It’s been a long eight years for America…longer for some than others (see New Orleans). Luckily, we have some very creative musical artists out there suffering along with us. For them, the first amendment is expressed through their music.
These 30 selections may relate to the War in Iraq, the Katrina debacle, our shaky mantle as “The Greatest Country In The World,” our desire to have a president smarter than us (see “nucular”), and the list goes on.
This group of songs was culled from my memory – going back to January 20, 2001 – along with some quick research and a little help from my friends. However, what started out as a Top 10 list quickly became something else.
If you have any additions or omissions, let me know. I may update it judging from your responses. No later that January 19, though. To be fair, I did hunt for pro-Bush songs. Didn’t find any. The songs are listed alphabetically with a few lines from each. Enjoy.
A Few Words In Defense Of Our Country – Randy Newman
“A president once said,
’The only thing we have to fear is fear itself’
/ Now it seems like we’re supposed to be afraid
/ It’s patriotic in fact and color coded
/ And what are we supposed to be afraid of?
/ Why, of being afraid
/ That’s what terror means, doesn’t it?
/ That’s what it used to mean”
America Is Not The World – Morrissey
“America your head's too big, because America, your belly is too big / And I love you, I just wish you'd stay where you belong / In America, The land of the free, they said, and of opportunity / In a just and a truthful way / But where the president is never black, female, or gay, and until that day, you've got nothing to say to me, to help me believe”
American Idiot – Green Day
“Well maybe I'm the faggot America / I'm not a part of a redneck agenda / Now everybody do the propaganda / And sing along to the age of paranoia”
Boom! – System of a Down
“4000 hungry children die per hour / From starvation / While billions spent on bombs / Create death showers”
Bu$hleaguer – Pearl Jam
“A confidence man but why so beleaguered? / He's not a leader he's a Texas leaguer / Swinging for the fence / Got lucky with a strike / Drilling for fear makes the job simple / Born on third / Thinks he got a triple”
Crazy World – Young Jeezy
“Goddamn another trap / I think Bush trying to punish us / Sending little messages out to each and every one of us”
Death Machine – Fiction Plane
“Don't look so smug when we're at war
/ You're not the boss you're just a whore
/ You keep your shoes so clean / Fuck you and your death machine
/ Oh, I ain't gonna fight no more”
Don’t Make Me A Target – Spoon
“Clubs and sticks and bats and balls
/ For nuclear dicks with their dialect drawls
/They come from a parking lot town / Where nothing lives in the sun”
Every War – Pictures and Sound
“If we fought as hard for peace / We might not be overseas / We might not be so divided / With our insides all collided / Every war ends up the same / Fought in glory or in vain / Over land or over oil / Something always ends up spoiled”
Hell No We Ain't All Right! – Public Enemy
“And they don't have a CLUE of what's going on down there / I'm like you've gotta be kidding me, this is a NATIONAL disaster / It's awful down here man / God is lookin’ down on all this / And if they are not doin’ everything in their power to save people / They are gonna pay the price”
Hello Mr. President – Paula Cole
“Daddy's little helper / Silver foot in your mouth / Policemen of the world / Gonna start another war / Connecticut Yankee in a cowboy hat / You're my hero Mr. President”
Houston – R.E.M.
