lindsmuse Nice little site some of you may find interesting that a friend of mine contributes to http://www.songplaces.com/
Riaan-Combrink Very interesting site. Brings to mind a line I quite like from a song by Swedish House Mafia ( :-[) I've had to learn for gigs: "Those days are gone, now the memories are on the wall ... I hear the songs from the places where I was born". Suppose it also speaks to a dilemma songwriters have; ie whether to write in a universal, non-specific (generic?) way and avoid limiting a song's appeal to people that connect with the local reference (eg a placed name or geographic region), or to write from the heart with personal and local references in the hope that the song will translate even to those who do not know the area or place the writer/singer is speaking of. The fact that dozens of drunken Sefricans shout out the lyrics to Sweet Home Alabama in pubs across Cape Town every weekend probably proves that ultimately it doesn't matter if the song is either catchy or good enough.
Bob-Dubery Songs can certainly overcome the local/personal references dilemma. The Mamas and the Papas had a big hit with "Creeque Alley" (mentioned on the Songplaces site) which a) is not set in Creeque Alley b) has very little to do with Creeque Alley c) is full of references that seem impenetrable unless you know the history of the band and the musical scene from which they emerged. Some songs are ABOUT a place. EG the example that Riaan gives: "Sweet Home Alabama", or Dylan's "Oxford Town" (thought it's not THAT Oxford). Some places names in songs are just for rhyming convenience EG the Eagles example given on Songplaces "I'm standing on a corner In Winslow Arizona" Or the second best pop band ever came up with this where the place name is just to make a rhyme and is otherwise unimportant to the song "I was sick and tired of everything When I called you last night from Glasgow All do I sleep and eat and sing Wishing every show was the last show" OK, I suppose it implies a sense of distance...
lindsmuse This is one my friend wrote - pretty cool I thought http://www.songplaces.com/The_Battle_of_Evermore/Europe
