I can’t believe I only just now thought of Lindsey Buckingham’s “That’s How We Do It In L.A.”
“Do You Know the Way to San Jose”
Or even Neil Young’s “Heart of Gold:”
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Under the Bridge a song about recovering from drug addiction in Los Angeles
Jane’s Addition - Jane Says is, I think, set in Los Angeles, but not so you’d notice much.
A whole slew of Tom Waits songs, and Warren Zevon songs. The ones mentioned in the thread all work. But, taking Tom Waits as an example the entire album Nighthawks at the Diner takes place in Los Angeles and mentions places like The Burrito King that were sort of LA institutions back in the day, but aren’t so much any more. (Burrito King is still awesome though).
Lyle Lovett’s “Lights of L.A. County.”
“… And the lights of L.A. County / They look like diamonds in the sky / When you’re driving through the hours / With an old friend at your side …”
There’s a surprising number of these from the country shelf; Dwight Yoakam’s I Sang Dixie is another:
Way down yonder in the land of cotton
Old times there ain’t near as rotten
As they are
On this damned old L.A. street.
San Jose is about 350 miles from LA, though. Or I’m being wooshed.
“Blue Jay Way” — Beatles
Do a lyric search.
The 1971 hit for Susan Raye, L.A. International Airport. According to Wikipedia it was proclaimed as the official song of LAX.
What do you know - it’s on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aj8f30Iguw0
Oh, I forgot Gram Parsons’ “Sin City”…
Come a Long Way, by Michelle Shocked
Out of L.A and Prophet, by Jude Christodal (Also, a nice set of videos of his LA tour here)
Carmelita - Dwight Yoakam
Mentions Echo Park and the Pioneer Chicken stand on Alvarado Street.
That’s Warren Zevon’s song, already mentioned.
If you want a taste of madness
you’ll have to wait in line
you’ll probably see someone you know
on Heartattack and Vine.
As no one has addressed this, let the record now show that not only is the Valley indisputably part of the greater Los Angeles area, most of it falls within L.A. city limits, and most of the territory of the city is within the Valley.
Confusion may arise because many parts of the Valley have well-established names that many residents are more likely to cite as their addresses than Los Angeles: e.g., Sherman Oaks, Van Nuys, Studio City, etc. Also, many residents feel ill-served by the city government and their have been serious attempts to break away.
I haven’t heard of that one, but there’s also “To Live and Die in L.A.” by 2pac. I assumed someone would have mentioned that by now, but I haven’t seen it.
Songs set in Los Angeles
Aw, they all suck. But here’s a great one about Alabama!
Of course, and that’s why “Free Fallin’” is about L.A.