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City of New Orleans (song)

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Wikipedia article




"'City of New Orleans'" is a country folk song written by Steve Goodman (and first recorded for Goodman's self-titled 1971 album), describing a train ride from Chicago to New Orleans on the Illinois Central Railroad's 'City of New Orleans' in bittersweet and nostalgic terms.

Goodman got the idea while traveling on the Illinois Central line for a visit to his wife's family. The song has been recorded by numerous artists in the United States, including two major hit versions: first by Arlo Guthrie in 1972, and later by Willie Nelson in 1984. In Europe, the melody has most often been used for original lyrics rather than translations of Goodman's.

An article in the September 2017 issue of 'Trains' magazine chronicles the writing and recording of the song and includes a biographical sketch of Steve Goodman.

Arlo Guthrie version



While at the Quiet Knight bar in Chicago, Goodman saw Arlo Guthrie, and asked to be allowed to play a song for him. Guthrie grudgingly agreed, on the condition that if Goodman bought him a beer, Guthrie would listen to him play for as long as it took to drink the beer. Goodman played "City of New Orleans", which Guthrie liked enough that he asked to record it. The song was a hit for Guthrie on his 1972 album 'Hobo's Lullaby', reaching #4 on the 'Billboard' Easy Listening chart and #18 on the Hot 100 chart; it would prove to be Guthrie's only top-40 hit and one of only two he would have on the Hot 100 (the other was a severely shortened and rearranged version of his 'magnum opus' "Alice's Restaurant", which hit #97). In New Zealand, "City of New Orleans" spent two weeks at number one, charting throughout the winter of 1973.[http://www.flavourofnz.co.nz/index.php?qpageID=search%20listener&qartistid=1326#n_view_location Flavour of New Zealand, 18 December 1972]

Chart performance



Weekly charts



Year-end charts



Gerard Cox version



In 1973, Dutch singer Gerard Cox released a Dutch-language cover entitled "'t Is weer voorbij die mooie zomer" ("It's Over Again, That Beautiful Summer"). The single reached #1 and #2 on the Dutch and Belgian record charts, respectively. The Dutch lyrics are not about a train, but are a look back on the warm days of summer. Mr Cox had based his version on a French version, 'Salut les amoureux' by Joe Dassin, which he had heard while on holiday in France. Lyrically, it had the same subject as Cox's later Dutch version.

Rudi Carrell version



In 1975, Dutch singer Rudi Carrell released a German-language cover with lyrics by producer Thomas Woitkewitsch. The lyrics were based on the Dutch version (see above) by Gerard Cox. The single, "Wann wird's mal wieder richtig Sommer?" ("When Will There be a Proper Summer Again?"), stayed on the German record charts for 14 weeks, peaking at #18. This version has been widely covered, spawning German Top-40 recordings by Creme 21 and Indira Weis.

Willie Nelson version



Steve Goodman won a posthumous Grammy Award for Best Country Song at the 27th Grammy Awards in 1985 for Willie Nelson's version, which was included on Nelson's 1984 album 'City of New Orleans'. It reached #1 on both the 'Billboard' Hot Country Singles chart in the United States and the 'RPM' Country Tracks chart in Canada.

Chart performance



Creme 21 version



Creme 21, a pop band from Frankfurt am Main, recorded a version using Thomas Woitkewitsch's German lyrics. The cover spent 12 weeks on the German record charts, peaking at #36.

Indira Weis version



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"'Wann wirds mal wieder richtig Sommer?'" is the first single of Indira Weis, who got famous in the German multicultural R&B group Bro'Sis. Together with the movie producer Andreas Habermeyer she covered the hit from Rudi Carrell for the Oktoberfest 2009 in Munich. The EP was released September 4, 2009.

The original music video for "Wann wirds mal wieder richtig Sommer?" was directed and produced in Berlin, August 2009. The video premiered September 4, 2009.

Indira performed the song the first time in front of the Rotes Rathaus in Berlin September 9, 2009.

