Lost in the Interweb, episode 803.6: Good morning, somewhere, how are you? (#1076)

Topics/tags: Miscellaneous, music, long, rambly

Like many people of my generation, I love the song City of New Orleans by Steve Goodman. And like many people of my generation who don’t live in the No-Longer-Second-But-Still-Windy City, I know it primarily (or at least originally) through Arlo Guthrie’s cover version.

I will admit that I have difficulty identifying what I like about any song [1]. For City of New Orleans, I certainly like the melody; it’s a song you can sing along to [3,4]. But it’s much more than that. Part of it is the framing of the song: It’s a train song (popular in the U.S.), it’s even a nostalgic train song, but it also makes it explicit that it’s nostalgic and that the age of the passenger train as a primary mode of transportation has reached its end (the steel rail still ain’t heard the news, this train’s got the disappearing railroad blues).

Perhaps more than that, I appreciate his observations and the way he turns them into carefully framed lyrics, the sons of Pullman porters and the sons of engineers ride their fathers’ magic carpet made of steel [5], which is a wonderful pairing, or pass the paper bag that holds the bottle, which is so much better than the more obvious pass the bottle or pass the booze.

The other day, I was reading about the song on the Interweb. It was the result of one of those traditional labyrinthine Interweb paths. I’d been reading about John Prine, who passed away recently. Prine regularly played with Goodman [6]. That led me to read the Wikipedia page on Goodman, which spends some time on his most famous song [7].

I discovered something interesting. There are versions of City of New Orleans in other languages. Now, these are not your traditional cover versions, such as the Beatles’ Komm, gib mir deine Hand [8,10], which approximately translate the lyrics into the other the language. Instead, these versions retain the melody of City of New Orleans but discard almost everything else.

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We’ll start with Gerard Cox’s 1973 Dutch [12] version, ’t Is Weer Voorbij Die Mooie Zomer. (You can read the lyrics and an approximate translation at the end of this musing.) I’m not quite sure how to describe Cox’s version [14]. It has nothing to do with trains. Rather, it’s about summer. Here are a few of the lyrics, translated (not by me).

We played golf and jeu de boule
We were happy in a chair
That summer that started in May

Close attention to detail, worthy of Goodman, right? No. However, Cox does echo the nostalgia of Goodman’s song, even though Goodman’s is a nostalgia that admits it’s nostalgic and that nostalgia is potentially problematic. Cox’s also notes some concerns, such as in the chorus.

It’s over that beautiful summer again
That summer that started in May
Ah, you thought there was no end to it
But before you know it, it’s all that summer long gone

Still, the summer ends, but it’s coming again, at least in my reading of the song. Maybe it’s more meaningful in Dutch. I do wish I knew more of the cultural context since there are at least two lyrics that feel a bit pointed to me.

Van haring geur vermengd met zonnebrand (Herring fragrance mixed with sunscreen)

De ochtend vol van vogelzang (The morning full of bird song)
Het scherpe, hoge zoemen van een mug (The sharp, high buzzing of a mosquito)

At least in the English translation, that’s doesn’t bite like Goodman’s lyrics do, but it adds some interest to a song that feels sentimentally trite.

Did I mention the background singers who start and end the song with a long sequence of Nas [15]? They transform the folkie song to, well, mediocre pop, at least in my world. They also sing oohs on many of the verses. I know those aren’t in the Goodman live versions, but there’s something like it in the Guthrie version and at least one of Goodman’s released versions. Does Guthrie’s version use a pedal steel or a choir? Can you believe my ears are not good enough to tell? I think it’s a pedal steel. I’ll need to ask one of my family members. (They all say it’s backing singers. So much for my ability to parse sounds [18].)

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Next up is a French version by Joe Dassin, Salut les amoureux. And yes, I’ve put the lyrics at the end. Dassin, who I think inspired Cox, has a much folkier version. But it’s folkie in the same way as the Guthrie version and the Goodman version (at least on the Steve Goodman album) are. And there are still backing vocalists singing along during the chorus and doing oohs during some verses. No Nas, though. Fortunately.

