Songs that play like a movie

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Seems that a number of the songs that tell a story are about a bygone era, and delivered in a spare, but elegant, folk style. Like this one.

Btw the lead instrument you' ll hear is a mountain dulcimer, a folk instrument that was played in the Appalachian mountains. It is usually strummed, but David has a unique way of fingerpicking this vintage wooden string instrument.



From the 1850's to 1930, several agencies in New York City gathered orphans; children whose parents had died; and also children that had been abused, neglected and abandoned; and sent them out west. They were loaded on a train that made stops in various Midwest towns and farm stops , in hope the children would be adopted by new families. The trains that carried these children became known as "orphan trains." The song here, written by David Massengill, is based on a true story. And no matter how many times I hear it, I still get goosebumps up and down my arms.

Rider on an Orphan Train
The Folk Brothers
(Jack Hardy and David Massengill)

Lenslady, I like this thread you've created! I quite often picture movie images with songs. Holden Pike mentioned a few of my favorite singer/song writers like Gordon Lightfoot and Jim Croce. Their songs are full of characters and events that would make, if not a great movie, at least a great video. Lightfoot has a song called "Cherokee Bend" from his Cold on the Shoulder album that chock-full of story that would make a good movie. Croce---well, just listen to his Greatest Hits album and you'll get a lot: "You Don't Mess Around With Jim," "Rapid Roy [The Stock Car Boy]," "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown," and "Roller Derby Queen." The images just flow out of those songs.

One of my favorite movie image songs is "Copperhead Road" by Steve Earle. That song paints a whole movie and I picture it every time I listen. And like all these songs I've mentioned, the music is just as great as the lyrics. You ought to give these a listen to, just for pleasure if not moving images. This is truly a great thread and unique to the forum at least as far as I can remember.

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"Miss Jean Louise, Mr. Arthur Radley."

"Shakey Dog" by Wu-Tang's Ghostface Killah is basically a heist flick. I'm not big into rap anymore but I came across this song like 10 years ago and fell in love with its storytelling. Good stuff!

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"Mack the Knife" is from the musical play The Threepenny Opera, lyrics by Bertold Brecht.

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"Film is a disease. When it infects your bloodstream it takes over as the number one hormone. It bosses the enzymes, directs the pineal gland, plays Iago to your psyche. As with heroin, the antidote to Film is more Film." - Frank Capra

Good catch, Holden Pike. I had forgotten that. Christopher Cross' "Ride Like the Wind" sets up the premise for a movie.

Wow, I'm so glad to have this kind of enthusiasm. You folks are amazing. Lots of songs I know, but hadn't thought of til your mentions; and a few I never heard of and need to explore. There's enough music here for maybe 100 song-movies, between me and you mofos. But in the interest of maintaining interest ( yours) and for the sake of keeping sanity (mine) l; I think I' ll keep the count at 25.

Well I am going to try to follow the lead on some of your requests ,and through I can't post everyone's suggestions, please know
I ' m just having a great time doing this; and it wouldn't be this much fun without you mofos.

A few notes to those who were good enough to post:

@dadgumblah. What you said is one of the nicest compliments I' ve gotten Thank you so much for this positive feedback. Music is close to my heart, and I think doing this thread has just invigorated my passion for these songs. We share a lot of the same tastes as well, and people like Gordon Lightfoot and Steve Earle are top of the line in my book.

@TheFilmAficionado - I haven't listened to a lot of rap, but agree it can be a great story telling vehicle. Will check out the Wu Tang's singer's song.

@Holden Pike - amazing to hear the ' original ' version of the Mack the Knife song. It's actually grittier than Darin's, and shows how music can evolve through the arrangement and style of the singer.

@average joe- I like how you phrase the idea of 'setting up the premise' for a movie. Some of the ones I post do that, letting the listener take the song as a starting point. (True of songs like Ride Like the Wind, and imho - Sailing and Solsbury Hill) .

Again, I will try to be weaving some of your suggestions into this thread , either directly or inspired by your choices.
And now, my musical mofos- onto the next 'movie' .

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A few people have mentioned Gordon Lightfoot, and I' m a fan of his too. He's been great at writing and choosing songs, and has the voice that makes you want to listen. So @Holden Pike and @dadgumblah have started me on re exploring his songbook.

And what would any cinematic list be without a road trip movie? This one has a straightforward storyline to follow - with just enough of an open ending that has you wondering what lies next down the road. And what you're doing there in the first place.

I think Jack Nichokson said it pretty well in Easy Rider, when he was talking about life on the road and something called freedom.

