Photo from the Cohort by tbm3fan.
I occasionally think of music and cars, as in: What type of music would work with this car? And if one must think about it, many factors come into play to figure out a car’s proper soundtrack. After all, cars are a product of their time and each carries a certain essence. Plus, location plays a factor too.
The last is not an element that often comes into mind, but a defining one. In the tropics, where I currently live, it takes some getting used to listening to gloomy Pink Floyd records while driving. All that sun and brightness just work against lyrics like: “I have grown older, and you have grown colder, and nothing is very much fun anymore.”
We know that today’s ’63 Monterey came out of the assembly lines just as Rock’n Roll was becoming a worldwide phenomenon. But I think such an association would be wrong for an early ’60s Mercury as these cars were the furthest thing from a Rock’n Roll type of transport. The decade is now forever associated with restless youths, fun times and Rock bands. But the ones purchasing large sedans back then were parents, and that was a Mantovani crowd.
So, while I don’t have this trouble with other cars, I struggle to think what mental soundtrack to play with a ’63 Monterey. My parents listened to a good deal of Herb Alpert in the ’60s, but even Herb was too cool for these Mercurys. The one tune that keeps popping into my head right now is Moonriver, in the voice of Andy Williams. So that might do for now.
The idea needs some work though, since Audrey’s character wouldn’t look at me twice if I arrived to pick her up in a Monterey. On the other hand, I could see myself driving to the cinema in a Mercury on my way to watch Breakfast at Tiffany’s. A long way from seducing Audrey, but is not like that would ever be close to happening.
Talking about finding the right soundtrack, it’s well known that by the early ’60s, Mercury’s erratic Ford manager was trying to figure out what tunes to play with the meant-as-upscale division. The brand’s cars had gone from the early Zephyr’s cool Swing lines to a brassy and unsuccessful BeBop late ’50s era. Troubled, the early ’60s Mercury became just one more crooner, lost against the Mathis and Sinatras of the period. However, in the case of the Monterey, the model at least got some congas a Breezeway roof in order to stand out. A nice feature that shot up sales (All told at CC before).
Of course, this Monterey has seen some rough times, and it is hard to imagine listening to anything while driving it. I mean, does it even have a working radio? If at the wheel of this one, I would probably end up humming Moonriver rather than listening to it. Which is just as fine.
You probably have a different idea of what tune to play with this old Monterey, and honestly, any suggestion is welcome. As I said, location and era play a factor in such decisions, and your suggestions may vary wildly. My wife loves listening to Salsa records in my ’96 Golf and her music is now part of the car’s expanding soundtrack. Not the kind of music one would associate with the model, but our Golfs are of Mexican origin and my tropical surroundings work better with her tunes too. So, how does one say Fahrvergnügen in Spanish?
Related CC reading:
Curbside Classic: 1963 Mercury Monterey Breezeway – The Cure for the Heatwave
CC Outtake: 1963 Mercury Monterey – Red Is The Color Of Love’s Unheeded Call
Cleaned up, “Blame it on the Bossa Nova”. In it’s current state, however, something by the Fugs. Maybe “Slum Goddess.”
Roger Waters was in a really dark place by the late ’70s and early ’80s. Pink Floyd’s The Wall and The Final Cut are two of the most depressing albums ever made.
Which is why I’m a fan of early Floyd; it ended for me with Dark Side of the Moon.
This is the real Floyd for me (1966):
I get a kick out of these videos from this period in Britain. All the musicians are products of WWII Britain as per their birth. A very creative period that I don’t think has been seen again. Goes along with my reading of a D-Day history, Sand and Steel.
I have never seen this video but loved it. A little tip of LSD and you are good to go. Did I say that?
I am thinking something by Henry Mancini would fit this car (and the original owner) – The Peter Gunn theme (‘ol Henry also composed “Moon River”…with Jerry Butler’s being my favorite version)
Of course, need to do some audio upgraded first. AM mono just won’t do…
+1 on the Mancini
Some of the best instro ever, especially for that Merc.
Also “Theme from Route 66” by Nelson Riddle and his Orchestra.
Try “Mercury” by Kathleen Edwards. I always think of these big Mercs when I hear that song.
The languid tone is perfect for a non-runner like this one.
Wow – good catch! I bought that album on CD when it was released and liked a lot of the songs. I’ll have to dig it out of the basement and give it a re-listen now.
Definately “Blue Velvet”
It is a Mercury, dammit!
As kids, we had a lot of fun in the back seat of one of those with that rear window. Our neighbors had a black on.
I like all the musical suggestions .
My first thought was Rockabilly followed by Country Swing then Big Band but whatever .
Just tune it up and service it, slap on some good radial truck tires (these things are _HEAVY_ and gas shocks then tune it well, good to go .
