Unexpected musical partnerships that rocked the charts
Elvis Presley recorded 'Memphis, Tennessee' in 1964. He lived, and died, at Graceland, his home in Memphis for 20 years. Graceland today is one of the most popular visitor attractions in the United States.
Freddie Mercury took a break from fronting Queen to record with Spanish operatic soprano Montserrat Caballé. The result later became the official theme song for the 1992 Summer Olympic Games, its title named after the city hosting the event. But what city are we talking about?
Freddie Mercury's duet with Montserrat Caballé was called 'Barcelona,' which was originally recorded in 1987. It was one of the biggest hits of Mercury's solo career.
Elvis Presley was born in Tupelo, Mississippi but sang a song about a city he ended up living in for the rest of his life. The song was originally written by fellow rocker Chuck Berry. What's the city?
California pop rock band the Bangles enjoyed a string of hits in the 1980s, including a song they covered in 1984 about a city famously associated with the Fab Four. What's the city?
'Going Down to Liverpool' was the track. The video for the song featured Leonard Nimoy (minus his Spock ears). Interestingly, in July 2004 former Beatle Paul McCartney presented the Bangles with "honorary rock'n'roll diplomas" from his Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts.
In 1998, Will Smith was enjoying international movie stardom, but still found time to record music. In November of that year, he released a song about a city in the Sunshine State where he stayed on the beach all night long. What city was he rapping about?
Will Smith's hit track 'Miami' welcomed everybody to the city, specifically South Beach. Incidentally, the track samples The Whispers's 1979 hit 'And the Beat Goes On.'
Nicki Minaj raps in the guise of her alter ego Roman Zolanski in an expletive-laden rant that takes place in a Russian city. Where is Minaj melting down?
'Roman in Moscow' was released as a single in 2011, but was never included on Minaj's album 'Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded.' Asked why by a fan on Twitter, the singer replied that she didn't like the song very much!
A track included on Bee Gee Robin Gibb's posthumous 2014 album '50 St. Catherine's Drive' was an unfinished demo track the lyrics of which recalled the time the Gibb brothers were in Australia, when for a while they lived with their family in the most populous city in the country. What's the city?
Robin Gibb's 'Sydney' is the final track on the album, which was the last tune the musician was working on before his untimely death on May 20, 2012. The album was named after the address on the Isle of Man where the Gibb brothers were born.
A city in Pennsylvania was sung about twice by two different singers for the same movie, but it was Bruce Springsteen's composition that won an Academy Award for Best Original Song. Where are we taking about?
Springsteen's 'Streets of Philadelphia' was played over the opening credits to 'Philadelphia' (1993). Neil Young's 'Philadelphia' was heard during the family memorial scene as the movie ends.
A track included on Lady Gaga's 2020 'Chromatica' album celebrates a city that was founded in Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq) in 1894 BCE. Where did she end up back in time?
Lady Gaga wrote 'Babylon' as an appreciation of the ancient city and how its citizens enjoyed partying and having fun. But she uses the city as a metaphor for gossip, and how rumor and miscommunication has affected her own life. [...]"frankly gossip is the hallmark of civilization," she said ruefully in a Spotify Storyline.
Eminem raps about a city and a fashion clothing line on a track from his 2014 album 'Shady XV.' What's he talking about?
Eminem was born in St. Joseph, Missouri. For much of his youth, however, he lived in Detroit. The track in question is 'Detroit Vs. Everybody' and refers to his adopted city, its violent undertone, and a local fashion label that goes by the same name.
Country music star Glen Campbell hailed from the Deep South and sang several songs about cities in the southern states of America. One though, released in 1969 and describing a hurricane-prone Texas coastal resort, was also perceived as a Vietnam War protest song. What city was Campbell singing about?
'Galveston' was a huge hit and remains in the CMT Top 10 list of all-time great country music songs.
Sources: (Song Facts) (Graceland) (Twitter) (CBS News) (Reuters)
See also: Vintage photos of famous cities
The Irish band recorded a track for their 2009 album 'No Line on the Horizon' in a makeshift open-air recording studio outside one of Morocco's historical imperial cities. The song incorporated the name of the city in its title, but which one?
U2's 'Fez - Being Born' includes in the music sounds of a Moroccan marketplace recorded in situ.
Collaborating with Irish trad-folk band Beoga, Ed Sheeran wrote and recorded a song about falling for an Irish girl, who comes from a city in the west of Ireland that lies on the River Corrib. So, where did the singer fall in love?
Sheeran released 'Galway Girl' on St. Patrick's Day 2017, the third single from his album '÷' (pronounced "Divide").
Oddly, on a track from her 2008 album 'One of the Boys,' Katy Perry sings about waking up in a Nevada city that never sleeps. Where is she greeting the day?
The singer is 'Waking up in Las Vegas,' a song that tells the tale of an underage couple getting drunk and blowing their cash in the casinos of Las Vegas.
In a 1987 release, Sting sings about famed English gay author Quentin Crisp, acclaimed for his 1968 novel 'The Naked Civil Servant,' which was adapted in 1975 as a made-for-television drama starring John Hurt. Crisp doesn't live in England, preferring an American city of towering skyscrapers as a home base. So, what's the city?
'Englishman in New York' is Sting's homage to Crisp, who regarded himself as an outcast. By the way, one of the author's New York addresses was the infamous Hotel Chelsea.
Frank Sinatra famously sung about New York, New York, and there was no mistaking the place he was crooning about. Indeed, many songs include the name of a city in their title. But what if you weren't given the name of the song and the city? Would you be able to guess the title or the location based purely on historical facts and lyrical clues?
Click through and be quizzed on the cities these musicians are singing about. Can you figure out the destination?
In 2015, the late Swedish DJ and producer wrote a track about his hometown and included it on the album 'Stories.' What's the city Avicii called home?
Guess the cities being sung about!
What are the destinations being described?
MUSIC Destinations
Frank Sinatra famously sung about New York, New York, and there was no mistaking the place he was crooning about. Indeed, many songs include the name of a city in their title. But what if you weren't given the name of the song and the city? Would you be able to guess the title or the location based purely on historical facts and lyrical clues?
Click through and be quizzed on the cities these musicians are singing about. Can you figure out the destination?