State Songs #9: District of Columbia

Photo © Grufnik @ Flickr

Yes, I know that the District of Columbia is not a state but these songs are so great that omitting Washington, DC from our musical tour around America would be unforgivable. Unsurprisingly the majority of tracks have a political edge but don't let that put you off.

MP3: Magnetic Fields - Washington, DC

"It's the only place to be" sings Claudia Gonson on the Magnetic Fields' humorous tribute to the Nation's Capital. According to the excellent 69 Love Songs wiki Stephin Merritt has claimed the Bay City Rollers' Saturday Night as the influence on the song's brilliant cheerleader opening.
More Magnetic Fields: official site | Amazon| 7digital

MP3: The Staple Singers - Long Walk to DC

I love the Staples and their 1968 Stax debut, Soul Folk in Action, is a classic. This song has added resonance when you think that it was recorded just a few months after the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy.
More Staple Singers: Wikipedia | Amazon | 7digital

MP3: Leadbelly - Bourgeois Blues

Leadbelly recorded this in 1938 after Alan Lomax invited him to Washington to make recordings for the Library of Congress. It's inspired by an evening that Leadbelly and his wife spent with the Lomaxes out on the town when they were kicked out of various establishments for being an interracial group. Billy Bragg laster used the song as the basis for his Bush War Blues.
More Leadbelly: Wikipedia | Amazon | 7digital

MP3: Parliament - Chocolate City

This is George Clinton relishing the fact that America's capital city has a majority black population and looking forward to when Aretha Franklin is First Lady and Richard Pryor's the Secretary for Education. Wikipedia has a good entry about the album that explores other "cultural references" to the idea of the chocolate city.
More Parliament: official site | Amazon | 7digital

By the way, if you're ever in Washingon, DC and don't know which Smithsonian museum to visit my favourite is the National Museum of American History - home to the M*A*S*H signpost, Einstein's brier pipe and Dizzy Gillespie's trumpet.

Next time we'll be slapping on the Copppertone and heading straight down I-95 to the Sunshine State - Florida.

Related Posts
State Songs - links to every post on this musical road trip

Get Behind Me, Santa!

Seven Festive Favourites

Our modest Christmas tree is illuminated, a few presents have been bought and so far I've eaten two mince pies this month. If you're not feeling festive yet these seven songs should help.

MP3: Sufjan Stevens - Get Behind Me, Santa!

This is from Stevens' Songs For Christmas box set. Not the greatest Christmas song of all time but certainly the one with the best title.

MP3: The Blind Boys of Alabama - Last Month of the Year

The Blind Boys' Christmas album contains more hits than misses and starts brilliantly with this track. This is usually the first festive song I play each year and for much of December Jo has to out up me constantly asking, "When was Jesus born?".

MP3: The Blind Boys of Alabama w/ Tom Waits

The Blind Boys have covered a few Tom Waits songs so it makes sense that he guests on this. Plus, his growl is perfect for preaching. (For those who care about these things, Danny Thompson plays double bass on this track).

MP3: Tom Waits - Silent Night

Recorded for a 1989 charity compilation, SOS United, I'm not sure that this version of Silent Night works as a lullaby.

MP3: The Staple Singers - Who Took The Merry Out of Christmas

I love this song. Like so many Staple staples it's full of righteous anger but remains utterly joyful.

MP3: Low - Just Like Christmas

A Christmas song that isn't actually about Christmas but does have plenty of sleigh bells with nods in the direction of Phil Spector. Perfect.

MP3: Captain Beefheart - There Ain't No Santa Claus on the Evening Stage

What can I say? Certainly one of the strangest Christmas songs ever recorded. You can find it on the Captain's Spotlight Kid album.

Happy Christmas! As usual please leave a comment with your thoughts on yte tracks. For an even more interesting collection of Christmas songs I recommend a visit to Big Rock Candy Mountain - twang, truckers and tinsel abound.