Obviously aspiring actors would be drawn to Hollywood, where lies their best chance of getting in films or on television. For some reason, that city has been the focus of a lot of songwriters as well.
Pop-rocker Ryan Adams scored with s song called “Good Night, Hollywood Boulevard” from his Gold album in 2001. Two and a half decades prior to that, Piano Man Billy Joel charted with “Say Goodbye To Hollywood” from his Turnstiles album.
Many songs about the city of stars are simply titled, “Hollywood” as if that town needed no adjectives or modifiers for recognition. Here are ten bands with tunes using just that city in their one-word title of “Hollywood.”
Shooting Star
The eighties rock band dedicate this ode from Hang On For Your Life to a girl who “takes advantage of her long blond hair” before the slow piano bursts into an electric onslaught when “she sells herself to the producer’s couch.”
Boz Scaggs
Down Two Then Left, the follow up to the platinum album Silk Degrees, is highlighted by this gem to a woman whose name should be up in lights.
Codeine Velvet Club
The indie band has just one album to date, and the song “Hollywood” is definitely the star on it.
Marina and the Diamonds
The second single from The Family Jewels album, “Hollywood” reached number twelve in the United Kingdom but did not do nearly as well in America.
Nickelback
This tune titled after the celebrated city comes from Silver Side Up, the rock band’s third album.
Beyoncé
Jay Z did the original version of this “Hollywood” but his wife’s rendition has become more well-known.
Collective Soul
If you had wanted to own this track and the Afterwords CD when it was released in 2007, you would have had to go to Target to get it because of an exclusive deal the rock band worked out with that company.
Nada Surf
The Cars lead singer Ric Ocasek produced this “Hollywood” and the entire first album by the alt rock band.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
The subtitle is “Africa” because it was inspired by a funk band’s single from the seventies, and the alt rockers got one of their first hits when it appeared on their second album Freaky Styley.
Wallflowers
Bob Dylan’s son Jakob was heard for the first time when his band released their self-titled debut album, which included the seven minute epic “Hollywood.”
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by Doug Poe