I was given a breezway sedan in……?1968? I wish I still had it, it wasn’t even rusty and had shiny black paint at the time .
-Nate
Maybe all of us won’t agree on Pink Floyd ( I love it all). But perhaps we’ll all agree this song is perfect for the 1963 Monterey. Bert Kaempfert
https://youtu.be/OjYHtoHvUkM?feature=shared
Early Rock ‘m’ Roll was culturally significant for a lot of reasons, but one reason that is often overlooked is that it was one of the first examples of “marketing to the youth”. In that way, it was a predecessor to cars like the Mustang.
Before 1958 or so, teens and young adults were mostly treated like smaller adults. If you were 16 in 1958, you listened to the same music your parents did on the radio, drove the same cars, and wore similar clothes to your parents.
Of course, it didn’t happen overnight, and even in the Fall of ’62, plenty of young people were still doing things the old way. But a Mercury… that was for folks with more money, and they’d be listening to the genre that is now called “Pop Standards”.
If you were 16 in 1958, you listened to the same music your parents did on the radio, drove the same cars, and wore similar clothes to your parents.
Evan, are you serious? Genuine rock and roll was huge in the ’50s, and actually started to decline in about ’58 due to Little Richard retiring, Buddy Holly dying in a plane crash, and Elvis going into the Army. Elvis had 4 hits in ’57, including the #1 song of the year.
I could go on, but this notion you have about the ’50s seems rather quaint and perhaps fabricated by certain tv shows? Or?
Ever seen “Rebel Without a Cause?”.
The sham payola hearings also hurt the first generation of rock & roll….running Alan Freed out of town and letting the much dirtier (but clean cut looking) Dick Clark off the hook.
1959-1963 wasn’t the best time for rock & roll, but there were some gems in the Pre-Beatles era (Phil Spector, early Motown, early Stax/Atlantic soul, the mini doo wop revival from 61-63)…but for those few years the adults got Percy Faith & His Orchestra back on WABC, WINS, and WMCA (yeah-yeah!)
Almost the same doldrums that happened in 1980-82 that sent many top 40 stations to get out of the format…just when in 83 it exploded again.
Maybe watching too much early seasons of Perry Mason?
That car has been there for years and years. This long building houses auto related businesses like smog, tires, repair, and so forth. You drive in one entrance and then need to circle building to leave.I had a tire repaired there 6 years ago and needed another one done on Saturday. In the back there are always smashed up cars and trucks but there is one constant. Always an interesting diversion as on the other side I passed by a spectacular mid-80s Chrysler New Yorker but to close to shoot. Didn’t want to stop and get out only to have one of those who work there yell at me in a combination Brooklyn-Russian accent “what’s youse up to?”
My great uncles Alvie and Ted had one of these. After Alvie passed and Ted needed assistance, he moved in with my aunt Louise and my Grandmother. My aunt could not drive but the Mercury ended up in her driveway. It only got used when some relative with a driver’s license made doctors’ visits. As a kid, I really thought it was luxurious in it’s dark blue color!
Some of you may recall my recent (and first) COAL submission on my ’72 Mustang Sprint Fastback that mentions driving a similar ’63 Mercury Monterey. My story included being pulled over in that tan beast by a sheriff in 1971. Anyway, I now reflect on my 16-year-old self who thought the Monterey was so dated, an embarrassment to drive. Yet, it was only 8 years old. Today, driving an 8-year-old car seems nothing. I suppose that’s down to most year-over-year model changes that are indiscernible.
Hank landed a great job after the war and advanced quickly. Dorothy still wears gloves when she gets dolled up but their tastes evolved with the times. City lights slide across the slab sides as the Mercury sidles up to The Petroleum Club with a genteel burble and Stan Kenton: Turtle Talk from Adventures in Jazz.
I’m feeling a Louis Prima vibe on this one.
The song that came to mind for me was the Moody Blues’ “Nights in White Satin”. A musical style the oldies could accept, restrained guitar work, and a singer who actually could sing. Appealed to us younger folk too; we knew what else they could do.
The Mercury? I’ve never been a fan of these alt-Ford years, and that roofline just looks odd. While I could understand the thinking behind it, and the benefits, it’s not for me. I’d be more taken by a V8 that could really rock – that’s assuming this one is so equipped.
Sorry, but the Mercury Breezeway just screams “show tunes” to me. Whether Robert Goulet singing “Camelot” or something by Robert Preston or Shirley Jones from “The Music Man”. These were uncool cars for uncool people who liked uncool music. And you know what? They had fun. Get 2 or 3 couples together for a night out and they would probably cut loose with some Billy Vaughn.
https://youtu.be/bTFqPbIC0iM?si=Syqz7ZaIErDenhVa
Something by Ted Heath.
Maybe Baubles, Bangles and Beads?
Or anything from the album POW (although this album came out in 66).