The "We'll Get There Fast And Then We'll Take It Slow" Story

It was an ordinary day. Heading to the bank to make a deposit, money of course. Listening to the oldies on our 6-stack CD player in the Merc. Got two Jimmy Buffett CDs (one a Christmas CD, but just can't put it away, yet), a Beach Boys CD, an Elvis CD, a Beatles CD and a CD that features marches by all the greats like John Philip Sousa. My wife played in the band in high school and marched in some parades and still likes to listen to the marches. Our grand-daughters, when they travel in the Merc, love to listen to the marches as well. Matter of fact, we made copies of the marches for both of them, much to the chagrin of our daughter. Well, today I have the Beach Boys blasting me along the road to the bank. I haven't touched the volume control, my wife is the one who loves to drown out the outdoor noise with loud music and she normally drives the Merc to work. Anyway, "Kokomo" is playing right now."Kokomo" is a song written by John Philips, Scott McKenzie, Mike Love and Terry Melcher and recorded by the Beach Boys in spring 1988. Its lyrics describe two lovers taking a trip to a relaxing Caribbean island called Kokomo. It was released as a single in July 1988 by Elektra Records by and became a No. 1 Hit in the United States, Japan and Australia (where it topped for about two months). The single was released to coincide with the release of the Tom Cruise movie Cocktail, and its subsequent soundtrack. "Kokomo" is a fictional place, but we swear we will find it if we keep traveling around the Caribbean in our retirement. There is a Sandals resort in Jamaica named "Kokomo", but they named it that after the song came out. Same for a place off the Florida Keys. In the song there are quite a few places in the Caribbean mentioned such as Aruba, Jamaica, Bermuda, Bahamas, Key Largo, Montego, Martinique, Montserrat and Port-au-Prince. Song makes good use of the Beach boy's melodic harmony as well as the use of steel drums, slide guitar, acoustic guitar, bass, sax, and even an accordion. Probably why I like the song. Vocals on the original record (yep, you read that right) were sung by Carol Wilson, Mike Love, Bruce Johnston and Al Jardine. The record was backed by the single "Tutti Frutti" by Little Richard. Wow, what a great record. It made it to the top of the charts in July of 1988. I like it because it reminds me of the lovers, Carol and LDub, as we take our trips to relaxing Caribbean island spots. We even got to hear Mike Love and "The Beach Boys" sing the song in downtown Lancaster, PA on Saturday, August 26, 2000. Right in the middle of town they blocked off the street for the concert. Really neat and something I will never forget. The sounds of those steel drums and the harmony of the voices reverberating off the concrete walls of Lancaster Square were so neat. If you have never heard the song, which I find that hard to believe, or would like to hear it again, Check out the YouTube presentation at the end of my story. Mike Love and the current edition of the Beach Boys performs "Kokomo," but I don't see the steel drums like in the original recording. It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

Aruba, Jamaica ooo I wanna take you
To Bermuda, Bahama come on pretty mama
Key Largo, Montego baby why don't we go
Down to Kokomo
We'll get there fast
And then we'll take it slow
That's where we wanna go
Way down to Kokomo

To Martinique, that Monserrat mystique

We'll put out to sea
And we'll perfect our chemistry
By and by we'll defy a little bit of gravity

Afternoon delight
cocktails and moonlit nights
That dreamy look in your eye
Give me a tropical contact high
Way down in Kokomo

Aruba, Jamaica ooo I wanna take you
To Bermuda, Bahama come on pretty mama
Key Largo, Montego baby why don't we go
Down to Kokomo
We'll get there fast
And then we'll take it slow
That's where we wanna go
Way down to Kokomo

Port Au Prince I wanna catch a glimpse

Everybody knows
A little place like Kokomo
Now if you wanna go
And get away from it all
Go down to Kokomo

Aruba, Jamaica ooo I wanna take you
To Bermuda, Bahama come on pretty mama
Key Largo, Montego baby why don't we go
Down to Kokomo
We'll get there fast
And then we'll take it slow
That's where we wanna go
Way down to Kokomo

Aruba, Jamaica ooo I wanna take you
To Bermuda, Bahama come on pretty mama
Key Largo, Montego baby why don't we go
Down to Kokomo
We'll get there fast
And then we'll take it slow
That's where we wanna go
Way down to Kokomo

Aruba, Jamaica ooo I wanna take you
To Bermuda, Bahama come on pretty mama
Key Largo, Montego baby why don't we go
Down to Kokomo
We'll get there fast and then we'll take
it slow That's where we wanna go
Way down to Kokomo