Stop hey what’s that sound, everybody look what’s going’ down
I found an old cassette of a Steppenwolf album that I’ve been playing recently.
Their song “Monster” is as timely today as it was 50 years ago:
The spirit was freedom and justice
And its keepers seemed generous and kind
Its leaders were supposed to serve the country
But now they won’t pay it no mind
Cause the people grew fat and got lazy
Now their vote is a meaningless joke
They babble about law and order
But it’s all just an echo of what they’ve been told
Yeah, there’s a monster on the loose
It’s got our heads into the noose
And it just sits there watchin’
The cities have turned into jungles
And corruption is stranglin’ the land
The police force is watching the people
And the people just can’t understand
“Stop hey what’s that sound, everybody look what’s going’ down”
“For What It’s Worth” by Buffalo Springfield.
Everyone thinks that was an antiwar anthem but the song actually was inspired by “the Sunset Strip curfew riot” of 1966.
Hollywood businesses were fed up with SoCal teenagers (I was one) loitering and creating a nuisance and driving away business. So they imposed a 10pm curfew with the predictable result of teenagers and idiot Hollywood celebrities protesting and getting arrested.