And Gordon sings about it just perfectly fine here. ( And feel welcome , if the spirit moves you, to sing along with the
'La la lada da da das' at the end. )

Me and Bobby McGee

Gordon Lightfoot

Very nice! But then most everything he's is great. I'm reminded of his song, "Black Day in July," about the 1967 Detroit riots. Made decades before the movie "Detroit," this song always painted a very vivid picture of the events of that time and I could just see them in mind and still do when I hear it. I haven't seen the movie and am not sure I want to, so good was Gord's spin on it. His "Canadian Railroad Trilogy" also takes me away to the building of the railway in Canada and the sacrifices made for progress. And lenslady, I'm not trying to get you to post any songs in particular, I just thought I'd mention some that maybe you hadn't hear of but it looks like you're already "in the know."

P.S. This was the first time I've heard Gord's version of "Me and Bobby McGee" and I like his version very much after hearing a lot of people cover KK's song.

good choice! the very first line of that song "William Zanzinger killed poor Hattie Carroll
With a cane that he twirled around his diamond ring finger" sets the story up and gives you an immediate mental picture of what's going on. The succinct art of the poet writ large. You know that the song never mentions that Hattie Carroll is black and Zanzinger was white? It was a sign of the times back in 1964 that it was implicitly known. The refrain But you who philosophize disgrace and criticize all fears, Take the rag away from your face
Now ain’t the time for your tears that changes at the end to Bury the rag deep in your face,For now’s the time for your tears is absolutely haunting. When I was a kid and first heard it, it moved me to tears. Can still do.
I heard a radio programme a few years back interviewing old people who still remembered Hattie Carroll and spoke of her as a hard working woman having several jobs to help keep her many kids, just to think of Zantzinger landing a blow on her with a cane while she's doing her job is sickening.
As a little aside, it's nice to know that Hattie Carroll is buried in Baltimore National Cemetery by her husband who served in the Navy. Her grave is a plain white headstone like all the others in the cemetery. Everyone is equal there.

@lenslady I'd like to recommend Nebraska, a whole album of reflective story songs by Springsteen. One of his less popular albums, I love it all.

Oddly, I watched The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia a couple of months ago. I used to love it as a kid, but alas, it is not very good, as you mention here. It was fun to hear "Baby, bye-bye" again, though.

Another one that comes to mind in The Charlie Daniels Band tune "The Devil Went Down to Georgia." That one always started up a little mini-movie in my head back when I was younger.

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That Rider on an Orphan Train from The Folk Brothers is very moving and beautifully sung. Reminds me of what Philomena went through with the missing files.

Another evocative story one my late mum always loved was Merle Haggard's Hungry Eyes. I can't listen to it without imagining her singing along. Brings goosebumps.

Thank you again mofos for your insightful comments and positive feedback. It just makes my day! A few comments to the posters :

@dadgumblah - Glad you liked the Gord version of the song. I actually was thinking of the Railway song, but
'Bobby ' was my final choice. I appreciate you saying you are not making requests, even
though I 'd like to honor everyone!s choices, And space permitting ; I have a lot of personal favorites coming up. But I DO truly appreciate your ( and everyone's) input b/c it inspires me in my seiections, and also keeps a broader palette open for me in choosing songs ( and musicians or musical styIes). I think your input can help me from posting a certain' sameness' to this list.



@christine - I can't add anything to your heartfelt and perceptive words about Hattie Carroll. Other than to say that you brought out an important point in noting that Dylan never tells us Hattie was black and William white- I think it makes the song more universal . Those were the days when Dylan would open up the newspaper and write a song off the headlines. But even that early in his career, he had the instinct to bring a certain subtlety to the storyline, which gave the song a lasting power. Btw your words on Hattie directly inspired me to make my next song selection. Which I hope makes a forward step in the lineage of Hattie Carroll.
I also was so happy how much you like Orphan Train, by this lesser known writer. Omg Philomena is a favorite movie of mine, and I can see how you made that connection.

@Sedai - Devil Went Down to Georgia is a great storytelling song. So many country songs tell stories and this is a rollicking one. Not sure which song I' ll post yet, but I do owe the list some solid country tune- or two or three.

And now, on with the list.

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He wrote this song after being turned away from a motel in the south, while on tour. Like Blowing in the Wind, it became an anthem of the civil rights movement. But the personal becomes the universal in this song, resonating with every person of any time, in any nation, who has to overcome the most oppressive of struggles. The amazing thing is how the writer ,
( and humankind)can find a way to reach inside and beyond oneself to envision change. That's the movie I see in this song . And of course , many movies have already been made. And so has history.


