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From Lynyrd Skynyrd's Southern rock anthem to Chuck Berry's pioneering rock and roll, join us as we explore the definitive musical tributes to each American state! We're taking a melodic road trip across the USA, discovering songs that capture the unique spirit, culture, and history of the first 25 states, alphabetically from Alabama to Missouri.
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00:07Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're jamming to songs that best represent each state in the U.S.
00:14In alphabetical order, up to Missouri.
00:17There'll be music everywhere.
00:26Sweet Home Alabama, by Leonard Skinner.
00:30Alabama.
00:31Though they hail from Florida, Leonard Skinner is so quintessentially Southern rock that they delivered an anthem for the quintessential
00:39Southern state.
00:47Sweet Home Alabama was a response to Neil Young's Alabama and Southern Man, which leaned on stereotypes to condemn contemporary
00:55social issues in the region.
00:57Well, I heard old Neil put it down.
01:00The post-Watergate diss track points out the hypocrisy in vilifying the entire South for the corruption and bigotry of
01:08politicians.
01:09Mostly, though, it's a celebration of Alabama's signature charm and hospitality, backed by an unshakably catchy riff.
01:17Sweet Home Alabama, where the skies are blue.
01:25The permanent global hit, Sweet Home Alabama, is naturally a staple of classic rock culture in the Deep South.
01:31And it's a motto for the homey spirits of the Yellow Hammer states.
01:44North to Alaska, by Johnny Horton.
01:46Alaska.
01:48Not two years after Alaska was declared the 49th American state, the northern-set western North to Alaska delighted moviegoers.
01:57Big Sam left Seattle in the year of 92.
02:02The theme song was a more solemn hit in the country genre, as singer Johnny Horton had died in a
02:08car accident just days before the film's release.
02:11Over time, it became a lesser-known John Wayne vehicle, but Alaskans still love that song.
02:17George turned the sand with his gold in his hand.
02:22The cozy tones enhance Tillman Franks and Mike Phillips' vivid Gold Rush saga to capture the land's folksy adventurousness.
02:30North to Alaska.
02:33As that has only evolved through the years, North to Alaska feels more like a commemoration of Horton and the
02:39theme song to the whole of The Last Frontier.
02:43I go north to Russia's own.
02:50Arizona by Rex Allen Jr.
02:53Arizona.
02:54The son of famed Arizona cowboy grew up knowing all of America as his home.
03:00But his father's home held such a special place in his heart that he wrote a tribute in the style
03:06of a proper love song.
03:07I love you, Arizona.
03:13Arizona is also the most definitive example of Rex Allen Jr.'s style of authentic, traditional country in modern music.
03:23Won't you give it some rise?
03:27While the Copper State has diversified since its founding, the frontiersman's spirit has never faded.
03:34Thus, Allen's Arizona was selected as an alternate state song just one year after its release.
03:40The sage and cactus are blooming.
03:46It may actually be more of a local hit, but it says everything about the beauty of and passion for
03:53a community.
03:54You're the magic in me.
04:02Arkansas by Chris Stapleton, Arkansas.
04:06Who says that Arkansas is boring?
04:12The state's vibe and sprawl have been well represented in distinct musical identity, but it was Kentucky country star Chris
04:20Stapleton who perfectly consolidated it.
04:27The energetic Southern Rock Jam Arkansas recounts how he and bassist JT Cure had to pick up a car in
04:33Oklahoma and drive it to his home in Nashville, Tennessee.
04:37Along the way, they found a wild, welcoming culture from the Ozark Mountains to the massive Little Rock.
04:46The locals quickly embraced Arkansas as an anthemic and authentic representation of their defining personality.
04:54Of course, they and Stapleton would agree that there's a rich musical tradition behind this modern regional classic.
05:00Hey, if you want to get down, gotta get down to Arkansas.
05:10Hotel California by the Eagles.
05:13California.
