Back in the time it takes to break a heart

(if you'd just like to get to the song, skip to the last paragraph)

Songs about Kansas City are often a letdown. Even the most swinging of them irritate me most of the time, either because they hearken back to a jazz-age heyday that no longer exists, or because they just aren't very good. I remember how my excitement about finding a Van Morrison record with a song about Kansas City faded when I discovered all it included was a bunch of female backup singers repeating "Excuse me do you know the way to Kansas City?" which quite honestly sounds a bit absurd when listened to locally.

One Sunday I was driving around town when the James Brown version of "Kansas City" came on the radio. I was at a traffic stop just blocks away from 12th and Vine when JB sang the part about standing at that intersection. Except instead of some hep cat snapping his fingers in rhythm on the corner, there were a couple of down-and-outs sitting in a bunch of newspaper. One of them was asleep while the other looked after him and took slugs from a brown paper bag. Though I saw definite evidence of "wine and crazy little women" in the neighborhood, it didn't exactly look like the kind of drinking and craziness you'd want to celebrate in song.

I don't want to be too hard on that particular blues standard, as it has been covered by great musicians ranging from Wanda Jackson to Muddy Waters. And I've always enjoyed the Beatles take, especially when it would come on at a bar on the Reeperbahn around 4 in the morning. On the opposite spectrum is a tune like "18th Avenue (Kansas City Nightmare)" in which Cat Stevens wrestles with some vague neurosis that doesn't subside until he gets on a plane. Whether or not his problems described in that song were caused by his visit to Kansas City or just happened to occur during his stay, it's not something you'd use to promote the town on a travel brochure.

Last week, however, I discovered the Kansas City-referencing tune I've been waiting for my whole life: "The Train from Kansas City" by the Shangri-Las. Technically it isn't really about Kansas City, just a train originating from this location, but the heartbreak and tension the song builds up to are certainly not foreign to anyone who has spent a few years within this proud yet troubled municipality.

Right from the song's start, you know trouble is on the way, thanks to the rumbling piano and ominous female plea, "Baby, baby, please believe me, I would never, never do anything to hurt you..."

If you aren't a big fan of mid-1960s girl groups, this might not be the song for you. I, however, have been pretty caught up in it for the last few days, and for several reasons. 1) I like songs about trains, especially when they use sound effects. 2) I'm a big fan of catchy girl groups of all races, languages and tempos. And, 3) After having made countless futile train trips to visit old flames in faraway locations like Chicago and Jefferson City, it's nice to finally hear things from the lady's perspective. If I would have known how much she thought about and -- dare I say -- agonized over her rejection of my overtures, the last 10 years would have been a lot easier.

But alas, that's a topic for a whole different blog post. For now, enjoy the Shangri-Las' "Train from Kansas City," and feel free to check out any of the other recent posts on that mix-tape that won't die, the Lukebox. Oh, and if you've got any other notable mentions for songs that mention KC, feel free to comment.

Have a good weekend.