As the hometown of blues and rock music, it’s no wonder there are so many songs which immortalise Memphis as a bedrock of creativity, in spite of the hardships that fall upon its people.
Our list of songs about Memphis covers the best of this historic city, from its bluesy beginnings to the punk rock it inspired later on, whilst giving us a fly-on-the-wall insight into the day to day lives of the people of the city.
Songs About Memphis
1. Louis Amstrong – Beale Street Blues
Louis Armstrong’s rendition of Beale Street blues is soaked in the sweet sepia ambience of old-school Memphis city. Armstrong harnesses the blues natural to his Southern roots in order to paint his gritty yet affectionate portrait of Memphis.
His track is evocative of an era that’s long since passed by, but reveals that the truthful heart of a city will always stay the same.
As a city established with such an impactful history and culture, Armstrong’s message is summed up through the words of a blind man on the corner of Beale Street, “I’d rather be here than any place I know, it’s gonna take the Sergeant to make me go.”
2. Magnolia Electric Co. – Memphis Moon
It’s shocking how overshadowed Magnolia Electric Co.’s incredible track Memphis Moon is. This piece is incredibly atmospheric and holds close to it the melancholy of the blues, which itself derives from Memphis city.
Memphis Moon is a song with the sense of nearing the end of a life or an era, whether it be the end of a relationship or an event which mimics the final closing scene of a film.
Magnolia Electric Co embed the nostalgia of a golden age beautifully, “I know the night bird called you now, everything is fine, I know it’s soon to be fading out, but oh, didn’t we shine,” alongside the sentimental pain of saying ‘goodbye’ to the better days you once knew.
3. Porch Ghouls – Bluff City Ruckus
Porch Ghouls capture young, wild nights in the streets of Memphis in their obscure punk track Bluff City Ruckus.
The band creatively blend their thrashing punk influences with elements synonymous with the south; their song carried by a harmonica riff sounding against the distortions of rock n’ roll.
Bluff City Ruckus’ catchy appeal is amplified even more by its grungy retro vibes and the feeling of personified madness.
4. Roy Acufff – Night Train To Memphis
This 1943 country track is about travelling on the night train to Memphis to meet a long-lost friend.
Travel is commonplace today; its action is as thoughtless as it is necessary, but Roy Acuff’s vintage track gives a glimpse into what it meant to travel to a new city when it was more common for everything in your life to be placed conveniently within your hometown.
This is a song for anyone excited to visit a new city far away and finally be with their loved ones again.
5. Lyle Lovett – I’ve Been To Memphis
Lyle Lovett’s song I’ve Been To Memphis details travelling across America. While his song is titled for the city of Memphis, Lovett refuses to settle for just one town when he’d rather wander the streets of all of them to catch his luck with the different breeds of beauty found between each city.
His lyrics are threaded with the bright opportunity of any American metropolis, which is summoned beautifully in lines such as, “The sun comes up in a coffee cup, waitress please, I’ve had enough,” suggesting the wild adventure he surrounds himself with is sometimes too exciting to handle.
6. The Oblivians – Memphis Creep
The Oblivians and Porch Ghoul’s Memphis inspired tracks go hand in hand. Memphis Creep by The Oblivians harbours an infectious punk attitude with an ironic, almost nonsense meaning to its lyrics.
They tell a humorous story of a ‘Memphis creep’ who everyone hates, but the only reason they don’t kick him out of their area for good is because he’s everyone’s drug dealer.
This retro track is flooded with the sarcasm and irony innate within punk music but often lost within the new generation.
7. Hoagy Carmichael – Memphis In June
Memphis In June is lush with idyllic hometown scenery and a vintage, rosy community vibe.
Hoagy’s track is highlighted with serene whistling and doused with beautifully evocative lyrics such as, “Memphis in June, sweet oleander blowing perfume in the air everywhere, up jumps the moon to make it so much grander, it’s paradise, take my advice honey, ‘cause there’s nothing like old Memphis in June.”
This song is a love-letter to the city, contrastingly devoid of telling its downfalls, instead focusing purely on what makes it the perfect place to live.
8. Pixies – Letter To Memphis
The Pixie’s punk anthem Letter To Memphis is riddled with iconic riffs. Their authentic retro vibe runs thick with a feeling of longing, suppressed by the relentless energy of trying.
Apparently, this track is about past life regression, telling a story of a couple who met in a departed life. Suddenly the girl arrives in Memphis, “And I saw her and I pleaded, why did you come so far? And she said, ‘Trying to get to you, how I tried to get to you’.”
If this really is the song’s intended meaning, it gives a curious take upon ‘songs about Memphis,’ making the city a backdrop to the story, rather than the expected letter to the city.
9. A-HA – Move To Memphis
A-Ha’s 1993 single Move To Memphis is about moving from a weary old town to the big city to kickstart a change in your life.
A-Ha stud their song with that free-driving ‘born to be wild’ spirit innate to American culture still reeling from the 80’s, “This old town brings me down, you were the one who told me you’ve gotta move to Memphis, that’s what I’ll do, gonna move to Memphis and follow you, trace that highway down to your door.”
This is a song for anyone feeling stuck in their ways, tapping into the unrestrained vivacity that’s ingrained within the city.
10. Paul Simon – Graceland
Paul Simon’s Graceland has that authentic southern country atmosphere, detailing his travels following the meandering rivers and highways that leads towards Memphis.
The end of his real-life journey is the famous Memphis landmark, Graceland – Elvis Presley’s historic Tennessee mansion.
Paul Simon reportedly made his trip to the Presley home to help clear himself of the emotional residue left after the dissolving of his one-year marriage to Carrie Fisher in 1984.