What’s the subject? Let’s check the first four lines of an English translation by a noted poetic translator [19].

The mornings follow each other and look alike
When love gives way to everyday life
We weren’t made to live together
It’s not always enough to love each other well

That’s right. It’s a breakup song. I find it more poetic than ’t Is Weer Voorbij Die Mooie Zomer but perhaps that’s because it’s in French. Or, upon re-reading the lyrics, it’s a standard pop romance song. I’m not sure. In any case, I find it a strange adaption of City of New Orleans as it lacks the original’s broader societal commentary.

The Joe Dassin version appears to have been relatively popular or at least popular enough to spawn a variety of cover versions. I’m amused to see what seems to be a non-satiric Dance floor version, a fairly generic instrumental version, and some more interesting instrumentals, including accordion, marching-band. Shouldn’t those last few be considered instrumental versions of City of New Orleans rather than Salut Les Amoureux? There’s no reason Steve Goodman’s estate should be splitting royalties on instrumentals with Dassin’s.

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You might think we would be done with two non-covers. But we’re not. There’s also a Hebrew-language version entitled Shalom Laj Eretz Nehederet performed by Hehoram Gaon [20]. How does this one open? The first translation I found says

I was in Paris and also in Rome, [21] I saw the seven wonders of the world,
At the North Pole and also at the South,
But there’s no place like the Land of Israel.

Yes, that’s right, it’s a tribute to Israel! We’ve seen the song go from trains to summers to breakups to a country; so many places for a song to travel! With that much traveling, this version is perhaps furthest from the original. Unless I’m mistaken, there’s none of the sadness that is present in the other three versions. I suppose you could say that the Lot’s wife looking towards Sodom line inspires some sadness, or at least puzzlement, but I expect that it just refers to what the Interwebknowledgebase tells me is a pillar of salt which people call Lot’s wife.

And yes, this version has inspired its own covers. My favorite is by the rock band Sheygets (or perhaps Shaygetz). Not as punky as the version of City of New Orleans by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, but a good, rockin’, interpretation, one that I prefer. I also appreciate that there’s a men’s choir cover with a young man singing lead. So many ways in which the song travels!

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When I started this musing, I had only identified these three non-covers of City of New Orleans; those are all that get mentioned in the Wikipedia page for Steve Goodman. In writing the musing, I visited the Wikipedia page for the song, which lists at least two more. The Dutch version inspired a similar German version, which I’m going to ignore. There’s also a newer Norwegian version by Vazelina Bilopphøggers entitled Hei, gamle Valdresfjell. Eldar Vågan appears to be responsible for the lyrics. Let’s look at that one.

I couldn’t find a full recording of the song. Google claims it’s available on Apple Music. But it’s not. Spotify won’t play it in the US. Or at least it won’t with my free account. I did see it on a suspicious-looking site, but it doesn’t seem worth using it beyond listening to a sample. From what I can tell from the sample, it’s not a particularly interesting sound variant.

There are used copies of the LP, CD, or cassette available. However, all the used copies are in Norway. I’m not interested in waiting that long, particularly because, as I said, the sound does not seem to add much.

What about the lyrics? No ready translation was available, so I’m relying on the synthesized skills of Google translate.

Riding trains from Oslo to Vællers
Will visit an old aunt up in Vang
In your bag, you have lemon soda and Allers

We seem to be back to trains. But there’s also something about cross-country skiing. Consider this approximate translation of the first chorus.

Hi old Vælersfjell here it comes
Must take a trip before winter is over
For trains running from Oslo to Vellers
To train several miles on cross-country skiing

So maybe it’s about regret for lost opportunities to ski. Or lost opportunities to do things in the winter; a fitting contrast to the Dutch version.

