# What songs are insulting to the city or place that they’re about? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [October 16, 2026, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878 "2026-10-16T05:53:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/61 "2026-10-16T16:10:38Z")
Ghost Town [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/RZ2oXzrnti4/maxresdefault.jpg "The Specials - Ghost Town [Official HD Remastered Video]") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZ2oXzrnti4) ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/62 "2026-10-16T16:15:17Z")
And don’t forget, Randy Newman _also_ had “I Love L.A.”. Getting close to having enough material for a concept album there. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/63 "2026-10-16T16:19:01Z")
[![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/LJ25-U3jNWM/hqdefault.jpg "Nina Simone: Mississippi Goddam") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJ25-U3jNWM) ---
**Author:** ![Pork\_Rind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pork_rind/32/111_2.png) [@Pork\_Rind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pork_Rind)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/64 "2026-10-16T16:26:12Z")
Colin Meloy (of The Decemberists) has a love-hate relationship with Los Angeles as evidenced in his song _Los Angeles, I’m Yours_… > An ocean’s garbled vomit on the shore > Los Angeles, I’m yours but then > As ancient choirs sing > A dozen blushing cherubs wheel above > Los Angeles, my love and let’s bring it home > Ditch of iniquity and tears > How I abhor this place > Its sweet and bitter taste > Has left me wretched, retching on all fours > Los Angeles, I’m yours ---
**Author:** ![2\_More\_Bits](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/2_more_bits/32/4148_2.png) [@2\_More\_Bits](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2_More_Bits)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/65 "2026-10-16T16:26:26Z")
R.E.M.'s Cuyahoga. [https://youtu.be/mWPD1zPFZ3Q?si=IQYh-9cDpNue5e9B](https://youtu.be/mWPD1zPFZ3Q?si=IQYh-9cDpNue5e9B) Doesn’t reflect well on the Cleveland area. ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/66 "2026-10-16T16:34:34Z")
[Tom Lehrer: In Old Mexico (studio solo) (1959)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vyhYHcy85E) ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/67 "2026-10-16T16:40:56Z")
> [@F.U.Shakespeare](#): > > [Tom Lehrer: In Old Mexico (studio solo) (1959)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vyhYHcy85E) - " _For there is surely nothing more beautiful in this world than the sight of a lone man facing single-handedly a half a ton of angry [pot roast](https://genius.com/32108846/Tom-lehrer-in-old-mexico/Pot-roast)!_" One of my favorite lyrics. ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/68 "2026-10-16T16:42:40Z")
Mine too. Also, _“The crowd held its breath, hoping that death, would brighten an otherwise dull afternoon”._ ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/69 "2026-10-16T16:43:14Z")
When I was first in the Midwest and first being exposed to C&W music (both kinds!), this was popular: [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/rXCm4BXJX40/hqdefault.jpg "Mac Davis -Texas In My Rear View Mirror") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXCm4BXJX40) The words sure sound like they’re dissing Lubbock. Until he has a change of heart, realizes home and hearth is everything, and like the dumbest of crabs in a bucket, jumps back in voluntarily. To me it’s still a dissing song if that place can raise people that low-sighted and unimaginative. I also want to know what sign that is in his rear view mirror that reads forward to us. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/70 "2026-10-16T16:49:22Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > I also want to know what sign that is in his rear view mirror that reads forward to us. AMBULENCE (in reverse). ---
**Author:** ![duality72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duality72/32/3910_2.png) [@duality72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duality72)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/71 "2026-10-16T17:39:48Z")
LDN by Lily Allen sounds like an upbeat song about London, but if you listen to the lyrics it’s more about London’s grimey underbelly. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/wmYT79tPvLg/maxresdefault.jpg "Lily Allen | LDN (Official Video)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmYT79tPvLg) Beverly Hills by Weezer doesn’t make the city sound that great, either. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/HL_WvOly7mY/maxresdefault.jpg "Weezer - Beverly Hills") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HL_WvOly7mY) ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/72 "2026-10-16T17:41:22Z")
