Palisades Park

"Palisades Park" is a song written by Chuck Barris and recorded by Freddy Cannon. Background Barris wrote a song about an amusement park and it was suggested he use the name of an amusement park as the title. One night he was in Manhattan when he looked toward the New Jersey Palisades Cliffs, on which the amusement park sat. That was when inspiration hit and the title was added. Years later the Palisades Amusement Park closed, on September 12, 1971. A tribute to New Jersey's Palisades Amusement Park, it is an up-tempo rock and roll tune led by a distinctive organ part. The track also incorporates amusement park sound effects, including the sounds of screaming riders on the roller coasters, and the quoting of a slower version of "Entrance of the Gladiators", played on an organ imitating a hurdy-gurdy or calliope. In the song, the singer takes a walk after dark and discovers Palisades Park, where he meets and falls in love with a girl. Among the list of rides and attractions listed in the song are: Shoot the Chute, Rocket Ship, Roller Coaster, Loop the Loop, Merry Go Round, Tunnel of Love, and the Ferris Wheel. Chart performance Released by Swan Records as a B-side to "June, July and August," "Palisades Park" broke in when a Flint, Michigan radio DJ played it by mistake. It peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 on 23–30 June 1962, On the Hot R&B Sides chart, the song went to #15. "Palisades Park" was the biggest hit of Cannon's career. Cover versions The song was covered as an album track by Shelley Fabares on her 1962 album The Things We Did Last Summer Jan and Dean on their album Jan & Dean's Golden Hits in 1962. It was subsequently recorded by Gary Lewis and the Playboys in 1965 on their album A Session With Gary Lewis And the Playboys The Beach Boys included on their 1976 on their album 15 Big Ones. Brian Wilson said of their rendition, "I looked at the guys, and they looked kinda sad. They didn't look happy; they looked like something was wrong. I said to myself, 'Hey maybe they're upset because we're not having any hit singles! Maybe they're mad at me!' I checked into it, and sure enough, as soon as we did 'Palisades,' everybody was happy again. Know what I mean?" New York-based punk band The Ramones released their cover of Palisades Park on their 1989 album Brain Drain.