- Many celebrities have released songs with London place names
- Taylor Swift has a song called London Boy
- What are the best songs named after places in London?
London is a city of culture, vibrance, and red telephone boxes. Celebrities from the UK, the US, and beyond have long been fascinated with the birthplace of the Queen. Pop culture has had many films and songs named after London. Notting Hill is a popular romantic comedy starring Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts that is an essential part of nineties living. Famous performers love to pay tribute to London, look at Sabrina Carpenter’s Brits performance!
The city is also home to many iconic areas that have been namedropped in song titles. Think Waterloo, London Bridge, West End Girls. London is cemented in pop culture as a city of exploration with an amazing music and nightlife scene, at least back in the day. Or in the case of Taylor Swift, the residence of some of your boyfriends.
Read More: Ariana Grande Unveils New Track Called Hampstead
Now Ariana Grande has released the track list for her upcoming deluxe album. |Fans think the new track Hampstead is referring to the north London area. With another iconic London location cemented in a song, here are the best songs named after places in The Big Smoke.
1. Waterloo Sunset – The Kinks – (1967)
Waterloo Sunset is a quintessential British song by The Kinks and encaptures the essence of London beautifully. The 1967 song describes the stunning sunset from the southern area of Waterloo
Waterloo Sunset says there is no better area of the city than to watch the sunset, and no matter how busy it gets, the sunsets are always worth it.
“Terry meets Julie, everyone Friday night,” are some of the lyrics that hint at a blossoming love story between a London couple. A track like this is so cute and feel-good and is a testament to the rock music of the time.
Surprisingly, the song almost didn’t have that name. The Kinks frontman Ray Davies wanted the song to have a Liverpool-based name but changed it because he knew London so well.
Davies told Classic Rock: “Waterloo was a pivotal place in my life. And I saw several Waterloo sunsets. I was in St Thomas’ Hospital there when I was really ill as a child, and I looked out on the Thames. Later I used to go past the station when I went to art college on the train. And I met my first girlfriend, who became my first wife, along the Embankment at Waterloo.”
How cute!
2. Taylor Swift – So Long, London – (2024)
So Long, London is a song from Taylor Swift’s 2024 album The Tortured Poet’s Department. It is a pop ballad about saying goodbye to a meaningful chapter in life. Yes, the place name is code for someone in Swift’s life who has significance to the city. Fans have speculated that the song is about two of Swift’s exes.
Lyrics to the song include, “I left all I knew, you left me at the house by the Heath.” When Swift references the ‘Heath’ people think that the lyric is about a house in Hampstead Heath or Highgate. On Lover, she previously referenced these locations in the city, leading fans to believe the song is about her breakup with her ex Joe Alywn. Alywn was raised in North London.
However, some fans believe the song references Swift’s other ex, British singer and lead singer of The 1975 Matty Healy. But that’s for the lyric decoders to decide!
Despite being sad about the breakdown of a relationship, the song is an iconic ode to one of Swift’s greatest muses: the city itself.
3. London Bridge – Fergie (2006)
A song that might not be for the faint of heart, London Bridge is a prominent anthem from every 2000s childhood.
The American-born Fergie released the song for her debut album The Duchess. London Bridge isn’t hailed for its lyricism, but it’s still one of the most daring debuts of the era. Fergie’s song is an innuendo with lyrics like, “How come every time you come around, my London, London Bridge wanna go down?”
The Big Girls Don’t Cry singer captures the urban essence of the city in this song with the choreography and the music video sees her dancing all over some guards, or Beefeaters, as they are known. Whether you like the provocative style or not, the song cleverly uses an iconic city landmark as a suggestive metaphor without being too much. Iconic, if you ask us.
4. Lily Allen – LDN (2006)
Lily Allen was born in the capital and has always been honest about her roots. Allen was born in Hammersmith in the west area of the city. The 39-year-old rose to prominence in the 2000s with her song LDN.
LDN is about the city in general, but the track makes observations about “things going on behind closed doors.” As a Londoner, Allen sees things that others may not but regardless of the bad things about the city she asks, “Why would I wanna be anywhere else?”
The pop anthem also names notable areas in the capital in the song’s bridge like Soho, Dalston, and, Old Kent Road. With a cheery trumpet in the background, LDN is a feel-good anthem describing the quirks of the city, making it a charming and fun track to listen to.
5. Pet Shop Boys – West End Girls (1986)
West End Girls is a funky anthem by the British pop duo The Pet Shop Boys. It is an eighties bop. The song subtly explores class concerning the city’s West End, which is the theater, and performance district. If you’re American, it is the British Broadway!
West End Girls also refers to the vibrant nightlife in the West End, primarily in places like Soho and Oxford Street. The accompanying music video for the song shows the glamor of the West End but references the dark sides that young women may face with references to drugs, which is numbed by the synth-pop sound.
6. Hometown Glory – Adele (2008)
Adele is known for her powerful vocals and this heartbreaking piano ballad is one of her best songs ever. Hometown Glory while not named after a specific area in London, still references Adele’s birthplace.
She was born in Tottenham in north London. Reflecting on the city, Adele sings about her appreciation for her home and how she loves to see “everybody in short skirts, shorts, and shades”.
Also in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Adele revealed the political meaning behind the song. She told the outlet: ” And I don’t think everyone knows, but I wrote it the day after I went to my first-ever protest. In London, the U.K., we were annoyed at Tony Blair because he was going to war with Iraq. It was like a million-people turnout in London, and we’re marching, and I was 16, and me and my friend Olivia went. We made our placard, and it felt so powerful.”
Words in the song do reference the government with the lyrics, “You get the people and the government. Everybody taking different sides”. Incredibly she wrote the song at age 16 and released it at 19. The meaning is so powerful and is a testament to the city of London and how powerful it can be.
