Skip to comments.
Conservative indie pop? Liberal country western? Election season blues...
Finding New Tunes blog ^
| 8-13-08
| Jon
Posted on 08/16/2008 2:23:19 PM PDT by lainie
It seems to me that theres money to be made for some young, enterprising, conservative musician. There arent really any conservative indie/alternative bands, but there are plenty of conservatives who like that kind of music. Can you imagine how theyd rally around a band who was outwardly conservative. And if Rush Limbaugh told his listeners about that band? Theyd 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 doesnt have too many successful liberal acts (minus the Dixie Chicks, of course). I would imagine theres a similarly good opportunity for a good liberal country band to come out and take that genre by storm.
So? Why hasnt 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 doesnt mean they were/are conservative bands. But the songs (by virtue of being libertarian, actually) are arguably conservative. Heres 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...]
- Wont Get Fooled Again, by The Who.
- Taxman, by The Beatles.
- Sympathy for the Devil, by The Rolling Stones.
- Sweet Home Alabama, by Lynyrd Skynyrd.
- Wouldnt It Be Nice, by The Beach Boys.
- Gloria, by U2.
- Revolution, by The Beatles.
- Bodies, by The Sex Pistols.
- Dont Tread on Me, by Metallica.
- 20th Century Man, by The Kinks.
- The Trees, by Rush.
- Neighborhood Bully, by Bob Dylan.
- My City Was Gone, by The Pretenders.
- Right Here, Right Now, by Jesus Jones.
- I Fought the Law, by The Crickets.
- Get Over It, by The Eagles.
- Stay Together for the Kids, by Blink 182.
- Cult of Personality, by Living Colour.
- Kicks, by Paul Revere and the Raiders.
- Rock the Casbah, by The Clash.
- Heroes, by David Bowie.
- Red Barchetta, by Rush.
- Brick, by Ben Folds Five.
- Der Kommissar, by After the Fire.
- The Battle of Evermore, by Led Zeppelin.
- Capitalism, by Oingo Boingo.
- Obvious Song, by Joe Jackson.
- Janies Got a Gun, by Aerosmith.
- Rime of the Ancient Mariner, by Iron Maiden.
- You Cant Be Too Strong, by Graham Parker.
- Small Town, by John Mellencamp.
- Keep Your Hands to Yourself, by The Georgia Satellites.
- You Cant Always Get What You Want, by The Rolling Stones.
- Godzilla, by Blue öyster Cult.
- Wholl Stop the Rain, by Creedence Clearwater Revival.
- Government Cheese, by The Rainmakers.
- The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, by The Band.
- I Cant Drive 55, by Sammy Hagar.
- Property Line, by The Marshall Tucker Band.
- Wake Up Little Susie, by The Everly Brothers.
- The Icicle Melts, by The Cranberries.
- Everybodys a Victim, by The Proclaimers.
- Wonderful, by Everclear.
- Two Sisters, by The Kinks.
- Taxman, Mr. Thief, by Cheap Trick.
- Wind of Change, by The Scorpions.
- One, by Creed.
- Why Dont You Get a Job, by The Offspring.
- Abortion, by Kid Rock.
- 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. Heres his list below (follow this link to see the justifications)
- Man in Black - Johnny Cash
- The Pill - Loretta Lynn
- 9 to 5 - Dolly Parton
- We Shall be Free - Garth Brooks
- Harper Valley PTA - Jeannie Riley (and others)
- Take this Job and Shove It - Johnny Paycheck
- Devils Right Hand - Steve Earle
- Sixteen Tons - Tennessee Earnest Ford
- Rainbow Stew - Merle Haggard
- Trouble in the Fields - Nancy Griffith
- Abraham, Martin, and John (Its a Hard Life) - Emmy Lou Harris
- They Aint Makin Jews like Jesus Anymore - Kinky Friedman
- San Quentin - Johnny Cash
- America - Waylon Jennings
- Heartland - Willie Nelson
- Jesus, the Missing Years - John Prine
- Okie from Muskogee - Merle Haggard
- Conversations with the Devil - Ray Wylie Hubbard
- Travelin Soldier - Dixie Chicks
- 40 hour week - Alabama
- My Uncle - Flying Burrito Brothers
- Coal Miners Daughter - Loretta Lynn
- Ballad for a soldier - Leon Russell, aka Hank Wilson
- Fishing - Richard Shindell
- I Washed my Face in the Morning Dew - Tom T. Hall
- One Hundred Children - Tom T. Hall
- Aragon Mill - Dry Branch Fire Squads
- Workin Band - Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
- Right or Left at Oak Street - Roy Clark
- Two Story House - Tammy Wynette
- Church - Lyle Lovett
- Devil Take the Farmer - Dry Branch Fire Squads
- Blame it on the Stones - Kris Kristofferson
- Skip a Rope - Henson Cargill
- Thats the News - Merle Haggard
- A Week in Country Jail - Tom T. Hall
- Common Man - John Conlee
- Kids of the Baby Boom - The Bellamy Brothers
- Mississipi on my Mind - Jesse Winchester written, Jerry Jeff Walker performance
- Hank Williams Said It Best - Guy Clark
- Billy B. Damned - Billy Joe Shaver
- Dont you think this outlaw bits done got out of hand?- Waylon Jennings
- Lights went out in Georgia - Reba McEntire
- Peace on Earth - Willie Nelson
- High Cotton - Alabama
- Why cant we all just get a long neck? - Hank Williams
- White House Blues - Vassar Clements
- Saginaw, Michigan - Lefty Frizzell
- Copperhead Road - Steve Earle
- Hobos 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?
