As I continue to ponder songs in the USA the following lyrics and titles spring to mind.

Sweet Home Alabama, North to Alaska, Blue Hawaii, California Dreaming, Rocky Mountain High, The Mississippi Delta shining like a National Guitar, Kentucky Woman, Deep in the Heart of Texas,……… There is a least one song about every state in the USA, some have many. On top of unofficial songs there are the official songs for State, School, etc. The USA has a lot to sing about.

What about good old Australia? Is there a song about the Australian Capital Territory, The Northern Territory, Tasmania perhaps? I know we have “Bound For Botany Bay” (which by the way should have been “Bound For Port Jackson”), and we have “Auntie Jack sings Wollongong”,”Laying on Arkansas Grass” (oops, that’s a song about the USA by Australians). It’s a good thing Lucky Starr sang “I’ve Been Everywhere Man” that saved our song writers a lot of trouble and we “shower-singers” only have  to learn one (really complicated and boring) song.

One for the music lovers.

Memphis, the city, is struggling along with many other medium to large cities in the USA to compete with the popularity of “THE MALL” with its cheap prices and homogeneous product. The mall is really tearing the life out of a lot of towns. In Memphis, for example, half the “Downtown” is closed. One shop owner was given a $40,000 assistance package if they took up a ten-year lease on a retail shop space. It’s obviously a big problem. Hopefully the inner city or “Downtown” areas will find a way to re-invent themselves.

I wonder if Walmart has a song? I wonder if anyone cares?

Every now and then you see something so totally alien you just have to take a detour to see it up close. While plotting a route south I stumbled (as I frequently do) upon the ruins of a plantation house from pre civil war times. A picture is worth a thousand words so click on the images to see full size.

Car in foreground.

Solid cast iron column tops.

The story. Click to enlarge.