> [@Jeff\_Lichtman](#): > > Albert Hammond made southern California sound pretty bad: I dunno. When I was a kid and heard this lyric: Oh, that talk of opportunities, **TV breaks** and movies I thought, “How cool! LA is so into the entertainment industry, that they give you TV breaks, like others get coffee breaks, so you can watch your favorite show during the workday. I love LA!” ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/73 "2026-10-16T17:49:32Z")
Having driven through Lubbock several times, I can assure you that Mac’s first impression was the correct one. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/74 "2026-10-16T17:59:54Z")
Another one for the London pile-on: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/QBPyrdO-m6A/maxresdefault.jpg "‘London Is A Fine Town’ - British Satirical Song") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBPyrdO-m6A) ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/75 "2026-10-16T18:10:27Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Randy Newman (who doesn’t really have much nice to say about anywhere) also sang “Burn On”, about Cleveland and its lovely Cuyahoga River: And in I love LA was pretty mean to Chicago and New York. > [@zimaane](#): > > Manfred Mann’s Earth Band wrote and performed “Stranded in Iowa” which implies that Iowa is not somewhere one wants to be Same as Creedence and _Oh Lord, stuck in Lodi again_. > [@Civil\_Guy](#): > > _Hotel California_ by the Eagles, dissing the entire state. Assuming the song is about California. > **[Hotel California](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_California)** > > "Hotel California" is a song by the American rock band Eagles, released as the second single of their 1976 album Hotel California on February 22, 1977. It was written by Don Felder (music), Glenn Frey, and Don Henley (lyrics). It features Henley on lead vocals and concludes with a long electric guitar solo by Felder and Joe Walsh, in which they take turns playing the lead before harmonizing and playing arpeggios. "Hotel California" is one of the best-known recordings by the Eagles. In 1998, its... > Henley called it “our interpretation of the high life in [Los Angeles](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles "Los Angeles"),”[[51]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_California#cite_note-51) and later said, “It’s not really about California; it’s about America. It’s about the dark underbelly of the American dream. It’s about excess, it’s about [narcissism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narcissism "Narcissism"). It’s about the music business. … It can have a million interpretations.”[[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_California#cite_note-52) Thinking too hard about that song leads one down a scary road. ---
**Author:** ![eburacum45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eburacum45/32/8690_2.png) [@eburacum45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eburacum45)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/76 "2026-10-16T18:27:04Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > **Village of the Sun** by **Frank Zappa**. It’s a song about Sun Village, which is near Palmdale, CA. The lyrics describe it as a windy place where farmers raise turkeys. I came here to mention this. “good God I hope the wind don’t blow It take the paint off your car and wreck your windshield too” ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/77 "2026-10-16T18:32:38Z")
Peter Schickele throws shade on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, gangsta style: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/2FWfDS0wuJQ/maxresdefault.jpg "P.D.Q. Bach - Classical Rap") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FWfDS0wuJQ) ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/78 "2026-10-16T19:38:06Z")
Larkin Poe says “Keep ‘[Georgia _off_ my mind](https://youtu.be/GExdFnISPiQ?si=GHLPEbYCIYXhaHFG)’.” ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/79 "2026-10-16T20:02:22Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > > [@Alessan](#): > > > > Randy Newman (who doesn’t really have much nice to say about anywhere) also sang “Burn On”, about Cleveland and its lovely Cuyahoga River: > > And in I love LA was pretty mean to Chicago and New York. Re: the latter, he was just getting back at Rodgers and Hart for saying the same thing about California in “The Lady Is a Tramp.” (Though IIRC they didn’t specify what kind of primates the locals dress like.) ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2026, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878/80 "2026-10-16T20:20:54Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > “Lodi” by CCR I live just outside Lodi. There are worse places to be stuck. I’ve been stuck in Winnemucca, fer cryin’ out loud! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-songs-are-insulting-to-the-city-or-place-that-they-re-about/1033878.md?page=5)