Rhody Playlist
Listen to a compilation of tunes that have unexpected Ocean State ties . By Lou Papineau
Rhode Island is tiny , but it has an outsized presence in popular music . We ’ ve selected five of the most prominent songs that namecheck the Ocean State and one that was penned in the capital city . To hear these tracks , plus other odes by the Monkees , Mountain Goats and the Muppets — and hits by Rhode Island ’ s most successful acts , including the Cowsills , Jeffrey Osborne , John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band and Billy Gilman — search for the “ RI Monthly Rhody Playlist ” on Spotify .
“ Rhode Island Is Famous For You ” This whimsical ditty was part of the 1948 musical Inside USA ; it tongue-twistingly tours twenty states and ends with the declaration , “ Coats come from Dakota but why should you be blue ?/ For you — you come from Rhode Island / Little ol ’ Rhode Island / And little ol ’ Rhode Island is famous for you .” The best versions are by jazz singer Blossom Dearie ( 1960 ) and avant-folkie ( and Brown alum ) Erin McKeown ( 2006 ). It was the theme song of Buddy Cianci ’ s radio show , and he performed it with Broadway actor Robert Goulet at his inauguration at PPAC in 1995 .
“ Psycho Killer ,” Talking Heads The off-kilter new wave classic was written by then-students David Byrne , Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth at RISD ’ s Carr House in 1973 and first performed at the school ’ s St . Valentine ’ s Day Masquerade Ball in 1974 . It appeared on the future Rock and Roll Hall of Famers ’ debut album in 1977 .
“ Rock and Roll Band ,” Boston This track kicks off side two of the band ’ s 1976 debut album ( which has sold twenty-five million copies worldwide ). The third verse says , “ Playin ’ for a week in Rhode Island / A man came to the stage one night / He smoked a big cigar , drove a Cadillac car / And said , ‘ Boys , I think this band ’ s outta sight .’ ”
But Boston mastermind Tom Scholz notes that it was “ pure fantasy ” since the group had never played live before the song was written . The quintet did perform at the late , lamented Rocky Point Park in Warwick , in the summer of ’ 76 – admission was $ 1 and two Twizzler wrappers !
“ The Last Resort ,” Eagles The final track on Hotel California opens with these evocative lines : “ She came from Providence , one in Rhode Island / Where the Old World shadows hang heavy in the air .” The album has sold more than thirty-two million copies since its release in 1976 .
“ The Last Great American Dynasty ,” Taylor Swift This highlight from Swift ’ s 2020 Folklore album tells the tale of Rebekah Harkness , who was married to the heir to the Standard Oil fortune . In 2013 , the mega-selling artist bought the quirky socialite ’ s sprawling Watch Hill mansion ( for $ 17 million ), known as the Holiday House , thirty-one years after Harkness ’ s death . A key verse : “ Holiday House sat quietly on that beach / Free of women with madness , their men and bad habits / And then it was bought by me .” Swift told Entertainment Weekly , “ I wanted to know everything I could [ about Harkness ], as more parallels developed between our lives : being the lady in the house on the hill who everybody gossips about .”
RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY l APRIL 2021 15