The Porchistas in their video for their “PBR Song.”
There are a lot of notable things about The Porchistas’ “PBR Song.” It’s probably the only crime song set to the melody of the folk classic, “She’ll Be Coming Round the Mountain.” It probably marks the only time that “Newark” has been rhymed with “Buick.” And it’s got a great twist in it, when the guy who robs the Pabst Blue Ribbon brewery (in Newark) ends up drinking Johnny Walker Blue.
Alan Smith, who fronts the Montclair-based band, built this dependable crowd-pleaser on a family story starring his uncle Gino. And it serves, now, as a kind of musical memorial not only to Gino, but also for the old brewery, which boasted a giant beer bottle, visible for miles around, for many years, before closing in the ’80s.
New Jersey celebrated its 350th birthday in 2014. And in the 350 Jersey Songs series, we marked the occasion by posting 350 songs — one a day, from September 2014 to September 2015 — that have something to do with the state, its musical history, or both. To see the entire list, click here.
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