“If the storm doesn't kill me the government will / I’ve gotta get that out of my head”
Idiot Son Of An Asshole – NOFX
“He's not smart, a C student / And that's after buying his way into school / Beady eyes, and he's kinda dyslexic / Can he read? / No one's really quite sure / He signs stuff and he executes people / Maybe that's why, he doesn't have any friends / Cocaine and a little drunk driving / Doesn't matter, when you're the Commander in Chief”
In a World Gone Mad – Beastie Boys
“First the 'War On Terror' now war on Iraq / We're reaching a point where we can't turn back / Let's lose the guns and let's lose the bombs / And stop the corporate contributions that their built upon”
Is It Any Wonder? – Keane
“After all the misery you made / Is it any wonder that I feel afraid / Is it any wonder that I feel betrayed”
It’s A Hit – Rilo Kiley
“Any chimp can play human for a day / And use his opposable thumbs to iron his uniform / And run for office on election day / And fancy himself a real decision maker / Then deploy more troops than salt in a shaker / But it's a jungle when war is made / And you'll panic and throw your own shit at the enemy / The camera pulls back to reveal your true identity / Look, it's a sheep in wolf's clothing / A smoking-gun-holding ape”
Last To Die – Bruce Springsteen
“Who'll be the last to die for a mistake / The last to die for a mistake / Whose blood will spill, whose heart will break / Who'll be the last to die”
Let’s Impeach The President – Neil Young
“Let's impeach the President for lying / And misleading our country into war / Abusing all the power that we gave him / And shipping all our money out the door”
Mr. President – LL Cool J and Wyclef Jean
“Don't get me wrong / I respect the flag / But it hurts to see a kid in a body bag / He fought for his country with all he had / Now we have a family without a dad”
Mr. President – Pink feat. Indigo Girls
“What do you feel when you see all the homeless on the street? / Who do you pray for at night before you go to sleep? / What do you feel when you look in the mirror? / Are you proud?”
Mosh – Eminem
“Let the president answer a higher anarchy / Strap him with an AK-47, let him go fight his own war / Let him impress daddy that way / No more blood for oil, we got our own battles to fight on our own soil / No more psychological warfare, to trick us to thinking that we ain't loyal / If we don't serve our own country, we're patronizing a hero / Look in his eyes its all lies”
Not Ready To Make Nice – Dixie Chicks
“I’m not ready to make nice / I’m not ready to back down / I’m still mad as hell and I don’t have time to go round and round and round”
Pendulum Swinger – Indigo Girls
“What we get from your war walk / Ticker of the nation breaking down like a bad clock / I want the pendulum to swing again / So that all your mighty mandate was just spitting in the wind”
The Price Of Oil – Billy Bragg
“Saddam killed his own people just like general Pinochet / And once upon a time both these evil men were supported by the U.S.A. / And whisper it, even Bin Laden once drank from America's cup / Just like that election down in Florida / This shit doesn't all add up”
The Saints Are Coming – U2 and Green Day
“The saints are coming, the saints are coming / I say no matter how I try, I realize there's no reply”
Slap – Ludacris
“My grandmama's nerves are bad / And everybody in the hood is mad / Cause President Bush could give a DAMN about our ass / So I don't wanna hear shit that he has to say (don't say nothin’)”
Waiting On The World To Change – John Mayer
“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 / Cause when they own the information / They can bend it all they want”
When The President Talks To God – Bright Eyes
“When the president talks to God / Are the conversations brief or long? / Does he ask to rape our women’s rights / And send poor farm kids off to die? / Does God suggest an oil hike / When the president talks to God?”
Where Is The Love? – Black Eyed Peas
“A war is goin' on but the reason's undercover / The truth is kept secret, it's swept under the rug / If you never know truth then you never know love”
World Wide Suicide – Pearl Jam
“Medals on a wooden mantle / Next to a handsome face / That the president took for granted / Writing checks that others pay”
Can you think of any more?
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Saturday, November 22, 2008
97. MATISYAHU, 11/8/08
Location: The Variety Playhouse, Atlanta, GA
Supporting Act(s): Future Rock, The Heavy Pets
In the Company of: Thomas S.
At 29 years of age, Matthew Paul Miller may seem like an average New Yorker. Born in West Chester, Pennsylvania, Mr. Miller was raised as a Reconstructionist Jew. At 16, he took a trip to Israel to take part in an educational program designed to offer students an in-depth look at the Jewish faith. This experience so changed Matthew’s life that he adopted Orthodox Judaism.
This Hasidic Jew is now known as Matisyahu. The appearance of traditional clothing is a striking contrast to his music, which blends elements of reggae and hip-hop. In 2006, Billboard named Matisyahu its Top Reggae Artist.
The Variety Playhouse in Atlanta was definitely in agreement with Billboard. A packed house greeted Matisyahu and he was on that night. His voice was clear and strong and I’m sure Bob Marley was listening with a smile.
