Title Fight: "The City"

"Ross Castle, Lower Lake - Killarney" from Souvenir of the lakes of Killarney and Glengariff by T. Nelson and Sons, 1892

I grew up in a big city (one of the top five largest in the world, I think), and, in my experience, that environment really shapes the way you think and interact with people. I have two favorite songs called "The City" by two very different artists, and they look at the City very differently.

The Dismemberment Plan, the biggest indie band to come out of D.C. in the late '90s, made a name for themselves with complex jazz-derived rock songs and Travis Morrison's unique voice and lyrics. Unfortunately, time hasn't been kind to them. In the decade since they released their best album Emergency & I, their reputation has been tarnished somewhat by a sudden break-up and Travis Morrison's attempts at getting a solo career going. I still love them, though, and a lot of today's bands on the spazzier end of the music spectrum today owe a debt to the D-Plan. Their "The City" comes from Emergency & I and has a nice arrangement of chiming guitar and busy jazzy percussion. Morrison sings to a lover who has moved away because she hates the City, and he expresses sympathy while conflating his feelings for the City with his feelings about her leaving. In this song, the City is the enemy, driving people apart with its cold lifelessness.

Thomas & Richard Frost were musicians from a different era, and they saw the City very differently. The Frost brothers were well-known session/back-up musicians in LA in the late '60s, playing in Sonny & Cher's band and in the band Powder. The brothers were writing their own material on the side, though, and in 1969 they recorded Visualize and released the single "She's Got Love", which was a minor hit. The album itself was canned at the last minute, though, because of record company problems. Finally issued by Rev-Ola a couple years ago, Visualize is a real treat and a cohesive album, and the Rev-Ola release has a couple other singles they recorded tacked on at the end. The Frost brothers love the City, and their ode to it is about finding true love in the crowded streets. Starting with a delicate harmonized guitar riff by Richard Frost and the amazing-named Mars Bonfire (who later wrote "Born to Be Wild"), the song's melody is a fragile Donovan-like folk-pop line, and the brothers harmonize nicely on the song's brief chorus. Strings and piano are added to the arrangement on the second verse and, although it's really a slight song, "The City" is quite lovely.

The contrast between the two songs is pretty impressive. The City is either bringing people together or tearing them apart. It is cold and empty or warm and full of life. Interestingly, both songs evoke the City at nighttime and reference streetlights in the first line. I admit, though, that I like what Thomas & Richard Frost see in the City. Even though the City is bringing people together, they admit that it's difficult to make a real meaningful connection, saying, "You look at me, but you don't see. Excitement grows inside your head from the City. I ponder on - the night has just begun."

Winner: THOMAS & RICHARD FROST

"The City" by the Dismemberment Plan

"The City" by Thomas & Richard Frost