I suppose regret for the loss of passenger trains seems less appropriate for that part of the world, but I must admit that I am enough of a traditional ’murcan [22] that I don’t know well enough about the status of trains. When last I visited Europe, they still seemed fairly central. Ah, perhaps that’s why the concept song did not translate naturally to other languages.

I think this version was pretty popular in Norway. It appears to appear on a bunch of compilation tapes. There are multiple versions of its tablature available online. And then there’s the YouTube video, which seems to be a bunch of townspeople (more precisely, the Sør-Aurdal choir and Vestre Slidre singing team) singing it at a school. They even attach a skit to it! And they appear to have printed music books. Definitely one of my favorite versions. And definitely better than the Israeli men’s choir.

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Four covers. Maybe five; I’m still not interested in exploring the German version. All the same tune. Very different lyrics. You know what? I asked what made the song special at the beginning? Perhaps the number of rewrites indicate that it’s the melody rather than the lyrics. No, that can’t be the case. The melody may be great, but it’s also a great set of lyrics, one of the best train songs, as many people say [23].

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As is too often the case in Lost in the Interweb musings, writing the musing got me further lost in the Interweb. For example, I was listening to the Steve Goodman Easter Tapes version [24] and found that the lyrics about the old men in the club car were different. Here’s what Goodman sang (starting at about 1:55).

Now I was dealin’ cards with the old men in the club car.
Penny a point ain’t nobody keepin’ score.
Pass that paper bag that holds that bottle.
Feel the wheels grumblin’ beneath the floor.

The nobody was not the no one I recalled. So I checked the Arlo Guthrie version I’m most familiar with. Here’s what Guthrie sang (starting at about 1:25). You’ll notice some differences, which I’m too lazy to highlight.

Dealin’ card games with the old men in the club car.
Penny a point ain’t no one keepin’ score.
Pass the paper bag that holds the bottle.
Feel the wheels rumblin’ ’neath the floor.

I feel like Guthrie’s no one scans better than Goodman’s nobody but that may be because Guthrie’s is the one I know better. The conversion of beneath to ’neath seems natural. I like the alternation of the and that rather than three thats. Still, none of these it is as much of a change as, say, going from Stoneman’s cavalry to So much cavalry [25]. One could argue that either alternate is appropriate. But there are other changes, changes that change meaning. The Goodman version puts him in the card game; the Guthrie version leaves it ambiguous. The Goodman version personifies the wheels; the Guthrie version does not. Strange. Different.

Of course, the Easter Tapes version is not the first one Goodman released. That honor belongs to the one on the 1971 Steve Goodman album [26]. What lyrics appear on that one? Let’s see.

And I was dealing cards with the old men in the club car.
And it’s penny a point, there ain’t one keeping score.
Won’t you pass that paper bag that holds that bottle.
You can feel the wheels grumbling through the floor.

Closer to the Guthrie version (or vice versa), but still not the same.

One of the many wonders of the Interwebhole is that you can find all sorts of things, such as one of Goodman’s live performances from August 28, 1971 in Schwenksville, PA [27]. Those lyrics are a bit different. I like the first two lines much more than the released version.

I was shootin’ craps with the old men in the club car.
Nine’s my point and nobody keepin’ score.
Won’t you pass me the paper bag that holds the tequila.
You can feel the wheels grumbling [28] beneath the floor.

Other lyrics change, too. For example,

The sons of Pullman porters. The sons of engineers. They ride their daddies’ magic carpet. It’s made of steel [29].

He also adds Hell before the Don’t ya know me?

That gets me wondering. Were the lyrics evolving at that point or was he just modifying them for the folks in Schwenksville? I can’t find an earlier performance of the song. I can’t even find others from before the album release. Perhaps I need to listen to post-release performances. But I need to rein myself in, particularly since that means I want to track down the 1971 Earl of Old Town album, an article in Trains magazine, the 800-page biography of Goodman, perhaps the booklets from some anthologies [30], and assorted other items. I should also listen to some more of the live versions; Goodman talks about the origins of the song in some intros [31]. Is the so-called Dynamite Version any different than the album version? It’s a question to check. I shold also explore steam and steel; fathers and daddies; grumbling, drumbling, rumbling; whether each of those has two or three syllables; words inserted and deleted; dream and feel. Things like that.

