Los Angeles

Album: Frank Black (1993)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • In our interview with Frank Black, he described this song as, "Loosely a sci-fi poem with a kind of Blade Runner outlook, i.e., futuristic Los Angeles."

    Black filled the song with disjointed images of Los Angeles, including the "pouring sun" and a popular LA pastime: counting helicopters.
  • This was the first single Black released as a solo artist; his group the Pixies broke up earlier in 1993.
  • Frank Black had a specific motivation for writing this song: An executive from his record company 4AD was flying in for a listen, and Black needed something to play him.
  • Black is from Boston, but he spent plenty of time in Los Angeles. Where would his apocalyptic visions of the city come from? Well, while the Pixies were making their Bossanova album, they were in Los Angeles on October 17, 1989 when a massive earthquake struck, sending the band scampering out of the studio.
  • Black's Pixies bandmate Joey Santiago played guitar on this track. Other musicians included Nick Vincent on drums and Eric Drew Feldman on bass.
  • Black made a video for this song that through low-budget digital magic, showed him riding a hovercraft on land. The clip got some airplay on MTV's alternative music show 120 Minutes.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Cheerleaders In Music Videos

Cheerleaders In Music VideosSong Writing

It started with a bouncy MTV classic. Nirvana and MCR made them scary, then Gwen, Avril and Madonna put on the pom poms.

Shaun Morgan of Seether

Shaun Morgan of SeetherSongwriter Interviews

Shaun breaks down the Seether songs, including the one about his brother, the one about Ozzy, and the one that may or may not be about his ex-girlfriend Amy Lee.

Real or Spinal Tap

Real or Spinal TapMusic Quiz

They sang about pink torpedoes and rocking you tonight tonight, but some real lyrics are just as ridiculous. See if you can tell which lyrics are real and which are Spinal Tap in this lyrics quiz.

Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull

Ian Anderson of Jethro TullSongwriter Interviews

The flautist frontman talks about touring with Led Zeppelin, his contribution to "Hotel California", and how he may have done the first MTV Unplugged.

Stan Ridgway

Stan RidgwaySongwriter Interviews

Go beyond the Wall of Voodoo with this cinematic songwriter.

Dar Williams

Dar WilliamsSongwriter Interviews

A popular contemporary folk singer, Williams still remembers the sticky note that changed her life in college.