Kansas City Bomber

About Kansas City Bomber

"Kansas City Bomber" is a song by Phil Ochs, a U. S. singer-songwriter best known for the protest songs he wrote in the 1960s. In 1972, record producer Lee Housekeeper asked Ochs to write the theme song for the film Kansas City Bomber, a film about roller derby starring Raquel Welch. Although Ochs enjoyed watching the sport on television, composing the song proved difficult, as Ochs was suffering from writer's block. At last, he made a demo, on which Micky Dolenz of The Monkees sang back-up vocals. Months later, Ochs was traveling in Australia. Housekeeper told him the film's producers liked his demo, but it was not exactly what they were looking for. Ochs decided to make a new recording of the song, backed by the Australian rock band Daddy Cool. Ultimately, the film's producers chose not to use the Ochs song in the soundtrack. Nevertheless, he convinced his record company, A&M Records, to release it as a single. The record sold poorly. In the only known review of "Kansas City Bomber", Record World wrote that "progressives will find this a moody change of pace." Billboard included the single in its "Also Recommended" column. In 2001, writer Mark Brend described "Kansas City Bomber" as "unremarkable". Biographer Michael Schumacher wrote in 1996 that the song "was neither an admirable work nor an embarrassment". Many Ochs fans never heard "Kansas City Bomber" before it was included in 1988's The War Is Over: The Best of Phil Ochs. The song was also included in the 1997 collection American Troubadour. more »

Year:

1988

2:27

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She comes from Kansas City, in the middle of the land
She was the queen of the game
But love never came with a man, with a man
Now all they know is her name
She's the kansas city bomber, let her roll, let her roll
Let her fly through the fury of the race
The cry of the crowd is the keeper of her soul
You can see it by the rage upon her face

The blast of the whistle, the bomber takes the floor
She turns, she spins on the rail
But she'll be the first one to score, watch her score
And the board light up as the sails
She's the kansas city bomber, let her roll, let her roll
Let her fly through the fury of the race, of the race
The cry of the crowd is the keeper of her soul
You can tell by the rage upon her face

She's gonna leave tommorrow, she's never coming back
But tommorrow is only a day
But now she is trapped on the track, on the track
And God help the lady in her way
She's the kansas city bomber, let her roll, let her roll
Let her fly through the fury of the race, of the race
The cry of the crowd is the keeper of her soul
You can tell by the rage upon her face, on her face

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Phil Ochs

Philip David Ochs ( /ˈoʊks/; December 19, 1940 – April 9, 1976) was an American protest singer (or, as he preferred, a topical singer) and songwriter who was known for his sharp wit, sardonic humor, earnest humanism, political activism, insightful and alliterative lyrics, and distinctive voice. He wrote hundreds of songs in the 1960s and released eight albums in his lifetime. more »

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