I’m really tired of love songs. Have been for years, actually. I like songs that can entertain me, but also make me think. The ideal song of this nature is one that would pique my curiousity enough to make me want to research its subject matter.
There are more than a few songs about war, but most tend to be overly-simplistic protest songs. I’m not interested in those. Music bemoaning the tragedy of war usually sounds trite to my ears, but can be very powerful when done right (e.g. “And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda”). I wouldn’t mind finding some other songs in that vein.
Other examples that would fit my OP include:
They Might Be Giants - “James K. Polk”
Billy Joel - “We Didn’t Start the Fire”
Rush - “The Manhattan Project”
I’d also like to hear some suggestions for songs that are about, or heavily reference, literature. “The Ghost of Tom Joad” by Springsteen and “Wuthering Heights” by Kate Bush would be decent examples of this.
I like this type of song, but it’s one that I agree is rarely done well. Or at least I rarely meet an example I enjoy.
First suggestion: “Rah, Rah, Rasputin” by Boiled in Lead. Much fun.
Christine Lavin’s “The Dakota” isn’t particularly about an event in history, but how thinking of it made her feel after a long trip.
John Gorka’s “Temporary Road” is about one soldier’s reaction to the buildup for the first Gulf War.
There’s Gordon Lightfoot’s “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.”
Schooner Fare has a number of songs based on historical events and persons. I’m just going to mention two: “The Ballad of Mad Jack,” and “Powder Monkey,” both of which inspired by events relating to Old Ironsides.
As one can tell a lot of my musical and historical interest is with nautical events, so - I’ll be interested to see what else might come up in this thread.
The Band: “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” and “Arcadian Driftwood” Both cover historical events in general terms, the former about the Civil War, the latter about the Arcadians (with a specific reference to the Plains of Abraham).
The Kinks: “Victoria” is ultimately about British Imperialism.
Broadway is a rich source. For instance, the musical “1776” is filled with songs referencing the American Revolution; those with historical subjects include “Sit Down John,” “Piddle Twiddle and Resolve,” “The Lees of Old Virginia,” and “Molasses to Rum” (about the triangle trade).
Similarly, “Fiorello” has songs referencing the career of Fiorello La Guardia, mayor of New York.
“Those Were the Good Old Days” from “Damn Yankees” references quite a few historical events.
For literature, there’s Cole Porter’s brilliant “Brush Up Your Shakespeare” from “Kiss Me Kate:”
Good general choice (except Sirens of Titan which is based on a Kurt Vonnegut novel). As a matter of fact, his whole album Past, Present and Future (containing Roads to Moscow) would be a good choice.
Bastille Day
Anthem (from Ayn Rand)
Rivendell
Red Barchetta (from a short story)
Heresy (the aftermath of the USSR)
Countdown (the space shuttle)
Loudoun Wainright III
Talking New Bob Dylan (about Bob Dylan)
Tonya’s Twirls (about guess who?)
Jesse Don’t Like It (Jesse Helms against the NEA)
O.J. (The Simpson Case)
Our Boy Bill (a brief bio of Clinton)
“Tender Comrade.” by Billy Bragg is a great war song. He has the distinction of being the only poet of the Falklands War. He has a number of songs with social critique and literary references. Even his love songs often have some sort of social significance.
He can make you think more kindly of “Love, love me do.”
Three Dead Trolls in a Baggie have a great song called “The War of 1812” which is certainly worth listening to. (“Aaaand the white house burned, burned burrrrned… and we’re the ones that did it…”)
Cream also did “Politician,” although I don’t think it’s about any specific politician. And it’s barely about politics, more about sleaze. Oh well. It’s groovy.
Randy Newman Sail Away
That’s Why I Love Mankind
Good Old Boys
Louisiana (They’re Trying To Wash Us Away)
Simon and Garfunkel Freedom Rider
Nanci Griffith has written several songs for the Campaign Against Landmines. Her msot recent album has several songs about Viet Nam and her recent trip there.
There are a number of anti-Nixon songs from the 70’s:
–Stevie Wonder’s “You Haven’t Done Nothing”
–John Lennon’s “Give Me Some Truth”
–The Eagles’ “On the Border” (“Say good night, Dick.”)
Some more by Dylan:
–“Masters of War”
–“Chimes of Freedom”
–“Hurricane” (about Rubin “Hurricane” Carter)
More U2:
–“Pride (In the Name of Love)” (about Martin Luther King)
–“Sunday Bloody Sunday”
–“Bullet the Blue Sky”
Also, the original version of Elvis Costello’s “Less Then Zero” references British fascist leader Oswald Mosley. An alternate version references Lee Harvey Oswald. Costello’s “Green Shirt” invokes Orwell’s 1984 and mentions a “Quisling clinic”–the Norwegian fascist leader who collaborated with the Nazis (thus resulting in his name becoming another word for “traitor”).
Randy Newman’s “Louisiana, 1927” is about the Mississippi River floods of that year.