05:14How can you narrow down a musical culture as vast and as diverse as California's?
05:20The Eagles naturally accomplished this so singularly that they named their magnum opus Hotel California.
05:27On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair.
05:32The eclectic epic of a shady desert utopia alludes to the very mythology of this fabled world.
05:39Of course, the folksy, psychedelic homage to 1960s counterculture leaves a lot up for interpretation.
05:46There she stood in the doorway, I heard the mission bell.
05:51It certainly paints a colorful portrait of the romance and excesses of modern America.
05:56As do an eerie groove, a cool chorus, and one of the all-time great guitar duos.
06:02Welcome to the Hotel California.
06:07Such a lovely place.
06:09Hotel California is altogether a rock masterpiece that encompasses the enigmatic essence of the Golden States.
06:16If it really is this enchanting, why would you ever leave?
06:29Rocky Mountain High by John Denver, Colorado.
06:33John Deutchendorf's stage name was just the start of the folk singer linking his career to his adopted home state.
06:40He was born in the summer of his 27th year.
06:46That came to a peak with Rocky Mountain High, an account of how he moved to and fell in love
06:52with Colorado.
06:53When he first came to the mountains, his life was far away.
06:58It also reflects on how the region's splendor has been violated by industrialization.
07:04The deceptively profound ballad was so popular that John Denver was named the state's poet laureate two years after its
07:11release.
07:11Now his life is full of wonder, but his heart still does some fear.
07:17And in 2007, it was named alongside Where the Columbines Grow as Colorado's official state anthem of all the tributes
07:26Denver wrote for the centennial states.
07:29Rocky Mountain High is the purest love letter a place could hope for.
07:33Rocky Mountain High.
07:42Connecticut by Bing Crosby and Judy Garland.
07:46Connecticut.
07:48The fantasy of one of America's most romantic states was perfected by two of the country's brightest golden era stars.
07:55I know a spot, peaceful and fair.
08:00Songwriter Hugh Martin and Ralph Blaine, who worked on Meet Me in St. Louis, reunited with Judy Garland to write
08:07Connecticut as a duet with Bing Crosby.
08:11Miss every lake, miss every hill.
08:15The upbeat ballad alleges that there may be no more pleasant place to be than the Nutmeg State.
08:21And with how it presents the community, education and nature, it's hard to argue.
08:26Circle the globe.
08:27Circle the globe.
08:29Time and time.
08:30Seen all it.
08:31The land of steady habits still represents an old-fashioned idyllic myth, making this 1940s hidden gem feel even more
08:39evergreen.
08:40If nothing else, Crosby and Garland have the charm to sell Connecticut as the place for anyone.
08:46Connecticut always will be my home.
08:55Delaware Slide by George Thorogood and the Destroyers.
09:00Delaware.
09:01The modest reputation of the first state has always been challenged by their biggest rock star.
09:07Clearly, not enough people are familiar with George Thorogood and the Destroyers' Delaware Slide.
09:13Well, I wrote a streak of lightning on the night you said goodbye.
09:19The raspy bluesman tells the usual story of hitting the iconic Highway 95 in the wake of heartbreak.
09:25Mostly, though, the eight-minute opus is an endlessly catchy jam led by a slide guitar.
09:30Well, I'm gonna hit that highway.
09:33They call Highway 95.
09:36It's massive yet minimalistic.
09:38A mix of traditional and modern that's very urban blues.
09:42Never mind, very Delaware.
09:44Thorogood has obviously had bigger hits since the closing track on his debut album helped make him a local legend.
09:51Well, I grew up with a rock and roll, but these blues wouldn't leave me alone.
09:56Still, Delaware Slide is the kind of all-American epic that screams liberty and independence.
10:03Well, I've got to leave you, baby.
10:06It's our first part.
10:14Seminole Wind by John Anderson, Florida.
10:18About the only thing that unifies the many distinct identities of Florida is the sunshine.
