Old 97'sare an "alt-country" band originally based in Dallas, Texas. The group formed in 1993 and took their name from a song popularized by Johnny Cash, "Wreck of the Old '97." They describe themselves as a rock band with influences as varied as The Kinks, The Beatles, Pixies, David Bowie, Johnny Cash, and Merle Haggard. The band often performs country standards made famous by the latter two musicians, and has interspersed a number of these on their half-dozen albums over the last decade. Old 97's have been heralded as a great live band, although they claim to never rehearse their act. They included five live songs as a bonus disc on Satellite Rides, and released a live double CD set recorded at historic Gruene Hall in 2005, Alive and Wired.
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In a hotel room just off times square it's like a closet
I can watch the dancing class go round.
In a hotel room that costs as much as my apartment
I can watch the working class go down.
And it's enough to make a crooked man go straight -
Broadway, broadway.
In a hotel room just off times square they made a monster
He was unaware of what went down.
Fattening him up just like a calf before a slaughter
He'd had his fill of hollow town.
And it's enough to make a stupid man think straight
Broadway, broadway
And it's enough to make a crooked man go straight
Broadway, broadway, broadway, broadway.