I’ve been to New York once before. Across every city in the United States, it was the only one that left a lasting impression on me. When you’re there, you feel grand, like you’re part of something just by walking down the street. And of course, it’s allure isn’t lost on everyone else; New York has long since been the focal point for many a musician. With the talent of the magical Bobby Harden, The Century Band might have come out with one of the best constructed, subtly grandiose, and wistfully nostalgic singles about a place in recent memory. Simply titled, ‘New York Song’, its filled to the brim with soul.
On the project, the Brooklyn based band says “Man, I love New York. That’s what all of us are thinking as we come out of the darkness of a year alone. Man, I love New York. I love community. I love familiar faces. I love neighborhood. I love realness. And even in the pouring rain, man I love New York. That’s what we are all thinking right now.” So yes, while there is that particular element about New York to the record, it is at its heart about community, familiarity, and living life in the moment in real places. In an increasingly virtual world, I’m sure all of us, regardless of where in the world we are, are yearning for that experience and that feeling.
The star of the show is definitely Mr Bobby Harden however. His voice, one of the most soulful and emotive that I’ve ever had the pleasure of hearing, brings this feeling to life with each lyric. It is, at heart, an NYC song for the people and the city. But, in a larger sense, it’s about that feeling of community and local geographies that anyone, especially those in a lively city, will appreciate.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erKw_ijSiCQ
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