The Lightwave Blog

Posted by Stephen Hardy

So I was killing time on the phone with Christy Batts, telecom marketing manager at the Clarksville Department of Energy, before the briefing on which today's FTTH story is based, when I said something like, "So, I suppose you get all kinds of 'last train' comments."

And she said, "Yes, we do. And that's because Clarksville is the town in the song."

For those of you totally clueless when it comes to the history of bubblegum pop (which puts you in the same company as Meghan and our managing editor, Carrie Meadows, when I brought this up in a meeting this morning), Clarksville was the inspiration for the Monkees' hit, "Last Train to Clarksville."

Clarksville is, among other things, near Ft. Campbell (Home of the Screaming Eagles). Batts says the song is meant to tell the poignant story of a GI about to be shipped to Vietnam who is trying to hook up with his girlfriend one more time before he leaves.

Alas, Batts says that the town has so far failed to erect a statue to the Prefab Four in recognition of their contribution to Clarksville's notoriety.