Editor’s Note: Play It Again, Sam?

WHEN I FIRST read Sam Stall’s Ask The Hoosierist question this month, I may have let out an audible groan. Hailing from Kokomo and attending high school in the late 1980s, I found it difficult to escape hearing The Beach Boys’ tribute to a fictional tropical getaway off the Florida Keys. If the song wasn’t playing in a constant rotation on local radio, it was certainly a frequent spin on the jukebox at my after-school job. My rite-of-passage teenage food service gig was working as a waitress and carhop at Ray’s Drive-In, one of many little greasy spoons that claimed to serve the biggest breaded tenderloin in Indiana (if not the world). The jukebox in the corner of the dining room held an eclectic mix of newer releases and classic rock oldies. “Kokomo” was by far the most popular choice, especially among children, but “Wild Thing” and “Funky Cold Medina” by Tone Loc also ranked high with the clientele. I not-so-secretly loved the selection of ’60s singles like “Crystal Blue Persuasion” and the original “Crimson and Clover” by Tommy James & The Shondells and often loaded up the jukebox with my tips to offset the number of times other people punched the button next to “Kokomo.” To this day, I don’t think I can bring myself to listen to the song even once more, but the mere suggestion of it conjures vivid memories from my first job—complete with the exact scent combination of fried food, coffee, and cigarette smoke that loomed in the air and embedded itself in the fabric of everything I wore to the drive-in.   

If you love a good jukebox, our roundup of the best neighborhood bars in Indy is a great place to start searching. I can’t guarantee you’ll find songs with Indiana references, but that might work to your favor.