# New York City songs? City songs in general? HELP! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 5, 2004, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-york-city-songs-city-songs-in-general-help/267600 "2004-10-05T03:15:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2004, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-york-city-songs-city-songs-in-general-help/267600/61 "2004-10-07T12:30:47Z")
“Nights on Broadway” and “Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees “Up on the Roof” by James Taylor “You Belong to the City” by Glenn Frye ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2004, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-york-city-songs-city-songs-in-general-help/267600/62 "2004-10-07T13:34:41Z")
“I Am the City” by ABBA. Yes, really–it’s on the ABBA Gold Volume 2 CD (the one with the white cover). ---
**Author:** ![JohnBckWLD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d6d6ee/32.png) [@JohnBckWLD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnBckWLD)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2004, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-york-city-songs-city-songs-in-general-help/267600/63 "2004-10-07T19:18:41Z")
> [@buncombe](#): > > …part of that entails making a sort of super-mix of all the songs I can gather that refer to this crazy city of mine…Now I am looking for less obvious choices-- songs that don’t have “New York” in the title, and perhaps only obliquely refer to living in a cramped big city. The only requirement, really, is that the songs have something to do with this city, be it in tone or hints or outright reference…leaving out Broadway musicals (too many). Non-American songs that refer to NYC are especially prized… I think this qualifies - If it doesn’t, oh well - it still makes my top fifty songs of all-time list: **The Mark-Almond Band** \* - _The City (Grass And Concrete/Taxi To Brooklyn/ Speak Easy It’s A Whiskey Scene)_ - 1971 - From their Self-entiled Blue Thumb Records debut & The Rhino ‘Best-Of’ compilation. They also re-recorded and retitled it ‘New York State Of Mind / Return To The City’ in 1977 on their album ‘Other People’s Rooms’ (also on the Rhino compilation). \*=Not the more famous Marc Almond of Soft Cell fame. The Jon Mark / Johnny Almond colaboration after the former sat in on John Mayall’s ‘Turning Point’ album. Before poo-pooing it as an obscure song that no one has ever heard, I recommend at least checking it out. It’s almost 11 minutes long - with several tempo and chord changes. It’s sometimes light, somtimes jazzy, sometimes heavy. Be forwarned, on the B&N site & AMG, the links are mislabelled (if you click the link for the song entitled The City, you’ll hear a song called Tramp & The Young Girl and vice versa). ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2004, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-york-city-songs-city-songs-in-general-help/267600/64 "2004-10-07T19:29:19Z")
**Roberta Plant** stole mine. How 'bout No Sleep 'til Brooklyn-- Beastie Boys ---
**Author:** ![Don\_Draper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Don\_Draper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_Draper)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2004, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-york-city-songs-city-songs-in-general-help/267600/65 "2004-10-07T19:33:40Z")
“Marcie” & “Night in the City” - Joni Mitchell “Detachable Penis” - King Missile “Balloon Man” - Robin Hitchcock “Foolish Love” - Rufus Wainwright “China” - Tori Amos “Twelve Thirty (Young Girls Are Comin’ To The Canyon)” - Mama’s & Papa’s “the Jeffersons” theme song “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (sort of) - Deep Blue Something ---
**Author:** ![Winterwren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/919ad9/32.png) [@Winterwren](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winterwren)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2004, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-york-city-songs-city-songs-in-general-help/267600/66 "2004-10-09T12:51:29Z")
“New York Tendaberry” by Laura Nyro (a quintessential song and album). There’s also “Mercy On Broadway” from the same album And two borough-specific ones: “Brooklyn Roads” by Neil Diamond, and “North Bronx French Marie” by Stew, which has the wonderful chorus of _look what the New York summer’s done/you’re in a punk rock tshirt, melting in the sun…_ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-york-city-songs-city-songs-in-general-help/267600.md?page=3)