“He was like the bed at a party on which they pile the coats.”
- George Saunders/Tenth of December
What states have the most songs written about them? We could all make a pretty good guess, I imagine. We'd all probably go with California and New York as top ones, yes? Southern states get a lot of love too. They have big personalities, complicated and rich histories; they're interesting places and the cadence of the names themselves are pleasing to annunciate-- Tennessee, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama - the songs almost write themselves.
But what states (or cities and places within them) would garner the least number of songs? What state is a total yawn when it comes to inspiring someone to sing about it? There's no hard data on it but we'd all have our guesses, wouldn't we?
Can New Hampshire arouse passion in anyone unless they're into granite or presidential primaries? Delaware? It's the first state, yeah, whatever. Wisconsin…it has cheese. There are several states that don't stir much within the soul. But, there's one to me that I think is the least poetic of all the fifty. Utah.
Nobody sings, “In my mind I'm going to Utah” or “Just an old sweet song keeps Utah on my mind" or The night the lights went out in Utah."
You could lay it on to its blunt two-syllable name, but Texas and New York have only two and look at the attention they get. Kendra said maybe it's because it sounds like a donkey, “Hee-Haw”…"U-Taw." The word just doesn't have much rhythm or harmony to it. And then there's the personality of the state. What is its personality?
What do you think of when you think Utah? I know, Mormons, right? Mormons are fine folks, but their vibe is pretty…what…vanilla? Except for their early polygamy thing and the Mountain Meadows Massacre deal, they're too well behaved to provide much artistic tension. So, overall, a pretty bland identity.
Utah, though is a gorgeous state. That should inspire something. They have five National Parks. I've been to four of them. They are incredible places. For the longest time Kendra wanted to go to Zion and Bryce Canyon. I wasn't against it but I was fairly indifferent. Then we went in 2019. Boy, was I the dummy. Both of those places are stunning. Now I encourage everyone to go. I think the state's beauty is kind of a secret, so much so that nobody's knows to sing about it. Well, Marty Robbins sang The Red Hills of Utah in 1963, so there's that.
There exists a paltry few songs that reference The Beehive State in any regard. If I went out and asked a hundred people at the Springfield/Branson Airport to name one, I'd bet our house that not a single person could come up with an answer. Not even someone from Utah.
Here are songs about three other states that don't get much appreciation. Do you have a state you'd nominate for least inspiring?
*Smith Hill is a neighborhood in Providence Rhode Island.
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