Three Minute Pop Songs: Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)

Looking Glass: Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)

[purchase]

I was at an acoustic jam last night, and during our dinner break, we started throwing out the names of songs we wanted to learn. Someone suggested "Brandy", and someone else laughed derisively. I came to the aid of the first person, because I've always loved this catchy story song. At some point in the past decade of so, I discovered the Looking Glass formed in New Brunswick, N.J., further endearing the song to me.

Some say the song was inspired by a local oddity: the grave of Mary Ellis. According to local lore, she fell for a sea captain who vowed to marry her, but never returned. Her grave stands on the banks of the Raritan River, where she came to every day to wait for his return. Even though the area surrounding her grave became a flea market, then a movie theater parking lot, her grave remains.