I like to think I’m a patient guy. But really I’m not. So when I say that I’ve been patiently waiting for new music from New York’s Bird Streets, you know that ain’t true.
But yes: Two and a half years since he released the outstanding album Lagoon, Bird Streets – aka John Brodeur – is finally back with some new original music. And damn, it’s good.
“On the Promenade” is in some ways the New York City antithesis of Randy Newman’s “I Love L.A.”. And by that I mean it’s a stirring rock and roll song that is deliciously cynical in its celebration of the city it represents. Like the Newman classic, Bird Streets opens the song is quiet and restrained fashion, singing:
All the streets are clean in New York City
And the landlords are in luck
I hear they kept the toilet from CBGB
They’re gonna make a million bucks
Then the guitars kick in and, well, the hook hits hard and the lyrical picture becomes clearer. “Everyone’s your friend in New York City until you look them in the eyes,” he sings, later adding “we’re depressed and broke and having a ball.”
As for the video, it’s as great as the song. Legendary New Yorkers and movie scenes come together to tell the tale, with flashbacks to some classic New York music – and non-music – venues.
Says Brodeur about the song and video:
I don’t usually do “topical” lyrics, but after living here for the better part of 20 years, it felt like it was time to write my New York song. The first verse sat in a notebook for almost a decade before I found the right angle to see it through. You don’t hear a lot of rock songs about gentrification, and I thought the best way to tackle it was with a self-knowing wink–i.e. the “moving to L.A.” punchline near the end.
When Zach and Oscar and I recorded the track, we left the middle section open for a little while. As much as I love guitar solos, we needed something special to happen there. And then it occurred to me: What’s more New York than a sax solo? The fantastic Steven Salcedo really brought the house down with his horn parts. It’s giving Live from New York, it’s Bird Streets!
My original idea for the music video was to shoot a then-and-now look at some of the landmarks of the New York scene in the ‘70s and ‘80s. What would it look like if I were busking in front of CBGB or Max’s Kansas City, and would the current owners of those buildings even tolerate that? When I realized how expensive this approach was going to be, I came up with this other idea which, thanks to technology, was a lot more manageable: What if I just had some iconic New Yorkers sing the song for me? It turned into a love letter to New York and to the people that make it the best city on the planet. The saxophone in this song, to me, is a direct line back to the New York Dolls, so when David Johansen passed last month, the video also became a tribute to him. Surely this is going to start some conversations. See you in the comments section.
Twangville is honored to premiere the new Bird Streets video for “On the Promenade”. Was it worth the wait? Even impatient me will answer with a definitive, “hell yeah”.
About the author: Mild-mannered corporate executive by day, excitable Twangville denizen by night.