As I said, I need to rein myself in. So I’ll leave it for another musing. It’s easy to get lost in the Interweb. Or at least it’s easy for me to get lost in the Interweb.

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Postscript: Goodman’s biography has a set of tracks about Steve Goodman available for free. Aren’t you glad you have me to search the Interweb to discover things like this for you?

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Postscript: I’m not sure how many versions of City of New Orleans and its variants I listened to while preparing this. It was a lot. And I’m not sick of the song. I’m not sure whether that says something about the song or something about me. Perhaps both [32].

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Dutch Lyrics

Here are the lyrics to ’t Is Weer Voorbij Die Mooie Zomer, synthesized from Google’s presentation of Musixmatch’s copy [33]. I’ve reformatted, indenting the English translation.

Na nana nana

Na nana nana

Na nana nanana nana

Na nana nanana nana

Na nanana na na nanana nana

Na nanana na na nanana nana

Na nana na nana nanananananana

Na nana na nana nanananananana

 

Je hebt er maandenlang naar uitgekeken

You’ve been looking forward to it for months

De koude winter wou maar eerst niet om

The cold winter didn’t want to go at first

Traag en langzaam kropen langs de weken

Slowly and slowly crept along the weeks

Maar eindelijk, daar was ie toch: de zon

But finally, there it was: the sun

De nachten kort, de dagen lang (Oeoeoeoeh [34])

The nights short, the days long (Oooh)

De ochtend vol van vogelzang (Oeoeoeoeh)

The morning full of bird song (Ooooh)

Het scherpe, hoge zoemen van een mug (Oeoeoeoeh)

The sharp, high buzzing of a mosquito (Oooooh)

Dan denk je: ha, daar is ie dan (Oeoeoeoeh)

Then you think: ha, there it is (Ooooooh)

Dit wordt minstens een zomer van een eeuw (Oeoeoeoeh)

This will be at least a summer of a century of (Ooooh)

Maar lieve mensen, oh wat gaat ’t vlug (Oeoeoeoeh)

But dear people, oh how fast (Oooooh)

 

’t is weer voorbij die mooie zomer

It’s over that beautiful summer again

Die zomer die begon zo wat in mei

That summer that started in May

Ah, je dacht dat er geen einde aan kon komen

Ah, you thought there was no end to it

Maar voor je ’t weet is heel die zomer al weer lang voorbij

But before you know it, it’s all that summer long gone

De wereld was toen vol van licht en leven

The world was then full of light and life

Van haring geur vermengd met zonnebrand

Herring fragrance mixed with sunscreen

Een paracol met felle licht zeven

A parasol to bright light

En in je kleren schuurde zacht het zand

And the sand gently settled in your clothes

We speelde golf en jeux de boule

We played golf and jeu de boule

We zonden zalig in een stoel

We were happy in a chair

We dreven met een vlot op de rivier

We floated on the river with a raft

We werden weken lang verwend

We were spoiled for weeks

Maar ach, aan alles komt ’n end

But everything comes to an end

Nu zit ik met mijn dia’s in de regen hier

Now I’m sitting here with my slides in the rain

 

’t is weer voorbij die mooie zomer

It’s over that beautiful summer again

Die zomer die begon zo wat in mei

That summer that started in May

Ah, je dacht dat er geen einde aan kon komen

Ah, you thought there was no end to it

Maar voor je ’t weet is heel die zomer alweer lang voorbij

But before you know it, the summer is long gone.

 

Na nana nana

Na nana nana

Na nana nanana nana

Na nana nanana nana

Na nanana na na nanana nana

Na nanana na na nanana nana

Na nana na nana nanananananana

Na nana na nana nanananananana

 

Herfst verkleurt weer langzaam alle bomen

Autumn slowly discolors all trees again

’K Heb ’s nachts al lang weer m’n pyama aan

I already have my pajamas on at night.

