

Not too obscure, but...

I loved this song in youth:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0drT4ocmAg[/youtube]
...but I grew up in the east, so the most I could relate to was "Virginia City" from Bonanza.

But I didn't realize it was about real places till I was driving down from Reno to a scientific drill site near Mammoth Lakes. The geography is a bit screwed up, but it's a great song.

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Marmaduke

 
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Re: Songs about obscure places.

by Marmaduke » Sun Dec 16, 2012 5:57 pm

Winslow, Arizona- An Eagles classic:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zuhxfrXocw[/youtube]

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Re: Songs about obscure places.

by boyblue » Sun Dec 16, 2012 11:36 pm

The Guess Who, Running Back to Saskatoon (1972):

"Moose Jaw, Broadview, Moosomin too
Runnin' back to Saskatoon
Red Deer, Terrace, Hanna, Medicine Hat
Sing another prairie tune, sing another prairie tune..."

Also The Beatles, Back In the USSR (1968)- a place so obscure that it doesn't even exist anymore... :)

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jdzaharia

 
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Re: Songs about obscure places.

by jdzaharia » Tue Dec 18, 2012 7:07 pm

A Gary Allan song with a lot of references to California.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktglqYAQ-K4

I-405
Humboldt County
Hollywood sign
Laurel and Vine -- I think he's referring to Laurel Canyon Blvd and Vine St in LA. But these don't intersect. Maybe he's talking about a different Laurel and Vine somewhere. If anybody knows, post it up.

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Re: Songs about obscure places.

by Bubba Suess » Tue Dec 18, 2012 9:51 pm

I am going to contravene my own stipulation and throw in a Texas one:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rw-VIlPy0yI[/youtube]
Idalou and New Deal Texas. That is pretty obscure. I still think Jackpot and Adel take the cake though.

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