Conservative indie pop? Liberal country western? Election season blues...

Finding New Tunes blog ^ | 8-13-08 | Jon

[lainie]

It seems to me that there’s money to be made for some young, enterprising, conservative musician. There aren’t really any conservative indie/alternative bands, but there are plenty of conservatives who like that kind of music. Can you imagine how they’d rally around a band who was outwardly conservative. And if Rush Limbaugh told his listeners about that band? They’d be millionaires overnight.

Same, though less so, for a liberal country band. By the nature of the art form, there are more liberal musicians, in general, than conservative. But country still doesn’t have too many successful liberal acts (minus the Dixie Chicks, of course). I would imagine there’s a similarly good opportunity for a good liberal country band to come out and take that genre by storm.

So? Why hasn’t anyone seized on these opportunities?

I started doing a little looking, and I came across an article by John Miller written for National Review [from 2006]. He offered up his top 50 conservative rock songs. Surprisingly, there were quite a few songs by real indie bands on the list. That doesn’t mean they were/are conservative bands. But the songs (by virtue of being libertarian, actually) are arguably conservative. Here’s his list of top 50 (there are 50 more, if you want to check those out, too).

[If you want detailed justifications for each, click through to the entire articles above...]

1. “Won’t Get Fooled Again,” by The Who.
2. “Taxman,” by The Beatles.
3. “Sympathy for the Devil,” by The Rolling Stones.
4. “Sweet Home Alabama,” by Lynyrd Skynyrd.
5. “Wouldn’t It Be Nice,” by The Beach Boys.
6. “Gloria,” by U2.
7. “Revolution,” by The Beatles.
8. “Bodies,” by The Sex Pistols.
9. “Don’t Tread on Me,” by Metallica.
10. “20th Century Man,” by The Kinks.
11. “The Trees,” by Rush.
12. “Neighborhood Bully,” by Bob Dylan.
13. “My City Was Gone,” by The Pretenders.
14. “Right Here, Right Now,” by Jesus Jones.
15. “I Fought the Law,” by The Crickets.
16. “Get Over It,” by The Eagles.
17. “Stay Together for the Kids,” by Blink 182.
18. “Cult of Personality,” by Living Colour.
19. “Kicks,” by Paul Revere and the Raiders.
20. “Rock the Casbah,” by The Clash.
21. “Heroes,” by David Bowie.
22. “Red Barchetta,” by Rush.
23. “Brick,” by Ben Folds Five.
24. “Der Kommissar,” by After the Fire.
25. “The Battle of Evermore,” by Led Zeppelin.
26. “Capitalism,” by Oingo Boingo.
27. “Obvious Song,” by Joe Jackson.
28. “Janie’s Got a Gun,” by Aerosmith.
29. “Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” by Iron Maiden.
30. “You Can’t Be Too Strong,” by Graham Parker.
31. “Small Town,” by John Mellencamp.
32. “Keep Your Hands to Yourself,” by The Georgia Satellites.
33. “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” by The Rolling Stones.
34. “Godzilla,” by Blue öyster Cult.
35. “Who’ll Stop the Rain,” by Creedence Clearwater Revival.
36. “Government Cheese,” by The Rainmakers.
37. “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” by The Band.
38. “I Can’t Drive 55,” by Sammy Hagar.
39. “Property Line,” by The Marshall Tucker Band.
40. “Wake Up Little Susie,” by The Everly Brothers.
41. “The Icicle Melts,” by The Cranberries.
42. “Everybody’s a Victim,” by The Proclaimers.
43. “Wonderful,” by Everclear.
44. “Two Sisters,” by The Kinks.
45. “Taxman, Mr. Thief,” by Cheap Trick.
46. “Wind of Change,” by The Scorpions.
47. “One,” by Creed.
48. “Why Don’t You Get a Job,” by The Offspring.
49. “Abortion,” by Kid Rock.
50. “Stand By Your Man,” by Tammy Wynette.

Eric Kirk at SoHum Parlance saw this article and decided (with some incentive from Miller) to take on the task of finding the top 50 liberal country songs. Here’s his list below (follow this link to see the justifications)…

