Top 10 Songs about Cities

Music can capture the memory of a location, it can arrest the mind and take a listener back to a particular place.  Some songs excel at this, with some defining a city, becoming the theme song that all within the boundaries can rally behind.  It is a magic that many artists try to capture without success, as the wrong style can alienate the city rather than rally it behind you.

This list categorizes some of my favourite songs about cities.  Some of them are iconic, some of them are indie classics, all of them are great music.

Honourable Mention:
Miami - Will Smith
Rome - Phoenix
Cynical Bastards - Arkells

1. New York - Frank Sinatra

So many artists have attempted to lay claim to the city of New York.  Each hometown artist that has came up in New York claims they own the city, perhaps most notably in Jay-Z.  But no song embodies New York better than the smooth sound of Frank Sinatra.  The song itself encompasses everything New York is; its loud, massive, flashy, elegant, and sung by one of music's most famous practitioners.  It doesn't get much better than this, a classic singer making music about one of the all-time great cities in world history = the sound of a city.

2. Viva Las Vegas - Elvis Presley

Who else really could be the face of Las Vegas.  Elvis Presley's song was both a hit on his own, as well as in the movie that the song was featured in.  The movie itself features what some would consider a staple of Hollywood, showgirls, and Elvis exudes that swagger that embodies everyone who arrives in Vegas...at least before they lose all their money playing blackjack.  This song has all the excitement and flash that Vegas is known for.

3. If Your Going To San Francisco - Scott McKenzie

The sound of San Francisco, Scott McKenzie captured the vibe of the city with this song.  An instant hit when it was released in the late 1960s, the song itself is credited with increasing tourism in San Francisco by thousands following the songs release..  It has recently returned to the mainstream through dubstep and techno remix's, but the original will always remain a classic.

4. Atlantic City - Bruce Springsteen

One of The Boss' big hits from his first album, Springsteen captures an optimistic, yet often disappointing hometown of Atlantic City.  Bruce writes of a beauty that many people see in the city from the outside, and yet from the inside there is a dark underbelly that exists.

5. Nantes - Beirut

Unlike the musical juggernauts that made up the first four songs, Beirut remains a relative unknown in the mainstream.  The indie darlings however created a gem with this one, as the use of a variety of instruments and the slow song of romance embody everything that many people would think of France.  It is slow, romantic and totally gets bonus points for an excellent use of the accordion.

6. Chicago - Sufjan Stevens

In the late 2000s, Stevens declared that it was his goal to write an album for every state in the United States.  While that has not came to fruition thus far, his album about Illinois is considered one of the all time greats in the indie scene.  While the song itself is vague and highly symbolic, the fact that it features heavily in the indie scene and the quality of the song itself makes it a great song about Chicago.

7. Calgary - Bon Iver

Yes! A song about a Canadian city! and its even written by Bon Iver, master of all things falsetto and soulful. The song itself is about the people that lead singer, Justin Vernon had met from Calgary throughout his life.  He has claimed that he has felt a kinship with the city and decided to write a song about it.  A native of Wisconsin, Vernon has also written songs about Texas and Perth, located in Australia.

8. 5am in Toronto - Drake

Not so much for the quality of the song, but you can't deny that Drake has officially became the most known face of Toronto.  A known quantity as both a rapper and brand ambassador for the Toronto Raptors, Drake is Toronto.  One of the first to really claim the city as his own, Drake has made T.O. famous, and that alone justifies his inclusion on this list.

9. London Calling - The Clash

Want a go to song for any movie scene about London? Look no further than the Clash, as this is one of the most widely used songs when a movie is doing a large view of London.

10. One Great City - The Weakerthans

The sleeper pick of the list, it is just so rare to find a song about Winnipeg, Manitoba.  However...not necessarily super positive on Winnipeg, it does pay homage to the city.  The band itself hails from Winnipeg, and the song is less about bashing the city and more about having a laugh at itself.  Nothing says Canadian like a good bit of self-depreciating humor.