Matisyahu kicked off his set with the calming and beautiful “Sea To Sea.” It seemed that the Matisyahu fan club was in the house in full-force. About five songs in, he performed “Smash Lies,” a rocking selection from the new “Shattered” EP. It sounds like Matisyahu is evolving a bit, but still possessing that signature sound. The singer ended the evening with the popular “King Without A Crown,” which was probably the most popular song of the night.
As far as the reggae sound remains popular, Matisyahu is one of the top talents carrying that torch. He is a talented singer with an exceptional band. He should be around for quite some time.
Ft. Lauderdale’s The Heavy Pets opened the show with a mix of reggae, jazz-fusion, and a handful of other genres. They got the crowd very warmed up for the headliner. Tight musicianship and an overall fun attitude by the band pulled the crowd in.
Chicago’s own Future Rock was next, bringing some futurist tunes. The three-piece delved deep into some very interesting sounds. Known to cover Aphex Twin’s tunes in the past, each member brings his own personality to this project. Whether one tries to label Future Rock electronica, progressive house, or “other,” they are definitely an original creation.
Matisyahu Set list
1. Sea To Sea
2. Unique Is My Dove
3. Time Of Your Song
4. Ancient Lullaby
5. Smash Lies
6. Dispatch The Troops
7. Rastaman Chant
8. Escape
9. Beat Box
10. Close My Eyes
11. Youth
12. Exaltation
13. Tzama L'Chol Nafshi (Psalm 63:2-3)
14. Got No Water
15. Jerusalem
Encore
16. Nelson Zands Jam
17. King Without A Crown
(Thanks to http://www.matisyahuworld.com/ for the set list.)
Supporting Act(s): Future Rock, The Heavy Pets
In the Company of: Thomas S.
At 29 years of age, Matthew Paul Miller may seem like an average New Yorker. Born in West Chester, Pennsylvania, Mr. Miller was raised as a Reconstructionist Jew. At 16, he took a trip to Israel to take part in an educational program designed to offer students an in-depth look at the Jewish faith. This experience so changed Matthew’s life that he adopted Orthodox Judaism.
This Hasidic Jew is now known as Matisyahu. The appearance of traditional clothing is a striking contrast to his music, which blends elements of reggae and hip-hop. In 2006, Billboard named Matisyahu its Top Reggae Artist.
The Variety Playhouse in Atlanta was definitely in agreement with Billboard. A packed house greeted Matisyahu and he was on that night. His voice was clear and strong and I’m sure Bob Marley was listening with a smile.
Matisyahu kicked off his set with the calming and beautiful “Sea To Sea.” It seemed that the Matisyahu fan club was in the house in full-force. About five songs in, he performed “Smash Lies,” a rocking selection from the new “Shattered” EP. It sounds like Matisyahu is evolving a bit, but still possessing that signature sound. The singer ended the evening with the popular “King Without A Crown,” which was probably the most popular song of the night.
As far as the reggae sound remains popular, Matisyahu is one of the top talents carrying that torch. He is a talented singer with an exceptional band. He should be around for quite some time.
Ft. Lauderdale’s The Heavy Pets opened the show with a mix of reggae, jazz-fusion, and a handful of other genres. They got the crowd very warmed up for the headliner. Tight musicianship and an overall fun attitude by the band pulled the crowd in.
Chicago’s own Future Rock was next, bringing some futurist tunes. The three-piece delved deep into some very interesting sounds. Known to cover Aphex Twin’s tunes in the past, each member brings his own personality to this project. Whether one tries to label Future Rock electronica, progressive house, or “other,” they are definitely an original creation.
Matisyahu Set list
1. Sea To Sea
2. Unique Is My Dove
3. Time Of Your Song
4. Ancient Lullaby
5. Smash Lies
6. Dispatch The Troops
7. Rastaman Chant
8. Escape
9. Beat Box
10. Close My Eyes
11. Youth
12. Exaltation
13. Tzama L'Chol Nafshi (Psalm 63:2-3)
14. Got No Water
15. Jerusalem
Encore
16. Nelson Zands Jam
17. King Without A Crown
(Thanks to http://www.matisyahuworld.com/ for the set list.)
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