Fasten your seat belt and prepare for a journey of ninety minutes about travels, immigration and desolation.
| Title | Artist | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Far Far Away | Slade | “Far Far Away” is a song by the British rock band Slade, released in 1974. The song was written by lead vocalist Noddy Holder and bassist Jim Lea, and produced by Chas Chandler. Holder has cited the song as his favourite Slade song, while drummer Don Powell has stated it to be one of his favourites. |
| So Far Away | Carole King | “So Far Away” is a song written by Carole King, which appeared on her 1971 album Tapestry. The recording features James Taylor on acoustic guitar. Carole King Klein (born to Jewish parents as Carol Joan Klein; February 9, 1942) is an American singer-songwriter and musician who has been active since 1958. |
| The Other Side of the Sun | Janis Ian | “The Other Side of the Sun” by Janis Ian was written by Albert Hammond and Janis Ian and released 1979. |
| She’s Leaving Home | The Beatles | Paul McCartney was inspired by a story on the front page of the Daily Mail, about a girl named Melanie Coe that had left at 17 her parents with her boyfriend. |
| I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For | U2 | “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” is a song by Irish rock band U2, written by Bono, composed by U2 and produced by Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno. I believe the Belgian festivals have contributed a lot to the breakthrough of U2, like the Werchter festival on July 3, 1983 when Jim Kerr of Simple Minds joins U2 on stage during 11 O’Clock Tick Tock. Happy Birthday is sung for drum technician Tom Mullally. Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart of Eurythmics come on stage during the latter portion of 40. |
| Under The Milky Way | The Church | “Under the Milky Way” is a single by Australian alternative rock band The Church, released in 1988. The song was written by bass guitarist and lead vocalist Steve Kilbey and his then-girlfriend, Swedish born, Karin Jansson of Curious (Yellow). |
| Breakout | Swing Out Sister | “Breakout” is a song by British band Swing Out Sister. It was released in September 1986 as the second single from their debut album It’s Better to Travel. Singer Corinne Drewery wrote the song while recovering from a fractured skull from an equestrian accident. |
| Living Next Door To Alice | Smokie | “Living Next Door to Alice” is a song co-written by Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman. Originally released by Australian pop band New World in 1972. In November 1976, the British band Smokie released their version of “Living Next Door to Alice”. Chapman stated that his source of inspiration for “Living Next Door to Alice” was “Sylvia’s Mother” by Dr. Hook. |
| Carrie | Cliff Richard | “Carrie” is a song performed by Cliff Richard and released in December 1979. Carrie” was written by the songwriting partnership of Terry Britten and BA Robertson. Robertson stated that the song is very mysterious and musically falls in the same groove as ‘I Heard It Through The Grapevine’. |
| When I’m Gone | Eminem | “When I’m Gone” is a song by American rapper Eminem. The song’s lyrics pertain to Eminem’s life as a celebrity musician interfering with his family. |
| Love Long Distance | Gossip | “Love Long Distance” is a song written and performed by American band Gossip and released in 2009. It quotes the refrain from the song “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” by Marvin Gaye. |
| Clouds across the Moon | The Rah Band | “Clouds Across the Moon” by The Rah Band is written by Richard Anthony Hewson and was released in 1985. The vocals were performed by Hewson’s wife Liz. |
| Immigrant Song | Led Zeppelin | “Immigrant Song” is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, written by band members Jimmy Page and Robert Plant . It is built upon a repeating riff and features lyrical references to Norse mythology, with singer Robert Plant’s howling vocals mentioning war-making and Valhalla. |
| Breakfast in America | Supertramp | “Breakfast in America” is the title track from English rock band Supertramp’s 1979 album of the same name. The song is credited to band members Rick Davies and Roger Hodgson, about a child dreaming about visiting the United States some day. |
| Sail Away | Randy Newman | “Sail Away” is a song by Randy Newman, and the title track to his 1972 album, described as “the American dream of a promised land as it might have been presented to black Africa in slave running days.” |
| Cargo | Axel Bauer | “Cargo” is a song by Axel Bauer released in 1984 Born in Paris on 7 April 1961, Axel Bauer grew up in a talented musical family, which included a classical concert pianist (his aunt) and a professional jazz musician (his father). Axel’s father honed his musical skills playing drums with Django Reinhardt and went on to work with the crème de la crème of the jazz world. |
| African Tour | Francis Cabrel | “African Tour” written and performed by Francis Cabrel, offers a frank and powerful depiction of the desperation and danger that African migrants face as they attempt to make their way into Europe for a better life. |
| Le Métèque | Georges Moustaki | “Le métèque” is a French chanson by Georges Moustaki. Métèque is a pejorative word for a shifty-looking immigrant of Mediterranean origin. “Meteque” can be translated as “foreigner” or “outsider,” and Moustaki uses this term to embody the experiences of immigrants and those who feel like misfits in society. |
| Clandestino | Manu Chao | All the feelings and emotions that a backpacker can feel are condensed in Candlestino. Manu gets into the skin of not only the globetrotter who has decided to escape the boredom of everyday life, but also the migrant forced to flee from the most vile and imaginable circumstances. |
| No Soy de Aquí, Ni Soy de Allá | Facundo Cabral | “No Soy de Aquí, Ni Soy de Allá” (translated ‘I am not from here, even not from there’) is a song written and performed by Facundo Cabral in 1971. |
| Mi Tierra | Gloria Estefan | “Mi Tierra” (translated ”My Homeland”) is a song by Cuban American singer Gloria Estefan, celebrating love and longing for your homeland. Estefan noted that the song could apply to any Hispanic immigrant, “the song wasn’t just for a Cuban”. |
| Trans Europe Express | Kraftwerk | “Trans Europa Express” was the original German studio version written by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider in 1977, translated into Trans Europe Express. The themes include celebrations of the titular European railway service and Europe as a whole, and meditations on the disparities between reality and appearance. The TEE train services operated from 1957 to 1991 in First class only between Brussels and Paris. |
| I’m A Train | Albert Hammond | “I’m a Train” is a song written by Albert Hammond and Mike Hazlewood and performed by Hammond. “I’m a Train” was featured on Albert Hammond’s 1974 self-titled album. It was first recorded in French, in 1967, by Les Troubadours as “La chaîne”. The first English version was recorded in 1968 by a UK group called Colors of Love, which included singer Elaine Paige. |
| No Cars Go | Arcade Fire | “No Cars Go” is a song by Montreal-based band Arcade Fire released in 2007, written by band members and husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne. The song title is taken from the solo project of former Arcade Fire member Brendan Reed. No Cars Go by Arcade Fire is an anthemic and nostalgic song that captures the longing for a utopian place where modern constraints and limitations do not exist. This place where no cars go is not just an escape for the individual but a sanctuary for all, at the liminal space between reality and imagination. |
Sources
The information sources of the song facts include, but are not limited to, Wikipedia, songfacts.com, discogs.com, secondhandsongs.com, YouTube and artists’ related websites.