10:23But true Floridians can hear a little bit of everything in Apopka local John Anderson's Seminole Wind.
10:29Ever since the days of old, men would search for wealth untold.
10:37The uptempo country ballad recognizes the beauty of the Everglades, references indigenous history, and laments the destructive force of developments.
10:46Progress came and took its toll, and in the name of flood control.
10:53It's not exactly the sunniest anthem for a popular tourist destination.
10:57Nonetheless, it was a commercial and critical hit that secured Anderson's 90s comeback.
11:02Despite the label's concern that it would be too regionally esoteric.
11:12With its folky romance and complicated themes particularly resonating with locals, Seminole Wind arguably says more about Florida than any
11:22travel guide.
11:23Go across the home of the Seminole, the alligators in the garden.
11:35Georgia On My Mind by Ray Charles.
11:38Georgia.
11:40Composer Hoagie Carmichael collaborated with Stuart Gurrell to write Georgia On My Mind as a tribute to his sister in
11:461930.
11:47Georgia.
11:51Georgia.
11:53The pop piece was deceptively marketed as Southern nostalgia for 30 years before Ray Charles gave it new life.
12:01The Albany native mixed soul and country to aggrandize the loving ballad into a passion for his home.
12:08This unique interpretation distinguished Georgia On My Mind as a true American classic, as well as the preferred style for
12:15countless covers.
12:16Georgia.
12:20Georgia.
12:22It was also adopted as Georgia's official state song in 1979.
12:26While Hoagie Carmichael definitely deserves some recognition, only one thing comes to mind when Brother Ray takes us away.
12:35Oh, keep going, I'm high.
12:47Blue Hawaii by Elvis Presley.
12:50Hawaii.
12:52Ralph Ranger and Leo Robin wrote Blue Hawaii for the 1937 film Waikiki Wedding.
12:58It became a pop standard until, two years after Hawaii attained statehood, another movie made it synonymous with Elvis Presley.
13:09His more emotive interpretation not only elevated the longing in a love song composed for Bing Crosby, it more succinctly
13:17mingled Polynesian arrangements with orchestral pop, helping to solidify Hawaii's folk music as part of the American mainstream.
13:24Come with me.
13:27The film Blue Hawaii may have created a romantic image of the new state by exoticizing its native culture.
13:34In Blue Hawaii.
13:39But Presley's even more popular soundtrack exemplified a rich identity that continues to resonate in local and global pop culture.
13:47With you.
13:58Private Idaho by the B-52s.
14:01Idaho.
14:03Georgia New Wave pioneers, the B-52s, actually didn't play Idaho until three decades after the release of Private Idaho.
14:11You're living in your own private Idaho.
14:13Living in your own private Idaho.
14:16The state was named alongside a pool to represent a place of isolation and mystery.
14:21Fred Schneider claimed to also be alluding to the paranoia of a private eye.
14:26Pardon the pun.
14:27It turns out the eerily danceable jam isn't far off from the eccentric essence of its namesake.
14:33Watch out for size and size.
14:35Hit it that way.
14:36So let the glory in your eyes.
14:39Idahoans unexpectedly embraced it as an anthem for their values of nature and individualism.
14:45The heart may be green, but you better not be safe.
14:48Walking through and get that nature down.
14:50It's Maverick brand was bolstered in 1992 when filmmaker Gus Van Zandt named his cold breakout, My Own Private Idaho.
14:59Whether the B-52s meant to nail the spirit of the gem states, they arrived in 2011 as local legends.
15:11Chicago by Sufjan Stevens Illinois
15:15The culture of Illinois is so diverse that Sufjan Stevens of Michigan had to explore it with a concept album.
15:22I fell in love again.
15:26All things go.
15:28All things go.
15:30Unsurprisingly, the track named for the state's biggest city was the biggest hit.
15:34But Chicago goes beyond representing metropolitan ideals that can be heard in the indie folk piece's towering orchestration.