Dan had je eens in juli moeten komen

Then you should have come in July

Toen sliepen we ’s nachts buiten op ’t strand

Then we slept outside on the beach at night

En’s morgens vissen in de zon (Oeoeoeoeh)

And in the morning fishing in the sun (Ooooooh)

En zwemmen zover als je kon (Oeoeoeoeh)

And swim as far as you could (Ooooooh)

We voeren met een boot een end op zee (Oeoeoeoeh)

We sailed with a boat at sea (Oooooh)

’T Is jammer dat het over ging (Oeoeoeoeh)

It’s a shame that it passed (Ooooooh)

’T Is allemaal herinnering (Oeoeoeoeh)

It’s all memory (Ooooh)

Daar doen we dan de hele winter maar weer mee (Oeoeoeoeh)

We’ll do that all winter again (Oooooh)

 

’T Is weer voorbij die mooie zomer

It’s over that beautiful summer again

Die zomer die begon zo wat in mei

That summer that started in May

_Ah, je dacht dat er geen einde aan kon komen__

Ah, you thought there was no end to it

Maar voor je ’t weet is heel die zomer alweer lang voorbij

But before you know it, that summer is long gone

 

Na nana nana

Na nana nana

Na nana nanana nana

Na nana nanana nana

Na nanana na na nanana nana

Na nanana na na nanana nana

Na nana na nana nanananananana

Na nana na nana nanananananana [35]

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French Lyrics

Here are what Google presents as the lyrics and translation. Google claims to get them from LyricFind, but I can’t check because LyricFind does not seem to provide a public interface.

Les matins se suivent et se ressemblent

The mornings follow each other and look alike

Quand l’amour fait place au quotidien

When love gives way to everyday life

On n’était pas faits pour vivre ensemble

We weren’t made to live together

Ça n’suffit pas toujours de s’aimer bien

It’s not always enough to love each other well

C’est drôle, hier on s’ennuyait

It’s funny, yesterday we were bored

Et c’est à peine si l’on trouvait

And we hardly found

Des mots pour se parler du mauvais temps

Words to talk about bad weather

Et maintenant qu’il faut partir

And now that we have to go

On a cent mille choses à dire

We have a hundred thousand things to say

Qui tiennent trop à cœur pour si peu de temps

Too dear to your heart for such a short time

 

On s’est aimés comme on se quitte

We loved each other like we part

Tout simplement sans penser à demain

Simply without thinking about tomorrow

À demain qui vient toujours un peu trop vite

See you tomorrow which always comes a little too fast

Aux adieux qui quelque fois se passent un peu trop bien

To the farewells that sometimes go a little too well

 

On fait c’qu’il faut, on tient nos rôles

We do what we need, we play our roles

On se regarde, on rit, on crâne un peu

We look at each other, we laugh, we skull a little

On a toujours oublié quelque chose

We always forgot something

C’est pas facile de se dire adieu

It’s not easy to say goodbye

Et l’on sait trop bien que tôt ou tard

And we know all too well that sooner or later

Demain peut-être ou même ce soir

Maybe tomorrow or even tonight

On va se dire que tout n’est pas perdu

We will say that all is not lost

De ce roman inachevé on va se faire un conte de fées

From this unfinished novel we will make a fairy tale

Mais on a passé l’âge, on n’y croirait plus

But we have passed the age, we would not believe it anymore

 

On s’est aimés comme on se quitte

We loved each other like we part

Tout simplement sans penser à demain

Simply without thinking about tomorrow

À demain qui vient toujours un peu trop vite

See you tomorrow which always comes a little too fast

Aux adieux qui quelque fois se passent un peu trop bien

To the farewells that sometimes go a little too well

 

Roméo, Juliette et tous les autres

Romeo, Juliet and all the others

Au fond de vos bouquins dormez en paix

Sleep in peace in your books

Une simple histoire comme la nôtre

A simple story like ours

Est de celles qu’on n’écrira jamais

Is one that we will never write

Allons petite, il faut partir

Let’s go little one must go

Laisser ici nos souvenirs

Leave our memories here

On va descendre ensemble si tu veux

We will go down together if you want

Et quand elle va nous voir passer

And when she goes to see us pass

La patronne du café

The patron saint of coffee

Va encore nous dire salut les amoureux!

