Comments: 12

• Berryessa Boy from San FranciscoMs. Warwicke should thank her lucky psychic that Bacharach and David crafted this song for her. It was her biggest international hit (Top Ten in many countries) and won her a Grammy. It’s a buoyant song with an underlying sadness about unrealized dreams in Los Angeles. I’m a San José boy who was fourteen years old in 1968 when the song hit the Billboard Top Ten. We were so thrilled that our modest town became internationally known (the population is now over one million and it is the center of Silicon Valley and the technology industry). Yes, San José had growing pains but it’s a great city with a well educated population and a thriving cosmopolitan culture. Dionne, by the way, went bankrupt (her psychic should have foreseen that) and she is happy to be an ambassador to my hometown.
• Christopher from Parsippany, NjIt’s funny that the song lyrics say “I was born and raised in San Jose”. Dionne Warwick was born and raised in East Orange, NJ.
• Tony Arioli from Guerneville, CaTo Nicholaus from Tracy: The former San Jose City Manager, "Dutch" Hamann (1950-1969) vowed to make San Jose the "Los Angeles of Northern California" upon assuming the position in 1950. It had pretty much become that by 1965.
• Tony Arioli from Guerneville, CaIn 1968 when this song was released, San Jose was already a "great big freeway."
• Seventhmist from 7th HeavenI'm sure SJ is a now "great big freeway" as well, with a population topping 1,000,000.
• Jennifur Sun from RamonaI do now.
• Aiken Nutz from Tahlequah OkWay back in '68 I had graduated college & was working in Kansas City, Mo. when this record was big. I loved Warwick's voice & still do. It was all over the KC radio station back then & I recall seeing her on TV shows like Ed Sullivan & American Bandstand singing various hits. I think it was in the early 2000s when I heard her do a NPR interview for radio & she did admit to disliking this song, but recorded it anyway. I'm glad she did. Even though it peaked at #10 on the Hot 100, she got a gold record award for it anyway. I prefer her later hits, but this one is really catchy. Kind of bouncy & upbeat for that time.
• Melissa from London, United KingdomI saw Dionne interviewed on UK TV a few years ago and she professed to absolutely hating this song, and needed to be convinced in order to record it! However, the public loved it - it became one of her biggest hits!!!
• Nicholaus from Tracy, CaYes, San Jose has inherited many of L.A.'s difficulties, that this song pans. But, San Jose doesn't have the same feeling of hopelessness and negativity that, L.A. can generate and hit you in the face with! Even though San Jose has lost much of its' "agricultural" open space, just like L.A. did in the Sixties. It still is a much more humane and liveable city than poor L.A. can be. This song still has as much as truth to it, as it did 40 years ago in my opinion!
• Howard from St. Louis Park, MnThis was one of Dionne Warwick's biggest hits.
• Mike from Santa Barbara, CaThe line "Put a hundred down and buy a car," shows how old this song is. If the song were to be covered in current times, that line would have to be changed.
• Bob from San Jose, CaI read in an interview that it was actually Burt Bacharach that was station at Fort Ord, which was an Army Base, now closed, stationed south of Monterey. They would take their leave and head north towards S.F. They would eventually come to party in San Jose (now the Capital of Silicon Valley)which is 50 miles south of S.F. This was around '56,'57. The Irony is now San Jose is alot like L.A. traffic and freeways, but it's still beautiful!........Beto.

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