15:42I made a lot of mistakes in my mind.
15:47In my mind.
15:49It encompasses the adventurous spirit of an entire state that Stevens fell in love with growing up.
15:55Only a local could readily pick up on the references to history, local legends, and the poet Carl Sandberg.
16:01If I was crying in the van with my friend.
16:09This sophisticated anthem remains Stevens' most popular song and a particularly rich tribute to Prairie State's cultural epicenter.
16:17Of course, the whole album, Illinois, is an ethnographic triumph.
16:22I made a lot of mistakes.
16:25I made a lot of mistakes.
16:34Small Town by John Cougar Mellencamp, Indiana.
16:38Measuring just over 10 square miles, Seymour, Indiana is definitely no metropolis.
16:44But John Mellencamp's Heartland Rock never sounded bigger than it does on Small Town.
16:49Well, I was born in a small town.
16:53And a little small town.
16:55This particularly personal anthem commemorates his childhood and the spirit of community under the pressures of the modern world.
17:02Mellencamp wanted to subvert the old musical underdog mentality of wanting to make it in the big city.
17:15Even without being released as a single, Small Town was so revered for its hook and authentic sentiments that it
17:21settled the singer's image as a middle American idol.
17:24Still haven't seen enough to say look who's in the big town.
17:28My bed is in a small town.
17:31The song has since been embraced by the greater heartland, as well as a few political campaigns.
17:37It's just particularly big in the humble communities of Indiana.
17:42Gonna die in a small town.
17:44Oh, that probably will they bury me.
17:53Iowa Stubborn by Meredith Wilson, Iowa.
17:57As huge as the Music Man was on Broadway, it's even bigger in the small state of Iowa.
18:03Oh, there's nothing that way. I love the Iowa way.
18:07Mason City's own Meredith Wilson captures the charm of his home in every musical number, especially Iowa Stubborn.
18:15This title proves ironic as the residents of River City descend on traveling salesman Charlie Cowell with word of their
18:22mild manners.
18:28While it wouldn't be nice for outsiders to test that patience, the lively number represents the unique humility that Iowans
18:35take pride in.
18:36The Music Man and its film adaptation broadly popularize the mythical Midwestern ideal as distilled in one region.
18:43But we'll give you our shirt, and I'm back to go with it.
18:50Hawkeyes just particularly hold on to the term of endearment that is Iowa Stubborn.
18:56Hawkeyes, Iowa Stubborn!
19:09Wichita Lineman by Glen Campbell, Kansas.
19:13The spirit of Kansas burdened Oklahoma songwriter Jimmy Webb and Arkansas country star Glen Campbell in a studio in Hollywood.
19:21I am a lineman for the county.
19:26This couldn't have been done without the likes of Wichita Lineman, whose story is told with a frontiersman conviction and
19:34an emphasis on the beautifully harsh elements.
19:36It's all enhanced by the emotive hooks of the legendary session band, The Wrecking Crew.
19:42I hear you singing in the wire.
19:47But the lyrics' mix of Western grit and modern ideas really spoke to the vague identity of Kansas.
19:54Webb's ballad was not only turned into one of Campbell's most successful songs, but is widely considered a modern American
20:01masterpiece.
20:01And the Wichita Lineman.
20:06And if its complex identity communicates with anyone, it's the people of Kansas.
20:12It's still on the line.
20:22Blue Moon of Kentucky by Bill Monroe.
20:26Kentucky.
20:26The Bluegrass State is a well-earned nickname for the birthplace of a music genre.
20:32It was precisely developed by Bill Monroe with the romantic folk music of British immigrants and the budding Appalachian Americana.
20:41It was on a moonlight night, the stars were shining bright.
20:48With a sound and storytelling that pretty, Blue Moon of Kentucky even makes Heartbreak sound romantic.
20:53Monroe's masterpiece so vividly conveys the land's natural beauty and humble soul that it became one of the defining American
21:01standards of the 20th century.