A Change is Gonna Come

Sam Cooke

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A film for children, and the young at heart, is how I can envision the next song. A movie that is an animated fantasy, perhaps by Pixar, with lush graphics exploring the world of nature, above and below the waves. . But it could just as easily be presented as an odyssey of a maritime creature, by a gifted film maker of nature movies like Yann-Arthus Bertrand.

Gordon Bok is a folksinger from Maine, noted for his songs about the sea and fisherman. But
this song is about the life story of a beguiling sea creature, told in the being's own voice. Btw, when performing the song, Gordon claims not to have written it himself-
he claims it was written by the star of the song- an otter.

The Brandy Tree
Gordon Bok

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This next song is a little bit of a change of pace in the song list.


Of all the lesser known songs( and musical artists) I may present here, this is probably the leastest known. This song ( and the singer songwriter) came to my attention basically because of the topic of our next scenario. Christine's known for writing funny songs ( some are funnier than others, but I sure do like this one). This recording is from a live performance so you'll hear the audience laughing along to this gushing tribute. The story in the song, it's said, is based on a true life event ( has to be- who could make this stuff up? ) And some of you may even be as pleased as I was with the pictorials accompanying the video.

This brief encounter, described forthwith, probably took less time than the entire song, but I still can see it as a longer movie. Really. I can. And who could I possibly cast in this movie? Well certainly the star of the song could be the star of the movie. And although I'd have to brush up on my thespian
skills ( of which I have none ) , I think it wouldn't be too much of a stretch for this lady of the lens to play a bumbling, mumbling , stumbling, starstruck fan in the movie regarding:

Harrison Ford
Christine Lavin

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The next song looks at the other side of famous icons ( and brings us, hopefully, from the merry silliness of the HF tune, to the sublime inspiration of this one..)



This movie in the song could just be looked on as a travelogue, but it's actually an autobiography of the singer. Most creative souls turn to explore a different place, and look to a person who is an artistic muse, to fuel their artistic journey. In the case of Marc, the place was Memphis and the muses were people like Carl Perkins, Elvis, W.C. Handy, and Al Green, along with all the blues and gospel singers of the area.

The backstory to this narrative is more implied than spelt out , in the final verse that mentions Muriel. Muriel Wilkins was a 70 year old African American local singer who performed gospel songs at a place called the Hollywood cafe. Marc, an unknown and aspiring musician, wandered in, and a conversation began. Marc wound up confiding that he struggled to that very day with the fact he had been orphaned by both his parents as a young child. This wise older lady took an interest in him. She told him that his mother didn't mean to leave him, but she was now where she was supposed to be - and now Marc needed to carry on with his own life. Then after performing for the night, Muriel invited Marc to sit down at the piano and sing. It was as if a light had switched on inside him.

Marc went back to NYC, and wrote this song, amongst others, was discovered by Carly Simon, had a hit song with Memphis, and a new successful career. The conversation with Muriel didn't end there; he kept in touch, visited her, she was invited to his wedding, and they remained friends til her passing.

That's the story I would film if the song was a movie. But the movie doesn't have to be more than a telling of the journey, to seek inspiration, that every artist passes through. Monet found a new color palette in his visit to the Mediterranean coastline. Dylan found his mentor visiting Woodie Guthrie in an institution in New Jersey.

And Marc found his fire when he touched down in Memphis- luxuriating in the sights and sounds, the memories of icons, the smell of catfish frying, and the warmth of a very special lady.


And he left as a changed man.

Walking in Memphis
Marc Cohn

Oh my goodness I’d not heard that story before Lenslady, and I don’t even know if I’d heard Marc singing it before, probably only heard covers but I love it. See this is the thing - a lot of young people, prob me included back in the day, kinda dismiss old people but the wisdom some of them have to give is something to treasure.. love that story and thank you for telling it.

Also loved the Christine Lanvin song. I mean that’s what most of us would be like if we met one of our icons right? Frozen to the spot! Very funny song!

Who can’t feel emotion when listening to Sam singing Change is Gonna Come? I always file that one in my head alongside Labi Siffre’s Something so Strong .

@lenslady I love The Brandy Tree. First time hearing it, but certainly not the last. Definitely made for film, be it real-life imagery or Wes Anderson Fantastic Mr. Fox type of animation.

Harrison Ford was hilarious! Thank you for that. I must pass that on to my wife. She's a bit ill and needs all the humor she can use these days. Thanks again for that.

And lastly, Memphis. Great, great song. And when my older brother met his wife, this became their song. Nice pic. Can't wait for what's next, lenslady!