Peak
27
Weeks
11
Score
1,388
Chart Year
1972
Cashman & West were Terry Cashman and Tommy West. Cashman wrote it about his home town of New York City. In our interview with Terry Cashman, he told us: "It was actually four songs strung together as a suite. Tommy and I signed as an act, Cashman & West, with ABC Dunhill. We had written a number of songs, but I really wanted to do something that would be special for the album. And it was a very sad time for me. A lot of my friends were leaving the city and going off, getting married, and you know, things were changing. I was 30 years old, and New York where I had grown up all my life was really deteriorating. It was a very bad time financially, and it was a time of turmoil and of racial strife. It looked like the city was gonna collapse. This great place where I had grown up and enjoyed so many friendships and so many good times - the city that I love - was actually dying. I was going into our office the next day, and I said to Tommy, 'I had this thought about New York in particular, but it's really happening to all the Eastern cities. They're decaying and white people are moving out of the cities and going to the suburbs. There are only very rich people and very poor people in the cities, and homelessness.' We started talking about the whole phenomenon, and we came up with this idea to do a song about how it was, which was the first movement of the first song of the suite was called, 'Sweet City Song,' and it was very happy, it was about growing up in a city where everyone got along and it was fun to be there - rock and roll was in the air. And then tracing that through, going away to school and coming back and seeing that things had changed, and then the third movement is an up-tempo song about how things were at that particular time as opposed to ten years before. And then it goes into 'A Friend Is Dying,' which is the last movement of 'American City Suite,' which is about the city dying. And that's the way it seemed to us at the time. That it was not only New York City, but all the Eastern industrial cities were having the same problems." The four songs that make up the Suite are: "Sweet City Song," "Hello Jack," "All Around The Town," "A Friend Is Dying." Cashman and West were Jim Croce's producers they had recorded his album You Don't Mess Around With Jim, but couldn't get any record companies to sign Croce and release it. This song changed all that. Says Cashman: "When we started recording 'American City Suite,' ABC out in California became so excited about Cashman & West as an act that they listened to us about Jim Croce. They started playing 'You Don't Mess Around With Jim' and 'Operator (That's Not the Way It Feels)' for various people out there, and all of a sudden they said, 'Hey, this is really good.' (laughs) And you know, without all that happening, nobody would have ever heard of Jim Croce." This is an unusually long song, and there was some concern about getting radio stations to play it. Says Cashman: "At that time there was 'Nights in White Satin' and 'Papa Was A Rollin' Stone,' there were other records that were being played by AM radio, because they were trying to be like FM. FM had become so popular that AM was loosening the restrictions on only playing 3-minute records. But I think the full version is almost 12 minutes, and when they put out the single it was about 7 minutes."
People going, coming Traffic always humming A sweet city song Everyone your neighbor Living at a flavor With a sweet city song There was a certain way That the city sound Made you glad you belonged I remember now That the rhythm somehow Made me want to sing along Do do do do, sweet city song Do do do do, sweet city song Oh, come on along Boxes on a brick wall Boys are playing stickball The chicks are walking by Something bout their sweaters Made you play a little better Or at least you'd try Meanwhile on the corner A group is singing In three-part harmony There was a time When you couldn't find A better place to be You might also like Songman Cashman & West vampire Olivia Rodrigo I Can See You (Taylor’s Version) [From The Vault] Taylor Swift Do do do do, sweet city song Do do do do, sweet city song Do do do do, sweet city song Come on Johnny, ride the pony The Dodger's own sym-phoney An egg cream at the Corner candy store Radio and dancing slow Who could ask for more Do do do do, sweet city song Do do do do, sweet city song Do do do do, sweet city song Come on along Hello, Jack, it's good to be back I been away at school Yeah, Ed, I heard what you said You know that I'm no fool I know that it's changing I see that it's changed I know that it's changing I see that it's changed But goodbye is too hard For me to say When I still believe The good things Outweigh the bad I think of all the Good times we had Think of all the Good times we had A junkie steals, a mayor deals Who knows what's coming next Traffic jams and greedy hands Did you read it in the text Of the daily news The subway blues How does your garden grow And the strikes and the likes All lined up in a row Something is wrong here It doesn't belong here People are locking themselves Behind their own four walls It falls from the skies here But no one's surprised here And maybe that's the Saddest part of all Jesus freaks Mohammad speaks The Lord is on their team Tenements and midtown rents All rich and poor, no in-between Say a prayer and breathe the air In the cold or heat When evening falls, the city calls But the lights only shine On empty streets Something is wrong here Doesn't belong here People are locking themselves Behind their own four walls Falls from the skies here No one's surprised here Maybe that's the Saddest part of all Something is wrong here Doesn't belong here People are locking themselves Behind their own four walls Falls from the skies here No one's surprised here Maybe that's the Saddest part of all I think of her I think of life's own music At least that's the way It used to be I think of her and I See the children laughing But it's only on the streets Of my memory And I never felt so lonely And so helpless Wishing that I didn't Know the truth But they tell me That a friend is dying And there's nothing In this world I can do When she was good It was, oh, so good You were blessed If she smiled on you You could be king If she believed your story When it was over If she laughed at you Now I've never felt so lonely And so helpless I'm wishing that I Didn't know the truth They tell me That a friend is dying And there is nothing In this world that I can do The hands that used to Reach out to everybody Now they're lying by her side And her eyes are closed No one really knows If she can make it through Another night Still most of what I love Is locked inside her Everything I thought I'd ever need My heart keeps crying You've got to hold on A little bit longer But my head is sure That it's time to leave And I've never felt so lonely And so helpless I'm wishing that I Didn't know the truth And they tell me that My friend is dying And there's nothing In this world that I can do I've never felt so lonely And so helpless I'm wishing that I Didn't know the truth They tell me that A friend, a friend is dying Oh, New York City Can you say it ain't true Can you tell me now Before I'm leaving you I'd give anything I own Just to believe in you again
| Week | Chart Date | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sep 23, 1972 | 90 | 36 |
| 2 | Sep 30, 1972 | 63 | 63 |
| 3 | Oct 7, 1972 | 58 | 68 |
| 4 | Oct 14, 1972 | 44 | 82 |
| 5 | Oct 21, 1972 | 39 | 87 |
| 6 | Oct 28, 1972 | 34 | 92 |
| 7 | Nov 4, 1972 | 30 | 96 |
| 8 | Nov 11, 1972 | 28 | 98 |
| 9 | Nov 18, 1972 | 27 | 99 |
| 10 | Nov 25, 1972 | 39 | 87 |
| 11 | Dec 2, 1972 | 40 | 86 |