Track listing



Other cover versions



* The original English version has been widely covered, including by John Denver (in 1971), The Seldom Scene (in 1972), Johnny Cash (in 1973), and Judy Collins (in 1975). Denver's version had a different bridge and a few other lines altered, and some other cover artists have copied these changes. More recently, it has been covered by David Hasselhoff (using a combination of Goodman and Denver's lyrics) and Canadian singer Roch Voisine (in both English and French).

* German lyrics have been written for Goodman's melody at least three times. The first version was Austrian singer Jonny Hill's 1973 "Ein Zug genannt City of New Orleans" (A Train Named ). The second, closely following Cox's Dutch version, was used in a 1974 release by Ronny, "Einmal vergeht der schnste Sommer" (Once Passes [Even] the Prettiest Summer). Thomas Woitkewitsch's 1975 lyrics have been used by a number of artists, including Rudi Carrell in 1973, Creme 21 in 1996, and Indira Weis in 2009 (for all of which see above), as well as by Dieter Thomas Kuhn in 1995, Die Lollipops in 2001, and Leonard in 2012.

* In 1972, American singer Joe Dassin recorded a French version, "Salut les Amoureux" (Hello Lovers), re-using the melody but changing the lyrics completely. Dassin sings the last line of the chorus a fourth lower than the original on a conventional IV-V-I chord progression. Damien Poyard recorded this version on his 2015 CD "Un parfum de folie" '(A scent of madness).' Canadian Roch Voisine recorded an English/French version which appears his album 'Americana'.

* Gerard Cox's Dutch version has been parodied a number of times, including by Cox himself in 1973 and by Farce Majeure in 1986 (both times as "'t Is weer voorbij die mooie winter"), and by Wilfred Genee and Johan Derksen in 2012 (as "Nederland is helemaal oranje", a song about the Netherlands national football team recorded specially for UEFA Euro 2012). Cox's version has also seen a number of straight covers, including a 2019 version by Dries Roelvink and a 2020 single by Harten.

* Yehoram Gaon recorded a Hebrew version (Shalom Lach Eretz Nehederet, "Hello Wonderful Country") in the seventies. The lyrics by Ilan Goldhirsch describe the beauty of Israel.

* Juha Vainio wrote Finnish lyrics "Hyv huomenta Suomi" ("Good morning Finland"), which was a domestic hit for the band Karma in 1976 and Matti Esko in 1989. The lyrics describe a semi-trailer truck driver moving cargo over night to his destination.

* Norwegian folk singer ystein Sunde recorded "Liten Og Grnn" ("Tiny and Green") for his 1981 album 'Barkebille Boogie'. The lyrics is about the life of a Widere Twin Otter airplane.

* The Latvian-American band ikgas pieci|lv (Chicago Five) recorded a Latvian version "Pazuduais dls" (Lost Son) in 1975.

* Icelandic singer Bjrgvin Halldrsson recorded a version with his band Brimkl for the 1976 album 'Rock 'n' roll, ll mn bestu r'. The Icelandic lyrics, "Sasta sjferin" (The Last Journey), were written by orsteinn Eggertsson.

* Slovenian Toma Domicelj|sl released "Vlak na jug" ("Southbound Train") on his 1979 album '48'; the lyrics keep to the original in spirit but leave out details and the chorus opens "Zdravo, Jugoslavija. kako si?" (Hello, Yugoslavia. How are you?).

*Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies made a punk rock version of the song in the album 'Rake It In: The Greatestest Hits', released in 2017.

*On September 5, 2005, Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band closed their Labor Day weekend performance at Wrigley Field with the song; Buffett referenced the ongoing impact of Hurricane Katrina and dedicated the song to the people of New Orleans and the wider Gulf Coast region. In May 2006, Buffett opened his set with the song at the first New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival following Hurricane Katrina.

*The 2004 album David Hasselhoff Sings America opens with a cover of City of New Orleans, using Goodman's original lyrics.

*Canadian singer Roch Voisine has covered the original version of the song in both English and French.

See also



* List of train songs

* List of 1970s one-hit wonders in the United States

;Mentioned in the song

* Kankakee, Illinois

* Club car

* Pullman porter

* Memphis, Tennessee

* "Passengers will please refrain"

References




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