I’ve been to Wollongong.
(I’ve been everywhere, man).
I’ve been to Bali too.
*When Black Friday comes
I fly down to Muswellbrook
Gonna strike all the big red words
From my little black book
Gonna do just what I please
Gonna wear no socks and shoes
With nothing to do but feed
All the kangaroos*
On my last visit I took off shoes and socks in homage to Steely Dan, although they were compelled to pronounce it Muss-well-brook instead of the local Muscle-brook.
I’ve been to Tom’s Diner. The place was lousy with Seinfeld memorabilia, but I did find one Suzanne Vega article hung on the wall.
You’ve passed Sleater-Kinney Rd. many times, I’m sure.
Adding to the other Tom Waits mentions, there’s Looks Like I’m Up Shit Creek Again. I’ve paddled those waters on several occasions.
A friend retired a few years ago. He packed up a car and drove around for a few years. He sent me a picture of him and his gf standing on that corner, which is marked in recognition of the song. He drove to Winslow specifically to stand on that corner.
I’ve landed on San Diego and Buzzards Bay, but not Comanche Skypark, from Jimmy Buffett’s Volcano.
I was walking through the streets of Soho in the rain and looked up to see I was standing in front of a restaurant called Lee Ho Fuk. I decided to eat there, but didn’t get the beef chow mein.
Hah! I got everyone beat! I’m posting this FROM said obscure spot. I’m heading for it on the 147 CTA Bus. The song is called Lake Shore Drive and the line goes, “It starts up north from Hollywood, water on your driver’s side…”
And I’m here… NOW!!! WOO HOO!!! Hollywood & LSD!!! COOL!!!
Well, that was exciting.
Now what?
In Frankie Valli’s “My Eyes Adore You” he sings, “walking home everyday over Barnegat Bridge and Bay.” I’m not sure which one he’s talking about. There are 3 major bridges over Barnegat Bay and I’ve been on all of them. And I’ve been over, on, and in Barnegat Bay.
It’s more than just marked. There is a bronze statue of a guitar player that looks like Glen Frey. There is a mural behind the statue that looks like an old store front. Reflected in the window of the shop is a girl my lord in a flatbed Ford. Lots of people drive there to stand on that corner. The town is counting on it.
“Concrete mountains rearing up, throwing shadows just about five…”* I must be old, that next line popped into my head.
I got to see a tour of bands promoted by WCFL in the 60s, and the last remaining member of Aliotta Haynes Jeremiah sang this. As did the whole crowd…
*
And there ain’t no road just like it
Anywhere I found
Running south on Lake Shore Drive
headin’ into town
Just slippin’ on by on LSD, Friday night trouble bound*
nm
The Ballad Of Thunder Road lyrics by Robert Mitchum, 4 meanings. The Ballad Of Thunder Road explained, official 2023 song lyrics | LyricsMode.com **The Ballad Of Thunder Road **
provides a list of places in Tennessee and surrounding states that I have been to over the years since the 1950s when the song (and movie) were popular.
My brother lived in Knoxville for a while and was near some of those places. His place was just off of Kingston Pike, for instance.
Hah! He took a selfie of him and his gf. He mentioned that he had to wait in line to do it, but I thought he was kidding.
There’s a Ben Folds Five song called “Kate” and it goes “Down by Rosemary and Cameron, she hands out the Bhagavad Gita” It’s referencing Rosemary St. and Cameron Ave. in Chapel Hill, NC. Those streets don’t cross but if you’re on the UNC campus you’re near both. So I’ve been there.
Bonus points - on an earlier album the song “Where’s Summer B?” mentions a dude named Joe Caparo. I stayed at his house for a week!
Front Porch Song by Robert Earl Keen has this line:
This old porch is just a steamin’ greasy plate of enchiladas
With lots of cheese and onions and a guacamole salad
You can get 'em at the La Salle hotel in old down town,
With iced tea and a waitress who will smile every time
He went to college at A&M in the Bryan/College Station area where there still is a La Salle hotel. I’ve spent the night there. They don’t have a restaurant anymore, so I had enchiladas next door.
Heh, ETA: Lyle Lovett’s video has pictures of it. The whole area’s been renovated, but that’s still largely what it looks like.
I’ve been to Electric Avenue in Brixton on various occasions but neither rocked down to it nor took it higher once I got there (unless you count going up to the train platform). It’s a pretty happening place most of the time though.
I’ve been to Gallup, New Mexico, probably the most obscure town mentioned in Bobby Troup’s “Route 66.” Even stayed at the El Rancho Hotel.
Also, I’ve been stuck in Lodi again.
Something similar: the rock group Gunhill Road, which had the minor hit “Back When I Hair Was Short.” I’ve driven by the Gun Hill Road that gave the group its name.
I’ve also spend time on 42nd Street, but that’s not obscure.
There’s a Christine Lavin song called Regretting What I Said…, the intro to which is:
I’ve been to the corner of 49th and 3rd, and looked for a phone booth.
I’ve driven up and down the very curvy road that spawned the song Hot Rod Lincoln - the “Spiral Highway” between Lewiston and Moscow Idaho.