Go tell us again hello lovers!

 

On s’est aimés comme on se quitte

We loved each other like we part

Tout simplement sans penser à demain

Simply without thinking about tomorrow

À demain qui vient toujours un peu trop vite

See you tomorrow which always comes a little too fast

Aux adieux qui quelque fois se passent un peu trop bien

To the farewells that sometimes go a little too well

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Norwegian Lyrics

Neither Google nor Musixmatch seem to have a translation for the lyrics to Hei, gamle Valdresfjell. However, Musixmatch does provide the lyrics themselves. I’ve used Google translate to get some semblance of an understanding of the English equivalents. Speakers of Norwegian should feel free to provide corrections.

Kjører tog frå Oslo S tel Vællers

Riding trains from Oslo to Vellers

Skar besøke ei gammal tante oppi Vang

Will visit an old aunt up in Vang

I veska har je sitronbrus og Allers

In your bag, you have lemon soda and Allers

Må sikre meg hvis tur’n sku bli for lang

Must make sure if the trip is too long

Væ vindu sitt det en etnedøl, prøver såvå hæn er så trøtt > > Wipe his window there an ale, trying as his hands are so tired

Og rett imot’n sitt det en hælvfull mænn fra Kapp

And opposite it is a hellish man from Cape

Mens vi ruller over Hadelænd kjæm ei kjærring klædd i rødt

As we roll over Hadeländ a woman dressed in red comes

Og sæl wienerbrød og kaffe fylt i papp

And sells pastry and coffee served in cardboard

Hei gamle Vællersfjell her kjæm je

Hi old Vælersfjell here it comes

Må ta en tur før vinter’n er forbi

Must take a trip before winter is over

For je kjører tog frå Oslo S tel Vællers

For trains running from Oslo to Vellers

For å treine flere mil på langrennski

To train several miles on cross-country skiing

Einafjorden er krittkvit som et laken

Einafjorden is chalk-white as a sheet

Je dræg rullgardina ner å tæk en blund

You pull the blind down to take a nap

Og tenkjer på ei dame je såg naken

And thinking of a lady you looked naked

Da je bade her i sammar væ Nygårdslund

When you swim here in Samar Nygårdslund

Men je bråvakner på Gjøvik

But you suddenly wake up at Gjøvik

Og je skjønner dæ er for seint

And you know it’s too late

Je sku søtti i ei vogn tel Fagernes

You were cute in a wagon, Fagernes

Mens skia går tel Vællers

While skiing goes to Vællers

Sitt je sjøl i treningsdress

Sit yourselves in your workout clothes

I et hotellrom mæ utsikt over Næs

In a hotel room you have a view of Næs

Hei gamle Grand Hotell her kjæm je

Hi old Grand Hotel here you come

Må ta en tur før vinter’n er forbi

Must take a trip before winter is over

Men je skulle tatt et tog som gikk tel Vællers

But you should have taken a train that went tel Vellers

For å flyge mange mil på langrennski

To fly many miles on cross-country skiing

Ja je skulle tatt et tog som gikk tel Vællers

Yes you should have taken a train that went to Vællers

For å flyge mange mil på langrennski

To fly many miles on cross-country skiing

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Goodman, Dynamite Version https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWYWaayje3o, Dealing card games with the old men in the club car. Pass the paper bag Rumbling

Background singers, whoos and on chorus.