TOPICS: Music/Entertainment
KEYWORDS: conservativerock; countrymusic; indie; music
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20, 21-40, 41-60, 61-74 last
To: Cheapskate
Busy here.
How you been Cheaps?
61
posted on
08/17/2008 6:10:46 PM PDT
by
Jet Jaguar
(Obama: The presumptuous democratic nominee)
To: Cheapskate
For the most part I will just roll my eyes. Like when Radiohead was on Conan and talking about all the things they were doing to save the planet.
62
posted on
08/17/2008 6:11:56 PM PDT
by
Mr. Blonde
(You ever thought about being weird for a living?)
To: Jet Jaguar
In the big picture of things, Alright I guess.
Can't complain too much anyway!
63
posted on
08/17/2008 6:12:58 PM PDT
by
Cheapskate
(Still backing Hunter"I refuse to be fitted with collar and chain, and given a pat on the back")
To: Mr. Blonde
64
posted on
08/17/2008 6:14:04 PM PDT
by
Cheapskate
(Still backing Hunter"I refuse to be fitted with collar and chain, and given a pat on the back")
To: Cheapskate
Good on you.
See you around.
JJ
65
posted on
08/17/2008 6:15:28 PM PDT
by
Jet Jaguar
(Obama: The presumptuous democratic nominee)
To: Cheapskate
Well, my name’s John Lee Petimore.......
That’s a goosebump track.
66
posted on
08/17/2008 6:30:53 PM PDT
by
txhurl
To: txflake
Yeah! think my favorite Steve tunes are “NYC “and”Unrepentant”
67
posted on
08/17/2008 6:43:06 PM PDT
by
Cheapskate
(Still backing Hunter"I refuse to be fitted with collar and chain, and given a pat on the back")
To: lainie
11. The Trees, by Rush.
22. Red Barchetta, by Rush.
A lot of songs by Rush have a rather Libertarian POV and message, very individualistic and anti-authoritarian and very much influenced by the writings of Ayn Rand.
Rush - Anthem
Know your place in life is where you want to be,
Don't let them tell you that you owe it all to me.
Keep on looking forward; no use in looking 'round;
Hold your head above the ground and they won't bring you down.
Anthem of the heart and anthem of the mind
A funeral dirge for eyes gone blind
We marvel after those who sought
The wonders of the world, wonders of the world,
Wonders of the world they wrought.
Live for yourself -- there's no one else
More worth living for
Begging hands and bleeding hearts will only cry out for more
Well, I know they've always told you
Selfishness was wrong
Yes it was for me, not you, I came to write this song
I like this one too:
Incubus - Drive
As for your question: Can you love a song which endorses a philosophy to which you are vehemently opposed?
Ive liked some songs by artists who I know are personally very liberal. I like a lot of CSN & sometimes Y. I like some old Jackson Brown and James Taylor songs that arent too political. And as much as I hate to admit it, I like some of Sheryl Crows stuff.
I like this one for example. Not really conservative but I like some of the lyrics and when I listen to it, Im not thinking politics one way or another, I just really liked the song. (And Sheryl is sure putting out a big carbon foot print in this video LOL!)
Sheryl Crow - Steve McQueen
68
posted on
08/17/2008 7:18:43 PM PDT
by
Caramelgal
(Just a lump of organized protoplasm - braying at the stars :),)
To: Caramelgal
Yeah!How about “Something For Nothing” while we’re talkin about Rush?
69
posted on
08/17/2008 7:23:03 PM PDT
by
Cheapskate
(Still backing Hunter"I refuse to be fitted with collar and chain, and given a pat on the back")
To: lainie
Lame, lainie. All it needs is good beat and easy to dance to! Like Bobby Rydell!~
70
posted on
08/17/2008 7:25:52 PM PDT
by
Revolting cat!
(Are you ready to pray for Teddy?)
To: Cheapskate
Yea. Another good one by Rush.
You don't get something for nothing
You don't get freedom for free!
You won't get wise
With the sleep still in your eyes
No matter what your dreams might be
71
posted on
08/17/2008 7:41:13 PM PDT
by
Caramelgal
(Just a lump of organized protoplasm - braying at the stars :),)
To: lainie; All
72
posted on
08/17/2008 9:27:03 PM PDT
by
mylife
(The Roar Of the Masses Could Be Farts)
To: lainie
Get Up, Stand Up and Redemption Song are worker/oppression style tunes that speak of faith and the Almighty. Conservatives can see something in them, at least.When I first heard Peter, paul & Mary's Blowin' in the Wind, I thought it was an anti-Communist song. I figured "how many years must some people exist before they're allowed to be free" referred to residents of the Communist bloc.
To: mylife
"Cheaps, you're a bassist right?"
I'm a drummer1
But I've thought about pickin one up and learnin
World's chocked full of drummers,but a decent bass player writes his own paycheck!
74
posted on
08/20/2008 4:08:45 PM PDT
by
Cheapskate
(Still backing Hunter"I refuse to be fitted with collar and chain, and given a pat on the back")
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20, 21-40, 41-60, 61-74 last
Disclaimer:
Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual
posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its
management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the
exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson