When I type ‘Auckland’ into my itunes I get exactly, ah, no results. Alright, there’s the Muttonbird’s ‘Dominion Road‘, a great song ruined by homesick ex-pats, and that punk-AK’79 affair about jumping off Grafton Bridge. Dublin must be shitting itself.
We live in a very pretty city, team, so how come there’s no catchy pop hits proclaiming sunny late afternoons on Ponsonby Road, driving around Tamaki Drive at night, or even a sea shanty to getting pissed down the Viaduct and jumping in the water? Surely we can do better?
To get us underway, I’m nominating ‘Silverdale‘ by ex-Bressa Creeting Cake guy Edmund Cake as my top Auckland song. Recorded in a secret Gore St lair, Silverdale is an bubbly ode to the joys of tripping around the shops on Saturday with your loved one. The whimsy-ometer goes off the clock on lines like “Driving to Silverdale - Bendon has a sale”, and “I’ll put my hand in your pocket, I’ll keep that docket.” Even Rendell’s gets a special mention.
Between us, we must be able to expand the Auckland Canon - what’s your top Auckland song?
I thought I’d try the “type auckland into itunes” thing too. I got The Cramps live album “RockinnReelininAucklandNewZealand”
But that doesn’t count right?
‘Silverdale’ is a Goldenhorse pisstake too, isn’t it?
Um… our best bet might be The McGlashan, actually. ‘Your Window’ mentions Forrest Hill; ‘Andy’ is partially about how much Auckland in the 80s sucked, and is set on Takapuna Beach. Then there’s ‘Madeleine Avenue’ by one Mr Dobbyn… erm. ‘Auckland Tonight’ by The Androidss, of course. And Crowded House’s ‘Kare Kare’.
(I’m now mentally singing ‘Suicide’.)
Haydn - No, the Cramps don’t count, unless you can clearly hear people discussing Lattes in the background. What happens when you type in ‘Wellington’?
Danielle - re: Silverdale - I knew that *he says, lying*. Great suggestions otherwise - I may have to go trawl for some Front Lawn also.
Crowded House kind of take this category out, don’t they? I mean there’s the sun hanging over the black clouds in the Domain in ‘Four Seasons’ and then there’s 57 Mt. Pleasant Street (Although it’s actually Mt Pleasant Road).
But I would also throw up “Get Loose” by the D4, because that’s a total driving over the harbour bridge from the Shore to party song.
Actually Jo, Crowded House’s reference to the Domain is the Melbourne Domain and I believe that 57 Mt Pleasant Street has something to do with John Lennon.
How about Dave Dobbyn’s Madeleine Ave, it’s the street he grew up in in GI.
Being a Shore boy, Andy by the Front Lawn immediately sprang to mind.
I was also once in a ska band and we had a song called Shore Thing… extract from Verse 2:
“You asked me to drive you to Glenfield Mall
You were working at that tacky boutique-y type stall
With the girl at the counter who only wears black
Where there’s fabric in front but there’s none at the back”
Isn’t there a D4 song called Shore Girls?
and if I type in “wellington” i get nada. But the Front Lawn have got us covered.
“RockinnReelininAucklandNewZealand” is a great album! It was recorded at the Galaxy nightclub, better known now as the Powerstation. It’s fierce.
A few years ago Metro did a piece on songs inspired by Auckland landmarks. While the obvious ones where there (”Dominion Road”, etc), I was interested to read that Bic Runga’s “Sway” was inspired by some old poster graffiti.
Who remembers in the ’90s when the Wellesley Street pedestrian overbridge that connects AUT and Albert Park had some paper spelling S W A Y stuck to it? Well, that’s what inspired Ms Runga to write that song.
Wow, I remember that “SWAY”. Cool Auckland-factoid Robyn
Isn’t U2’s One Tree Hill about, erm… One Tree Hill? Does that count as an Auckland song?