21:03Blue Moon of Kentucky, keep on shining.
21:07More honorific than the countless covers was it being named the official Bluegrass Song of Kentucky in 1988, while Blue
21:16Moon of Kentucky is the obvious choice.
21:19Take that to mean that there are many songs of many genres to tell this state's story.
21:37Jambalaya on the Bayou by Hank Williams, Louisiana.
21:41The Alabama country icon, Hank Williams, had Louisiana to thank for his broadcast breakout and his wife, Billie Jean Horton.
21:54Then there was the kinship with Cajun culture that produced a bona fide anthem.
21:58Sure, Jambalaya on the Bayou is on the stereotypical side with its plays on Creole mannerisms and cuisine.
22:06Above all, it's a celebration of a unique subculture that speaks to all of Louisiana with its zydeco-infused honky
22:18-tonk.
22:18The very fun Jambalaya is believed to be the most covered song in Williams' hugely influential catalogue.
22:26Jambalaya, a crawfish pine, a feely gumbo.
22:30It's particularly hot in Cajun country, where it can always be trusted to boil a melting pot culture down the
22:36good times.
22:37Son of a gun, we'll have big fun on the Bayou.
22:47Ballad of the 20th Maine by the ghost of Paul Revere, Maine.
22:53Carrying on the spirit of New England's true favorite patriot, the ghost of Paul Revere brought a modern twist to
22:58American folk.
22:59My name is Andrew Tozier, I'm a child of Litchfield, Maine.
23:06Ballad of the 20th Maine is particularly personal to the Portlanders in its account of a regiment that was key
23:13to the Union's victory in the Battle of Gettysburg.
23:16Well, our western flank, it was missing, past the Confederates they pushed on.
23:23The battle hymn commemorates these men's sacrifice with underscores of Irish folk, making it a bit obscure for mainstream listeners.
23:30That is, until it was designated the official Ballad of Maine in 2019 for the state's bicentennial.
23:37And if we should die today, then dream a dream of heaven.
23:43Ballad of the 20th Maine has since gained a cult following on a claim alone, though it's always resonated with
23:50the cultural and historical heritage of Mainers.
23:53Stand fast, ye are the boys of Maine.
24:03Baltimore by Nina Simone, Maryland.
24:07Randy Newman's 1977 ode to Maryland's capital was hardly flattering.
24:12One year later, the High Priestess of Soul covered Baltimore with more knowledge of and love for the city.
24:18Beat up little cigar on a marble stand.
24:25Producer Creed Taylor incorporated a jazzy reggae arrangement into her tender readings of humanity behind the urban decay.
24:33Nina Simone herself was openly upset about the uncharacteristic style of the song and the album of the same name.
24:39Hard times in the city, in a hard town by the same.
24:47But fans embrace Baltimore as a hidden gem that movingly taps into the majesty and hardship of Charm City.
24:54More broadly, it represents Maryland's resilience and diversity as a national anchor.
25:04Melancholy though it may be, Simone's Baltimore bears a complexity well-suited to little America.
25:11And it's hard just to live.
25:19Massachusetts by Arlo Guthrie.
25:22Massachusetts.
25:23What Woody Guthrie was to Oklahoma, his son Arlo was to pretty much the whole East Coast.
25:29Like a dream in the night, as the snow settles white.
25:36But the New York native fell so deeply in love with Massachusetts that after moving there for school, he aimed
25:42to write the definitive tributes.
25:50The orchestral folk ballad Massachusetts describes being enraptured by the seemingly ageless landscapes of the so-called spirit of America.
26:00Just five years after this gem spoke to her citizens, Massachusetts was designated the official state folk song of its
26:07namesake.
26:07You can tell me about the times he spent in the Rockies and on the plains.
26:15This also formalized Arlo Guthrie as an icon of his adopted home.
26:19That is, if his passionate ode to the unmistakable aesthetic and character didn't immediately make that official.
26:25But that's just not the same.
26:28It's Massachusetts.
26:36Dancing in the Streets by Martha and the Vandellas.
26:40Michigan.
26:41You won't find many Michiganders who disagree with Detroit being their state's cultural epicenter.
26:47Falling out around the world, are you ready for a brand new beat?
26:54And you won't find many Detroiters who don't see Dancing in the Street as the quintessential Motown classic.
27:01Marvin Gaye originally co-wrote and performed the song with a romantic tone,
27:05before Martha Reeves of the Vandellas took over with a lively invitation for everyone to party.
27:15The seminal R&B hit has indeed been celebrated and covered the world over.
27:20It was also recognized as an uplifting civil rights anthem.
27:30But on top of drawing on Motor City's vibrant vibe,
27:33Dancing in the Street boasts a folksy and geographically diverse energy that feels holy Michigan.
27:48Purple Rain by Prince and the Revolution.
27:53Minnesota.
27:54Pioneering the Minneapolis sound, effectively secured Prince as the king of Minnesota music.
28:03The soundtrack of the otherwise polarizing film Purple Rain stands out in terms of representing his hometown and its genre
28:11-bending vibe.
28:12But it's the titular soul rock power ballad that truly captures the majestic scale of a culture in a heartbreaking
28:18love story.
28:19I wanna be some kind of friend.
28:23Yeah.
28:23Never mind the sweeping guitar solo.
28:26Clocking in at almost nine minutes, Purple Rain was an unlikely hit that many consider to be Prince's masterpiece.
28:34Purple Rain.
28:36Purple Rain.
28:38Minnesota certainly embraced it so firmly as an anthem that it deepened the state's association with the color purple.
28:44Still, it's just the most compelling example of what makes Prince their cultural North Star.
29:03Crossroad Blues by Robert Johnson.
29:06Mississippi.
29:07One name stands out for blues enthusiasts as the model of the genre's storytelling and guitar virtuosity.
29:15I went to the crossroads.
29:18Well down on my knees.
29:21Robert Johnson would in turn associate that origin myth with Mississippi folklore.
29:26Crossroads Blues merely tells the story of a man praying for spiritual and literal guidance at a road intersection.
29:33Stand as a crossroads.
29:37I trust a flag around.
29:39As such places were thought to be mystical, the idea of making a deal with the devil for musical powers
29:45is synonymous with both Johnson and blues lore.
29:48The song itself is considered the defining work in Delta Blues, rooted in the rich character of Mississippi.
30:00All roads lead to the melting pot of Johnson's birthplace, or as they like to call it, the birthplace of
30:08America's music.
30:09Now that I'm standing at the crossroad, baby, I believe I'm sinking down.
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30:37Johnny B. Good by Chuck Berry, Missouri.
30:40A surface look at the lyrics would link Johnny B. Good to Louisiana.
30:45Deep down in Louisiana, close to New Orleans, way back up in the woods among the evergreens.
30:50But Chuck Berry's chart-topping, genre-defining classic goes deeper than this stereotypically bluesy setting.
30:58It's really based on his own youth as a musical prodigy in St. Louis, where he grew up on Good
31:04Avenue.
31:05More importantly, the song enriches the blues with an electric jam and R&B.
31:10He used to carry his guitar in a gunny sack, go sit beneath a tree by the railroad track.
31:17This mixture was the foundation for rock and roll, though the ingredients were refined in urban Missouri.
31:23Johnny B. Good is thus embraced as the epitome of the innovative cultural cross-section that Berry's home state represents.
31:30Go, go! Go, Johnny, go! Go!
31:33The nod to Louisiana just confirms these American classics as a gift to the world.
31:39And thanks to NASA's Voyager probes, worlds beyond.
31:42Johnny B. Good!
31:50What are your favorite songs for your favorite American states?
31:54Help us build a cross-country road trip playlist right now in the comments.
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