Ghost Town | 3 or 4 BOPS

In the 20^th edition of 3 or 4 BOPS (2022), we select awesome songs that are associated with a GHOST TOWN in some form or fashion.

Ah, sometimes it’s better to keep things lite on the fat and calories 💪! That’s the goal of the miniature playlists gracing The Musical Hype.  On 3 or 4 BOPS, we select a topic or theme, choose three or four relevant songs, and provide a lit 🔥, electrifying blurb.  3 or 4 BOPS shouldn’t take too much time to consume – typically 5 minutes or less! On the x edition of 3 or 4 BOPS (2022), we select awesome songs that are associated with a GHOST TOWN in some form or fashion.  Without further ado, let the BOPS begin!

1. Benson Boone, “Ghost Town”

💿 Walk Me Home… • 🏷 Night Street / Warner • 📅 2022

“It’s dark, it’s cold / If my hand is not the one you’re meant to hold.” Whoa! 🤩🎵 “Ghost Town” begins 🎙 Benson Boone’s artistic journey on 💿 Walk Me Home…. A gorgeous, soaring ballad, “Ghost Town” plays directly to his strengths.  How so? Well, the young man has a robust voice with a wide range, which is successfully captured in this opener.

Where does this ghost town come into play? Oh, matters of the heart, of course, as the aforementioned lyrics suggest.  The chorus sums up Boone’s heart situation perfectly:

“Maybe you’d be happier with someone else

Maybe loving me’s the reason you can’t love yourself

Before I turn your heart into a ghost town

Show me everything we built so I can tear it all down

Down, down, down, down.”

2. Adam Lambert, “Ghost Town”

💿 The Original High • 🏷 Warner • 🗓 2015

🎙 Adam Lambert is a beast when it comes to singing – an understatement.  Amazingly, Lambert failed to win the eighth season of American Idol, coming in as the runner-up to Kris Allen.  Nonetheless, Lambert has done well for himself with some pop success. One of the more notable hits of Lambert’s career hails from his well-rounded third album, 💿 The Original High, 🎵 “Ghost Town.” 

“Died last night in my dreams / Walking the streets / Of some old ghost town / In God and James Dean / But Hollywood sold out…” Initially, “Ghost Town” commences as a folk-pop cut of sorts, with guitar accompaniment.  There’s a ‘cool’ about this number that bodes well in the pop Lambert’s favor. He shows incredible poise vocally, making you lean on his every lyric and note.  By the end of the first verse, “Ghost Town” transforms into a more danceable, modern pop record. The second verse successfully blends a dance beat with the folk-pop sensibilities, before Lambert ascends into his upper register on the simple, yet effective and memorable chorus.

“And now I know my heart is a ghost town

My heart is a ghost town.”

Aside from the chorus, the most memorable moment of “Ghost Town” is its most explicit – the bridge.  Lambert asserts, “I don’t give a fuck if I go / Down, down, down / I got a voice in my head that keeps singing.” Woo!

Appears in 🔻:

• Thrilling Songs All About the Town (Part I)

3. The Rolling Stones, “Living in a Ghost Town”

🎵 “Living in a Ghost Town” • 🏷 Promotone B.V. • 🗓 2020

“Once this place was hummin’ / And the air was full of drummin’ / The sound of cymbals crashin’ / Glasses were all smashin’.” The key takeaway from the chorus of 🎵 “Living in a Ghost Town”: everything is dead.  Honestly, this ghost town that 🎙 The Rolling Stones describe perfectly captures the way life feels during the coronavirus pandemic. 🎙 Mick Jagger makes it clear that “Living in a Ghost Town” wasn’t inspired by the pandemic but feels appropriate for times such as those. Just as he told Apple music, the lyrics perfectly capture “a place which was full of life but is now bereft of life.”

“Life was so beautiful / Then we all got liked down,” Jagger sings in the first verse, continuing, “Feel like a ghost / Living in a ghost town.” The second verse is also very representative of the times: “So much time to lose / Just starin’ at my phone / … Please let this be over, not stuck in a world without end, my friend.” Adding to the excellence are vocals infused with ample personality, and an instrumental comprised of ripe guitars, a robust bass line, groovy drums, and harmonica. “Living in a Ghost Town” is just what the doctor ordered!

Appears in 🔻:

• Songs That Capture & Embody the Pandemic, Vol. 2
• Awesome Songs: April 2020
• 51 Best Songs of 2020 (So Far): Year in Review
• 100 BEST SONGS OF 2020: 100 – 76
• 100 BEST SONGS OF 2020

Ghost Town: 3 or 4 BOPS No. 20 (2022) [📷: Brent Faulkner, KoolShooters, The Musical Hype, Night Street, Promotone B.V., Warner, Wilson Blanco from Pixabay]