With TV commercials reminding us that kids are heading off to college for their freshman year, I think back to my own memories of that magical time, packing up the minivan for the big move.

There are many songs that call to mind that summer and my anxious anticipation of what life changes lay ahead, and The Farm‘s “Groovy Train” is one of the tunes that sticks out as special. Chugging along in the caboose of the Madchester scene (The Stone Roses, Happy Mondays) but hailing from Liverpool, The Farm was a late-period player in the “Baggy” indie-dance genre, named for the loose-fitting clothing these bands and their fans wore. “Groovy Train” even calls out the fad, in lyrical fashion: “Well, you looked quite neat / Baggy jeans and long blond hair.”

A top ten hit in the UK in September 1990, “Groovy Train” didn’t arrive here in the U.S. until the following spring, when The Farm’s debut, Spartacus, was released. Actually, you might recall that “All Together Now” served as our introduction to the band, a song that peaked at #7 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart in early June. “Groovy Train” was its even more danceable brother, but hit the brakes at #15 on July 27, 1991, and stopped just shy of the top 40 that November.

The “Groovy Train” video below isn’t the best quality, another casualty of Warner Music’s systemic weeding of unauthorized postings. If you desire a better viewing experience, I suggest visiting MTV UK:

Though they released two more albums in 1992 and 1994, The Farm never again approached the success of Spartacus, and eventually split. The band reformed for a live show in March 2005 alongside Happy Mondays, and today Farm-ers Peter Hooton and Keith Mullin occasionally perform DJ gigs together. The Farm also recorded a cover of The Searchers’ “Needles And Pins” for a compilation celebrating Liverpool’s number-one hits, released earlier this year.

Purchase The Farm – “Groovy Train” via iTunes, Amazon MP3.