| History 122 Research
Document Revolutionary Music: Protest Songs from the Counterculture Era |
||||||||||||||||
 "You say you want a revolution. Well you know we all want to change the world"
Rock-and-roll was just ripple
on the musical scene in the 1950s. Elvis Presley was starting to make waves, but
mainstream America thought it was a passing fancy. In those
days, rock music was easily identifiable by its four-beat,
predictable melodies and banal lyrics. Songs like Blue
Suede Shoes were hard to take seriously, and nobody
imagined rock would become an enduring, powerful, and
profoundly political form of expression.
The emergence of
the rock movement was part of the ascendancy of youth in the
decade of the 1960s. The tone often seemed denunciatory,
but two central qualities of rock were liberation and
participation. These became central themes of the era. By
1968, protest songs had become the voice of the antiwar
movement, often sounding like a kind of visceral anarchism
but with a positive message: peace, brotherly love, and
self-expression. With the withdrawal from Vietnam in
1973, followed by the Nixon's resignation,
protest songs largely faded into history; one notable
exception was Neil Young's Ohio (1974). Rock music continued to evolve into
the 21st century, but a familiar theme was heard from the
new generation of lyricists (still
Waiting on the World to
Change).
|
||||||||||||||||
Blowin' in the Wind
Bob Dylan
(1962)
Recorded by Peter, Paul and Mary
How many roads must a man walk down
Before you call him a man?
Yes, and how many seas must a white dove sail
Before she sleeps in the sand?
Yes, and how many times must the cannon balls fly
Before they're forever banned?
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind,
The answer is blowin' in the wind.
How many times must a man look up
Before he can see the sky?
Yes, and how many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry?
Yes, and how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died?
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind,
The answer is blowin' in the wind.
How many years can a mountain exist
Before it's washed to the sea?
Yes, and how many years can some people exist
Before they're allowed to be free?
Yes, and how many times can a man turn his head,
Pretending he just doesn't see?
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind,
The answer is blowin' in the wind.
For What It's Worth
Stephen Stills
Buffalo Springfield (1967)
There's something happening here
What it is ain't exactly clear
There's a man with a gun over there
Telling me I got to beware
I think it's time we stop, children, what's that sound
Everybody look what's going down
There's battle lines being drawn
Nobody's right if everybody's wrong
Young people speaking their minds
Getting so much resistance from behind
I think it's time we stop, hey, what's that sound
Everybody look what's going down
What a field-day for the heat
A thousand people in the street
Singing songs and carrying signs
Mostly say, hooray for our side
It's time we stop, hey, what's that sound
Everybody look what's going down
Paranoia strikes deep
Into your life it will creep
It starts when you're always afraid
You step out of line, the man come and take you away
We better stop, hey, what's that sound
Everybody look what's going down
Stop, hey, what's that sound
Everybody look what's going down
Stop, now, what's that sound
Everybody look what's going down
Stop, children, what's that sound
Everybody look what's going down
Revolution
John Lennon and Paul McCartney
The Beatles (1968)
You say you want a revolution
Well you know
We all want to change the world
You tell me that it's evolution
Well you know
We all want to change the world
But when you talk about destruction
Don't you know you can count me out
Don't you know it's gonna be alright
Alright, alright
You say you got a real solution
Well you know
We don't love to see the plan
You ask me for a contribution
Well you know
We're doing what we can
But if you want money for people with minds that hate
All I can tell you is brother you have to wait
Don't you know it's gonna be alright
Alright, alright
You say you'll change the constitution
Well you know
We all want to change your head
You tell me it's the institution
Well you know
You better free your mind instead
But if you go carrying pictures of Chairman Mao
You ain't going to make it with anyone anyhow
Don't you know it's gonna be alright
Alright, alright
Fortunate Son
John Fogerty (1969)
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Some folks are born
made to wave the flag,
Ooh, they're red, whit and blue.
And when the band plays "Hail to the chief",
they point the cannon right at you.
It ain't me, it ain't me.
I ain't no senator's son.
It ain't me,it ain't me.
I ain't no fortunate one.
Some folks are born
silver spoon in hand,
Lord don't they help themselves.
But when the tax man comes to the door,
Lord, the house looks like a rummage sale.
It ain't me, it ain't me.
I ain't no millionaire's son.
It ain't me, it ain't me.
I ain't no fortunate one.
Some folks inherit
star spangled eyes,
Ooh, they send you down to war.
And when you ask them,
"How much should we give?"
They only answer "More! More! More!"
It ain't me, it ain't me.
I ain't no military son.
It ain't me, it ain't me.
I ain't no fortunate one.
It ain't me, it ain't me.
I ain't no Fortunate Son.
War--What is it Good For?
Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong
Recorded by Edwin Starr (1970)
War, what is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
War, what is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Say it again, y'all
War, what is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me
Oh, war, I despise
Because it means destruction
Of innocent lives
War means tears
To thousands of mothers eyes
When their sons go to fight
And lose their lives
I said, war, good God, y'all
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Say it again
War, whoa, Lord
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me
War, it ain't nothing but a heartbreaker
War, friend only to the undertaker
Oh, war,
It's an enemy to all mankind
The point of war blows my mind
War has caused unrest
Within the younger generation
Induction then destruction
Who wants to die?
War, good God y'all
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Say it, say it, say it
War, what is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me
War, yeah, what is it good for?
Absolutely nothing, uh-huh
War, yeah, what is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Say it again y'all
War, huh, good God
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me
War, it ain't nothing but a heartbreaker
War, it's got one friend
That's the undertaker
Ooooh, war, has shattered
Many a young mans dreams
Made him disabled, bitter and mean
Life is much too short and precious
To spend fighting wars these days
War can't give life
It can only take it away
Ooooh, war, good God y'all
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Say it again
War, whoa, Lord
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me
War, it ain't nothing but a heartbreaker
War, friend only to the undertaker
Peace, love and understanding
Tell me, is there no place for them today
They say we must fight to keep our freedom
But Lord knows there's got to be a better way
Oh, war, huh,
Good God y'all
What is it good for?
You tell me
Say it, say it, say it, say it
War, good God y'all
What is it good for?
Stand up and shout it
Nothing
Imagine
John Lennon
(1971)
Imagine there's no heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today...
Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace...
You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one
Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world...
You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one
Ohio
Neil Young (1974)
Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young
Tin soldiers and Nixon coming,
We're finally on our own.
This summer I hear the drumming,
Four dead in Ohio.
Gotta get down to it
Soldiers are gunning us down
Should have been done long ago.
What if you knew her
And found her dead on the ground
How can you run when you know?
Gotta get down to it
Soldiers are gunning us down
Should have been done long ago.
What if you knew her
And found her dead on the ground
How can you run when you know?
Tin soldiers and Nixon coming,
We're finally on our own.
This summer I hear the drumming,
Four dead in Ohio.
Waiting on the World to Change
John Mayer (2006)
Me and all my friends
We're all misunderstood
They say we stand for nothing and
There's no way we ever could
Now we see everything is going wrong
With the world and those who lead it
We just feel like we don't have the means
To rise above and beat it
So we keep waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change
It’s hard to beat the system
When we're standing at a distance
So we keep waiting
Waiting on the world to change
Now if we had the power
To bring our neighbors home from war
They would have never missed a Christmas
No more ribbons on their door
When you trust your television
What you get is what you got
‘Cuz’ when they own the information,
They can bend it all they want
So while we're waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change
It's not that we don't care
We just know that the fight ain't fair
So we keep waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We're still waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change
One day our generation
Is gonna rule the population
So we keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change
Know we keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change
DCH 04/07