Celebration, Florida

The Felice Brothers, a combo which I’m quite fond of, just released their latest album “Celebration, Florida”. I haven’t had a chance yet to listen to the album, but in the course of my research (that is, searching for “Celebration, Florida” on the Interwebs) I stumbled upon a Wikipedia entry on the actual place called Celebration, of course located in Florida. And it’s kind of creepy:

In the early 1990s, the Disney Development Company (DDC) established the Celebration Company to spearhead its development within approximately 4,900 acres (20 km2) of land in the southern portion of the Reedy Creek Improvement District. Total investment for the project is estimated at US$2.5 billion.

That’s right. Celebration, Florida was developed by the Disney corporation. And I’m obviously not the only person who thinks that’s a tad Stepfordish. British combo Chumbawamba seemed to think so too when they released a song called “Celebration, Florida”. It includes fun lyrics like these:

They’re sharing homemade corn chips
Even the dogs get facelifts
Down in Celebration, Florida

There’s a bake sell at the schoolhouse
And they’re selling innocence
They’re keeping out the deviants
To protect the residents
Of Celebration, Celebration, Florida

There’s nation fighting nation
There’s kids with malnutrition
But not in Celebration, Florida

Social engineering
It gives you that fuzzy feeling
Down in Celebration, Florida

Listen to the whole thing here: