“Volunteers” (We are Volunteers of America!..") - Jefferson Airplane
David Bowie, I’m Afraid of Americans
We Want America Back by the Steeles. (Looks around at room full of nasty stares.) What? Nobody specified good America-themed songs (proven by the mention of Lee Greenwood.)
Spirit does a nice version of America The Beautiful/The Times They Are A Changing
James Brown - Living In America
Simon And Garfunkel - America
And for a British, more, er, critical perspective:
Steve Earle: City Of Immigrants
Chris de Burgh’s medley “Revolution”, “Light a Fire”, and “Liberty”, the last three songs on his album “The Getaway”.
Linda Ronstadt Living In the USA.
Or go with the original. Chuck Berry.
“Made in America” by Toby Keith
Hey ya’ll. Is the name of this song Living in the USA or Back in the USA?
Nun uh! Here in the Rock N Roll capital, where we all go to Rock N Roll High School and eat at Rock N Roll McDonalds, it’s generally accepted that “American Woman” is about American politics. “Woman” being a euphemism that is better to sell songs.
But according to Wikipedia the song’s author says it’s open to interpretation so I’ll let you non-Clevelanders have your opinion too.
Thanks.
It’s not jingoistic, no. It shows much more, and more mature, love of America than jingo songs do.
And so does Sinatra’s “The House I Live In”.
But if you want to go full jingo, then you can’t beat America, Fuck Yeah!
I Want to Live in America from West Side Story.
How about some John Philip Souza marches?
Some mighty fine suggestions all around and a sprinkle of cockeyed ones surely made in fun. I must admit though I am sore dismayed that the very first thing that came up in the OP was that Lee Greenwood monstrosity, oh dear.
Oh, but it HAS to be that version. It really is a great piece plus if they do keep the lamentable earlier mentioned track, this one compensates for it by orders of magnitude.
Huh, interesting, gotta look it up.
Heck yeah.
Oh, BOTH of thse versions are showstoppers. But yeah the Anthem has to be either the start or the end. And I guess it depends on how the crowd feels about creative adaptations.
Now I’m wondering if there’s a particularly party-appropriate version of the Battle Hymn of the Republic…
Fer cryin’ out loud it’s been seventy seven years, the tune has become an “America” song.
Or that you can sing out what you love about nuanced imperfect America because as it is you find it’s still awesome, and about how you want to make it better.
How about American Girl by Tom Petty?
Or maybe Route 66?
The Battle of New Orleans by Johnny Horton