On the “Eagles” vein, I’d prefer the State adopt “Hotel California” from the album of the same name and “Hell Freezes Over:”
On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair
Warm smell of colitas rising up through the air
Up ahead in the distance I saw a shimmering light
My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim
I had to stop for the night
There she stood in the doorway, I heard the mission bell
Then I was thinking to myself this could be Heaven or this could be Hell
Then she lit up a candle and she showed me the way
There were voices down the corridor I thought I heard them say
“Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely place
(Such a lovely place)
Such a lovely face
Plenty of room at the Hotel California
Any time of year
(Any time of year)
You can find it here”
Her mind is Tiffany twisted, she got the Mercedes Benz
She got a lot of pretty, pretty boys that she calls friends
How they dance in the courtyard, sweet summer sweat
Some dance to remember, some dance to forget
So I called up the captain, “Please bring me my wine”
He said, “We haven’t had that spirit here since 1969”
And still those voices are calling from far away
Wake you up in the middle of the night just to hear them say
“Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely place
(Such a lovely place)
Such a lovely face
They’re living it up at the Hotel California
What a nice surprise
(What a nice surprise)
Bring your alibis”
Mirrors on the ceiling, the pink champagne on ice
And she said, “We are all just prisoners here of our own device”
And in the master’s chambers they gathered for the feast
They stab it with their steely knives but they just can’t kill the beast
Last thing I remember I was running for the door
I had to find the passage back to the place I was before “Relax,” said the night man, “We are programmed to receive
You can check out any time you like but you can never leave”
The last stanza, IMO, is quite appropo for California, lol!
****
Allan, I don’t know if living in “Lahaina” would satisfy most “defecting Californians,” lol.
From the infamous “Loggins & Messina” vast portfolio (album name “Full Sail”):
I was sitting at a table in an open cafe
Waiting for a drink of rum
When I asked my waiter for the time of day
He said look out there’s a centipede coming your way
In Lahaina, the sugar kane grow
In Lahaina, the living is slow
In Lahaina, the mangos are sweet
But the centipede crawls all over your feet
I was laying by the water in the morning sun
Shaded by a coconut tree
When I turned around it was all I could see
There was a great big centipede staring at me
In Lahaina, the sugar kane grow
In Lahaina, the living is slow
In Lahaina, the mangos are sweet
But the centipede crawls all over your feet
I had only just a second to decide what to do
While looking at his poisonous fangs
When I said I thought it was a beautiful day
He said “wow Mr. Hall I think your pushing my leg”
In Lahaina, the sugar kane grow
In Lahaina, the living is slow
In Lahaina, the mangos are sweet
But the centipede crawls all over your feet
