I don't have any reasons, I've left them far behind....

--
Earworms of the Week - New York Edition

One last post before I close the book on our stay in New York. Anyone who has been to the city will know how familiar parts of it look thanks to their appearance in countless films and TV shows. I find that the city gets any number of songs playing in my head, whether it be from the names of the streets that I'm walking down, the cops on the street corner, the letter of the subway train I'm travelling on, or whatever.....

I'm not looking to write an exhaustive list of songs about New York, I'm simply listing the songs that got looped on my internal jukebox at one time or another during our stay. And before you ask, it's a little too early for the Pogues, and I've never really been much of a Sinatra fan....

Ready? Here we go then....

> "A-Punk" - Vampire Weekend

"I saw Johanna down in the subway
She took an apartment in Washington Heights
Half of the ring lies here with me
But the other half’s at the bottom of the sea"

> "Englishman in New York" - Sting

sting? yes, I'm rather afraid so.....

"See me walking down fifth avenue
A walking cane here at my side
I take it everywhere I walk
I'm an englishman in New York"

> "King of New York" - Fun Lovin Criminals

"La-di da-di, free John Gotti
La-di da-di, la-di
La-di da-di, free John Gotti
The king of new york, man, the king of New York"

> "Eleanor Put Your Boots On" - Franz Ferdinand

"Eleanor put those boots back on
Kick the heels into the Brooklyn dirt
I know it isn't dignified to run
But if you run, you can run to the Coney Island rollercoaster
Ride to the highest point and leap across the filthy water
Leap until the Gulf Stream's brought you down"

> "Rockaway Beach" - The Ramones

"Up on the roof, out on the street
Down in the playground the hot concrete
Bus ride is too slow
They blast out the disco on the radio
Rock rock Rockaway beach
Rock rock Rockaway beach"

> "Walk on the Wild Side" - Lou Reed

"Candy came from out on the Island
In the backroom she was everybody's darling
But she never lost her head
Even when she was given head
She says, hey babe, take a walk on the wild side
Said, hey babe, take a walk on the wild side"

> "This Mess We're In" - PJ Harvey and Thom Yorke

"Can you hear them
The helicopters
I'm in New York
No need for words now
We sit in silence
You look me
In the eye directly
You met me
I think it's Wednesday
The evening
The mess we're in"

> "The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)" - Simon & Garfunkel

"Slow down, you movin' too fast
You gotta make the moment last
Just kickin' down the cobblestones
Lookin' for fun and
Feelin' groovy"



> "Walking Down Madison" - Kirsty MacColl

"In the subway sits a vacuous man
His grip on life is a bent tin can
It's a holy shrine where he burns his light
It makes things easy and removes his plight
For an hour or two but he can't escape
They're all penned in with government tape"

> "New York City Cops" - The Strokes

"Well, kill me now, if I let you down
I swear it one day we're gonna leave this town
Stop----
Yes I'm leavin'
'Cause it just won't work
They act like Romans
But they dress like Turks
Sometime, in your prime
See me, I like the summertime
but, hey!"

> "Piazza, New York Catcher" - Belle & Sebastian

"San Francisco’s calling us, the Giants and Mets will play
Piazza, New York catcher, are you straight or are you gay?
We hung about the stadium, we’ve got no place to stay
We hung about the tenderloin and tenderly you tell
About the saddest book you ever read
It always makes you cry
The statue’s crying too and well he may."

> "The Magnificent 7" - The Clash

A song inspired by New York and one that was massively popular in the city.

"What do we have for entertainment?
Cops kickin' Gypsies on the pavement
Now the news - snap to attention!
The lunar landing of the dentist convention
Italian mobster shoots a lobster
Seafood restaurant gets out of hand
A car in the fridge
Or a fridge in the car?
Like cowboys do - in T.V. land"

> "I'm Waiting for my Man" - The Velvet Underground

"I'm waiting for my man
Twenty-six dollars in my hand
Up to Lexington, 125
Feel sick and dirty, more dead than alive
I'm waiting for my man..."

> "NYC" - Interpol

"New York cares
(Got to be some more change in my life)"

> "New York State of Mind" - Billy Joel

"Some folks like to get away, take a holiday from the neighborhood
Hop a flight to Miami Beach or Hollywood.
I'm taking a Greyhound on the Hudson river line.
I'm in a New York state of mind."

Have a good weekend y'all and stay classy.

Moustache update on Sunday....