Cities That Rock (Literally)

In a world where cities are often the main characters in books, TV and movies, we can expect no less in music. All cities have unique fingerprints and memories, ranging from entirely loving to wildly disappointing. Music can flesh out these experiences. Here’s a tiny starter list of city-centric rock tracks.

Martha and the Vandellas’ “Dancing in the Street” (1964)

A soulful merger of joy and social consciousness, “Dancing in the Street” is the signature tune of Martha and the Vandellas. Written by Marvin Gaye, Ivy Jo Hunter and Mickey Stevenson, it’s an ode to Detroit. It emerged from Stevenson’s observation when the city opened up fire hydrants on hot summer days, luring city kids outside to cool off and dance in the spraying water. But its release during one of America’s most dire times of civil unrest turned “Dancing in the Street” into a call to arms. (“Calling out around the world/are you ready for a brand new beat?”) Philadelphia, New York City, Baltimore, DC and Los Angeles get spirited shout-outs. Martha Reeves was a secretary at Motown when her powerful pipes gave her the opportunity to tackle this track, originally done in smooth jazz fashion by Marvin Gaye. Nothing wrong with that, but the times were right for Reeves’ edgy vocals and the Vandellas’ stellar back-up.

Bruce Springsteen’s “Fourth of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)” (1973)

 A gritty romanticization of Springsteen’s adopted hometown of Asbury Park, NJ, “Sandy” is a nostalgia piece about past loves and the decaying city of Asbury Park during the early 1970s. It’s a musical and lyrical masterpiece from 1973’s Greetings from Asbury Park. Springsteen sketches a picture of a city in decline, containing “stoned-out faces” and “switchblade lovers – so fast, so shiny, so sharp!” The excitement and color that infused the town at one time has turned to sawdust and Bruce is ready to leave the boardwalk behind. “Sandy” is an aching tribute to fizzled relationships and a town that exists only in poignant memory.

Billy Joel’s “New York State of Mind” (1976)

There will always be spirited debates about the best New York City anthems. (Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York”? Jay-Z’s “Empire State of Mind”? Blake & Lawlor’s 1894 classic “The Sidewalks of New York”?) But one perennial standout is Billy Joel’s “New York State of Mind,” from his 1976 Turnstiles album. Joel channels Ray Charles in this bluesy masterwork about leaving California to return to his beloved New York City. He wrote it as he was literally “taking a Greyhound on the Hudson River Line” to get to his destination. Joel lays out his need to escape a Hollywood existence and return to the dynamic chaos of New York. Joel performed “New York State of Mind” at the 2001 “Tribute to Heroes” after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. His soulful singing (and the heart-wrenching visual of a fireman’s helmet atop his piano) was a catharsis for a nation in pain.

Prince’s “Uptown” (1980)

While he never utters the name of the city, make no mistake: Prince is paying homage to his hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota. “Uptown” is the first release from Prince’s 1980 Dirty Mind and it is one taut, tight, funky track. “Uptown” was Prince’s nickname for a section of Minneapolis that brought the fierceness and artistic freedom that the rest of this staid midwestern city denied him. Growing up judged and lured into fights because of his personal style and race, he found the solace he needed in the “Uptown” of Minneapolis, with its more open, youthful vibe. Prince was one of the local tastemakers who kicked over the traces, got some bands together and began to thrive in a place that allowed him to be himself. In his fabulous words? “It ain’t about no downtown, nowhere-bound, narrow-minded drag/It’s all about being free.”

The Pretenders’ “My City Was Gone” (1982)

 It would be a classic on the basis of its opening bass riff alone, but that’s where “My City Was Gone” was just getting started. Frontwoman Chrissie Hynde wrote this powerful lament to the downfall of Akron, Ohio, her beloved hometown. Akron was the “Rubber Capital of the World,” a midwestern factory city with a latex scent. But while growing up there, Hynde loved its dynamism and pockets of quirky artistry. She went to England and formed The Pretenders; when she returned she was disturbed by Akron’s tedious strip malls, concrete blockiness and segregation. She made art out of her broken heart with the lyrics “I went back to Ohio/But my pretty countryside/

Had been paved down the middle/By a government that had no pride.” Her sadness about the current Akron is matched by her love for the earlier Akron that formed her sensibilities. “My City Was Gone” may be about one particular locale, but the gentrification and soullessness of so many cities today make this a masterful track.

-Ellen Fagan

Photo: Chrissie Hynde (Getty)