Boston songs (early '60s)

[markwa1ion@aol.com]

The Boston My Home Town song was on WCOP in 1961.  I remember it well 
since I was 12 then and WCOP "ruled school" in Arlington at the time.  
Another Boston-themed song I remember from around that time were 
"Banned in Boston" by Merv Griffin ("Now she's banned in Boston, 
condemned in Cleveland, and banished in Baltimore; she is now taboo in 
Philly and St. Lou and Chicago doesn't dig her anymore.")  Freddy 
Cannon had a Boston My Home Town hit and Peggy Lee's "Boston Beans" 
went something like "No beans in Boston, plenty of fish, Chinese food 
if that's your dish, steaks and chops make a wonderful fare but I 
couldn't find any Boston beans there."  Tommy Facenda's High School USA 
did have a Boston version - played on WCOP and WMEX - with numerous 
mispronounced town names: Rosedale for Roslindale, Jam Plain for 
Jamaica Plain.  Any local kid could tell that the record was thrown 
together in Hollywood or NYC with Facenda taking his best shot at it 
 from the Rand McNally road atlas.  Nobody thought for a moment that he 
was from Reveah, Meffa, or Bricka High.

Mark Connelly, WA1ION - Billerica, MA

<<
From: Jon Maguire <w1mnk@tampabay.rr.com>
Subject: Re: When WBZ played covers instead of hits
Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2007 07:12:45 -0400

About when was that song on WCOP? I worked there as an engineer for 
1970-75. I don't recall the song, but can check with some form 
colleagues.

Regards, Jon W1MNK Brandon, FL USA
A. Joseph Ross wrote:
> On 19 Jun 2007 at 20:47, Lou wrote:
>
> >> Wow... Just when you think you've found all the lost classics, New
>> Hope comes up. Great song! Was this only a WBZ song, or did WMEX
>> play it, too? Thanks for bringing it up.
>> > > I don't remember it at all. But the classic I just thought of 
was a > song called "High School, USA." It had a number of regional 
versions > which listed a bunch of local high schools. I didn't know 
that at > the time and wondered whether the whole country was hearing a 
song > that mentioned Boston-area schools.
>
> There was another one which I thought, at first, was some national > 
hit. I think it was called "Song of the City," and it sang the > 
praises of "Boston, Boston, that's my home town." But the song ended > 
with "The most wonderful sound of our home town is WCOP, Boston, > 
Boston, that's my home town." Of course, it was only heard on WCOP.
> A very clever promotion. I wonder who performed it.
>>
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