@Annie-Xmas (Annie-Xmas) posted a new topic, subject "Song lyrics that mention famous people in passing". It read:

   The Annoying Drummer Boy:  
    But here we are at 3 a.m.  
    With Ringo Starr of Bethlehem
    
    Frank Mills:  
    He resembles George Harrison  
    Of The Beatles
    
    American Pie:  
    When the jester sang for the king and queen  
    In a coat he borrowed from James Dean

So @FastDan1 (FastDan1) replied

    Sweet Home Alabama:  
    I hope Neil Young will remember,  
    Southern Man don't need him around anyhow.

To which @Art_Rock (Art Rock) replied

    Al Stewart, Flying sorcery:
    
    With your photographs of Kitty Hawk  
    And the biplanes on your wall  
    You were always Amy Johnson  
    From the time that you were small
    
    Al Stewart, Year of the cat:
    
    On a morning from a Bogart movie  
    In a country where they turn back time  
    You go strolling through the crowd like Peter Lorre  
    Contemplating a crime

Then @Oglomott (Oglomott) said

    Long Tall Glasses by Leo Sayer:  
    Before you can eat you gotta dance like Fred Astaire.

So @EinsteinsHund (EinsteinsHund) replied

    Simon and Garfunkel - Mrs. Robinson:
    
    _Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio  
    Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you, uh uh uh_

@Thudlow_Boink (Thudlow Boink) replied

    Are we including songs that are almost _nothing but_ mentioning famous people in passing, like The Beatles' “Dig It” and Billy Joel's “We Didn't Start The Fire”?

So @Annie-Xmas (Annie-Xmas) replied

    I was looking for mentions in passing, not lists of people.

After which, @Ike_Witt (Ike Witt) added

    Freeze Tag by Suzanne Vega:
    
    _You stand  
    With your hand  
    In your pocket  
    And lean against the wall  
    You will be Bogart  
    And I will be  
    Bacall_
    
    The Friends of Mr. Cairo:
    
    _She came, as in the book, Mickey Spillane_
    
    and
    
    _Media became television Give me Cagney anyday  
    Or Jimmy Stewart for President  
    Or Edward ‘G' and all those guys  
    Who always shoot between the eyes_

After which, @Peter_Morris (Peter Morris) added

    Killer Queen has three in the first verse.
    
    She keeps her Moet et Chandon  
    In her pretty cabinet  
    “Let them eat cake”, she says  
    Just like Marie Antoinette  
    A built-in remedy  
    For Kruschev and Kennedy  
    At anytime an invitation  
    You can't decline

To which @Royal_Nonesutch (Royal Nonesutch) replied

    The Grateful Dead's “Ramble On Rose” namechecks a bunch of people, both real and fictional.
    
    Billy Sunday, Mary Shelley, Wolfman Jack, Jack the Ripper, Frankenstein…

To which @E-DUB (E-DUB) replied

    “Hey Nineteen, that's Aretha Franklin…”

Then @markn_1 (markn+) said

    Royal_Nonesutch:
    
    > The Grateful Dead's “Ramble On Rose” namechecks a bunch of people, both real and fictional.
    > 
    > Billy Sunday, Mary Shelley, Wolfman Jack, Jack the Ripper, Frankenstein…
    
    Argh, that's the one I was going to mention.  
    Ok then, _US Blues_ :
    
    Shake the hand  
    That shook the hand  
    Of P.T. Barnum  
    And Charlie Chan.

So @Stephe96 (Stephe96) replied

    McCartney & Wings : “Rock Show”
    
    “Who's that man up upon the stage?  
    It looks a like the one used by Jimmy Page!”

@KneadToKnow (KneadToKnow) replied

    Coincidentally, I'm listening to Pink Floyd today.
    
    _Does anybody here remember Vera Lynn?_

Then @Royal_Nonesutch (Royal Nonesutch) said

    markn_1:
    
    > Argh, that's the one I was going to mention.  
    >  Ok then, _US Blues_ :
    > 
    > Shake the hand  
    >  That shook the hand  
    >  Of P.T. Barnum  
    >  And Charlie Chan.
    
    Well, if Biblical figures count, the Dead also have “Greatest Story Ever Told” which mentions Moses and “My Brother Esau” which includes Jacob.
    
    (Robert Hunter is an incredibly literate guy, but again far too many people assume that a 1960's band called the “Grateful Dead” can't have insightful, brilliantly crafted lyrics. Garcia was right, the moniker Grateful Dead was a non-starter for a lot of people)

After which, @Royal_Nonesutch (Royal Nonesutch) added

    The opening line of Van Morrison's haunting “St. Dominic's Preview”
    
    “Chamois cleaning all the windows, singing songs about Edith Piaf's soul…”

So @Heart_of_Dorkness (Heart of Dorkness) replied

    From _Tonight, Tonight_ by Hot Chelle Rae*:
    
    I woke up with a strange tattoo  
    Not sure how I got it, not a dollar in my pocket  
    And it kinda looks just like you  
    Mixed with Zach Galifianakis
    
    *Technically, I'm only familiar with the song via the Kidz Bop version

So @Happy_Lendervedder (Happy Lendervedder) replied

    Eminem's Lose Yourself:
    
    “Cause man, these goddamn food stamps don't buy diapers  
    And there's no movie, there's no Mekhi Phifer, this is my life.”

After which, @Author_Balk (Author Balk) added

    We went searching through thrift store jungles  
    Found Geronimo's rifle, Marilyn's shampoo  
    And Benny Goodman's corset and pen  
    Well, okay, I made this up
    
    Sheryl Crow - If it Makes You Happy

Then @Little_Nemo (Little Nemo) said

    “Come on Eileen” - Dexys Midnight Runners
    
    Poor old Johnnie Ray  
    Sounded sad upon the radio  
    But he moved a million hearts in mono  
    Our mothers cried, sang along, who'd blame them

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{'source': 'discourse', 'url': 'https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-that-mention-famous-people-in-passing/838065', 'title': 'Song lyrics that mention famous people in passing', 'views': 9752, 'has_accepted_answer': False, 'word_count': 9683, 'like_count': 0, 'reply_count': 150, 'participant_count': 89, 'posts': 153, 'tags': 'music', 'author': '@Annie-Xmas (Annie-Xmas)', 'participants': '@Annie-Xmas (Annie-Xmas), @FastDan1 (FastDan1), @Art_Rock (Art Rock), @Oglomott (Oglomott), @EinsteinsHund (EinsteinsHund), @Thudlow_Boink (Thudlow Boink), @Ike_Witt (Ike Witt), @Peter_Morris (Peter Morris), @Royal_Nonesutch (Royal Nonesutch), @E-DUB (E-DUB), @markn_1 (markn+), @Stephe96 (Stephe96), @KneadToKnow (KneadToKnow), @Heart_of_Dorkness (Heart of Dorkness), @Happy_Lendervedder (Happy Lendervedder), @Author_Balk (Author Balk), @Little_Nemo (Little Nemo)', 'image_url': [None], 'created_at': '2019-08-02T15:40:12.000Z', 'last_posted_at': '2020-09-28T23:41:39.765Z'}