Mississippi Train - Fred Neil

Mississippi Train - Fred Neil

2:15

Bleeker & McDougal, 1965

Written by Fred Neil

Neil is best known as the writer of "Everybody's Talkin," made famous by Harry Nilsson, but he has some serious folk-blues chops.  This song starts with a Beatles-like harmonica into (by John Sebastian!), then moves into a shuffling blues with electric guitar.  Neil's low register makes the song seem straight out of the Delta swamp (deliberately: "She's going to the bayou / The bayou where the river flows"), when really he was a talented white guy from Cleveland.

Ferry Cross the Mersey - Gerry & the Pacemakers

Ferry Cross the Mersey - Gerry & the Pacemakers

2:24

Ferry Cross the Mersey, 1964

Written by Gerry Marsden

This song was produced by George Martin.  It's a soft, slow ballad and a love letter to the loves shores of England, where people are accepting and smiling.  Huh.  I guess maybe it was different back then?  "So ferry 'cross the Mersey / Cause this land's the place I love / And here I'll stay."  It's more than a bit corny, but the shimmering strings and woodwinds, no doubt arranged by Martin, give it a sweet and tender vibe.

Sunglasses After Dark - Dwight Pullen

Sunglasses After Dark - Dwight Pullen

2:08

single, 1958

Written by Jimmy Noble and Dwight Pullen

This is a terrific rockabilly single from Pullen, a guitarist for Gene Vincent who previously recorded under the name Whitey Pullen.  He changed it because he thought Dwight would sound better to the teenagers buying records.  The song, the spiritual grandfather to both "Sunglasses at Night" and "Cheap Sunglasses," extols the virtues of looking sharp when wearing sunglasses after dark.  It's tongue-in-cheek, describing a fight in which no one comes out on top because all the participants, in their cool shades, could barely see.