Goodman, from Easter Tapes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXGFKpWUOW0, about 1:20

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qI6u3IeypR0, about 1:55

Now I was dealin’ cards with the old men in the club car. Penny a point ain’t nobody keepin’ score. Pass that paper bag that holds the bottle. Feel the wheels drumblin’ beneath the floor.

Guthrie

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvMS_ykiLiQ, about 1:25 Dealin’ card games with the old men in the club car. Penny a point ain’t no one keepin’ score. Pass the paper bag that holds the bottle. Feel the wheels rumblin’ ’neath the floor.

Goodman, Live version from 1982,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttloTlRxe7Y, about 1:10

• Just pass …

Guthrie, Live version from 1978

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfxoM6trtZE, about 1:25

Goodman, Live version from 1971 (8-27-71)

I’m the train that they call …

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[1] Maybe I should have taken a music course, such as the legendary Clap for Credit [2].

[2] I don’t believe this course is offered at Grinnell, so I don’t have the same ease of access I might have had as an undergrad, presuming, of course, that I had the opportunity as an undergrad.

[3] As long as you can sing.

[4] a song to which you can sing along, for those people.

[5] It appears that although Guthrie sang made of steel, which he rhymed with the rhythm of the road is all they feel, Goodman sang made of steam, which he rhymed with all they dream. I like the steel metaphor more. Perhaps Goodman used both?

[6] Did Goodman help Prine get started? I don’t recall, and I don’t want to get trapped in the Interweb again.

[7] To folks in the aforementioned City by the Lake, A Dying Cub Fan’s Last Request or Go, Cubs, Go may be more famous.

[8] Like many YouTube links, that one will likely have disappeared by the time you follow it [9].

[9] You should assume that I’ve made the same comment about all of the other links in this musing.

[10] I realize that other-language covers are done by other artists. But the Beatles’ German-language cover of their own song is the one that comes most readily to mind. I’m a lazy writer or at least a lazy muser [11].

[11] Sorry Ralph.

[12] Ich kann kehn Nederlandsche sprechen, or something like that.

[14] I said that already, didn’t I?

[15] These Nas are nothing like those in Wilson Pickett’s Land of a 1000 Dances [16].

[16] You can substitute your favorite version, perhaps Cannibal and the Headhunters’? I believe they were the ones who added the Nas to the original by Chris Kenner [17].

[17] I suppose that’s another Interwebhole.

[18] I can’t describe music. I can’t analyze sounds. Why am I writing this musing?

[19] Google.

[20] Google tells me that it was written by Ilan Goldhirsch.

[21] Does anyone else hear echoes of Jonathan Richman’s New England?

I’ve already been to Paris, I’ve already been to Rome.
And what did I do but miss my home?

[22] I love that Grammarly thinks that ’murcan should be mural or American?

[23] I’m too lazy to look for some folks who say that, but I know that I’ve read it a few times.

[24] The Easter Tapes is a collection of recordings of Steve Goodman on the Vin Scelsa show. It appears that Goodman regularly showed up there on Easter Sundays.

[25] Perhaps three readers will know the change to which I refer.

[26] Or perhaps one on the Earl of Old Town Album. We’ll ignore that one for now.

[27] I’ll leave it to your search skills to find it.

[28] I’d swear he says drumbling, but my family insists it’s grumbling. Drumble is a word, meaning to drone or to blather. I like it, even if it’s not the one Goodman used.

[29] Or steam.

[30] The Wikiepedia page on Goodman does say According to the liner notes on the Steve Goodman anthology No Big Surprise, City of New Orleans was written while on the campaign trail with Senator Edmund Muskie.

[31] An undated live version of City of New Orleans from an ’XRT tribute has Goodman reporting on the origins.

[32] Probably me. Middle Son was not found of my repeated playings or my repeated questions about what he heard.

[33] Strangely enough, neither the lyrics nor the translation match completely.

[34] The oohs (however they are spelled) are not in the Musixmatch version. I think they are supposed to represent what the background singers are saying.

[35] No, I did not count the Nas to see if they matched.

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Version 1.0 of 2020-05-25 .