1. Man in Black - Johnny Cash
2. The Pill - Loretta Lynn
3. 9 to 5 - Dolly Parton
4. We Shall be Free - Garth Brooks
5. Harper Valley PTA - Jeannie Riley (and others)
6. Take this Job and Shove It - Johnny Paycheck
7. Devil’s Right Hand - Steve Earle
8. Sixteen Tons - Tennessee Earnest Ford
9. Rainbow Stew - Merle Haggard
10. Trouble in the Fields - Nancy Griffith
11. Abraham, Martin, and John (It’s a Hard Life) - Emmy Lou Harris
12. They Ain’t Makin Jews like Jesus Anymore - Kinky Friedman
13. San Quentin - Johnny Cash
14. America - Waylon Jennings
15. Heartland - Willie Nelson
16. Jesus, the Missing Years - John Prine
17. Okie from Muskogee - Merle Haggard
18. Conversations with the Devil - Ray Wylie Hubbard
19. Travelin’ Soldier - Dixie Chicks
20. 40 hour week - Alabama
21. My Uncle - Flying Burrito Brothers
22. Coal Miner’s Daughter - Loretta Lynn
23. Ballad for a soldier - Leon Russell, aka Hank Wilson
24. Fishing - Richard Shindell
25. I Washed my Face in the Morning Dew - Tom T. Hall
26. One Hundred Children - Tom T. Hall
27. Aragon Mill - Dry Branch Fire Squads
28. Workin Band - Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
29. Right or Left at Oak Street - Roy Clark
30. Two Story House - Tammy Wynette
31. Church - Lyle Lovett
32. Devil Take the Farmer - Dry Branch Fire Squads
33. Blame it on the Stones - Kris Kristofferson
34. Skip a Rope - Henson Cargill
35. That’s the News - Merle Haggard
36. A Week in Country Jail - Tom T. Hall
37. Common Man - John Conlee
38. Kids of the Baby Boom - The Bellamy Brothers
39. Mississipi on my Mind - Jesse Winchester written, Jerry Jeff Walker performance
40. Hank Williams Said It Best - Guy Clark
41. Billy B. Damned - Billy Joe Shaver
42. Don’t you think this outlaw bit’s done got out of hand?- Waylon Jennings
43. Lights went out in Georgia - Reba McEntire
44. Peace on Earth - Willie Nelson
45. High Cotton - Alabama
46. Why can’t we all just get a long neck? - Hank Williams
47. White House Blues - Vassar Clements
48. Saginaw, Michigan - Lefty Frizzell
49. Copperhead Road - Steve Earle
50. Hobo’s Meditation - Dolly Parton

In most of the cases in the rock section, the songs are written by artists who are generally liberal, but have swerved into the conservative side of an issue. The country side largely includes artists who are generally liberal.

Thus, my curiosity still stands: Could a “good” indie/alternative band who was conservative gather a critical mass of fans? I think it goes deeper than that. I think the question really is “do people like songs because of the lyrics, melody, instrumentation, vocals, etc. (obviously, “all of the above” is an option, too)?

Can you love a song which endorses a philosophy to which you are vehemently opposed?

[mylife]

Stand by.... Greatful dead U.S. Blues coming up

[mylife]

U.S. Blues

[mylife]

Raisin' McCain

[mylife]

Zappa:

Republicans

Menacing, Aint it? ;)

[lainie]

I don’t doubt it.

But mark my words, the time is coming when a hippie looking pair or group of girls are going to come out of Nashville, out and proud of their lesbianism and daring anyone in country music to call them out. Their music will probably be mediocre but they’re be huge stars. Gare-on-tee.

[mylife]

Aint that the Indigo Girls?

[lainie]

No I mean country artists, whether southern-fried or just folkie.

[mylife]

Aint that the Dyksie Chicks? ;)

[lainie]

Good point. They proved that Nashville wasn’t ready for it. But the day’s still coming.. I’d bet $ on it.

As for socially & fiscally conservative rockers making it big? I think cheaps is right. Even if they were boosted by Sean Vanity or Limbaugh, it would be a constant uphill battle in a sea of haters. Self-described “tolerant” haters. :) There already is a Christian rock genre, so [shrug].

[mylife]

Yer prolly right.

Lots of conservative views get out in rock but it rarely hits main stream.

Punk was full of them. Sex Pistols is an example.

Though they were more anarchist than conservative

[lainie]

yah I agree. Whoever is ‘in charge’ — they’re against that. Allegiances switch when the power structure shifts.

kinda sad, huh

[mylife]

Meh...? Rock tends to be contrarian

[Mr. Blonde]

I’m willing to bet any conservative rock band would be a special kind of awful. On the other hand liberal country works better. Hell Steve Earle has been doing it for a while and give me him over pretty much any other country artist any day of the week.

[lainie]

Isn’t U.S. Blues kinda just lefty rockers singing lefty stuff?

[lainie]

You’re probably right. Hate the man/power-to-the-people protest stuff just doesn’t go with conservatism very well, and rock has that chaotic vibe whether the song’s about politics or not.

[mylife]

It dont sound that left to me. GD is pretty rooted in conservative stuff. For Hippys :)

Did they ever write a protest song?

[Cheapskate]

Oh Lord? are they still hangin around drawin a check?

[mylife]

Steve Eaele is sooo left of the dial.

That said. He absolutely rocks

[Cheapskate]

Steve kicks! I can put with libs if they’re good!

[lainie]

Got me. I don’t know any of their stuff except Truckin’ and Touch of Grey.