All's Fair In Licks and Lies

You think politics and eventually you get around to thinking music. The same goes for the other way around. Music and politics have had an interesting relationship over the last 200 or so years.

Your probably wondering why I'm talking about politics on a music blog, right? Well, the other day I happened to look up at a picture I have of Ben Gibbard and read the quote under his picture:

"If we can survive the Bush administration, we can survive anything."

That got me thinking- what was the effect of this comment on the general public? Did people begin thinking about the Bush administration and it's outcome more because Gibbard commented on it?

Gibbard's not the only one dipping his toes in the political pond. Musicians like Noel Gallagher (Oasis), Thom Yorke (Radiohead), Natalie Maines (The Dixie Chicks) and many more have all made comments here or there about certain figures in politics. One noteworthy one is a comment made by Mrs. Maines.

"Just so you know, we’re on the good side with y’all. We do not want this war, this violence, and we’re ashamed that the President of the United States is from Texas."

She made this statement on the eve of the Iraqi invasion in 2003 and received hell for it. She later apologized for it, but the damage was done. She began receiving hate mail and even a death threat and later recounted the apology. Luckily for her (and her husband and two kids), the hoopla has died down. But for all the trouble she went through, her comment still stands. Interestingly enough, she said this right before the band performed "Travelin' Solider", a sad World War II song.

The Dixie Chicks aren't the first musicians to make a war/political song. The list of anti-war songs goes on and on. From "It Better End Soon", one of many end-the-Vietnam-war anthems to "Sunday Bloody Sunday", a song inspired by a tragedy in Derry, Ireland that U2 couldn't ignore, to "Hey Ma" by James, a Manchester band who describes 9/11 and the Iraqi war.



I posted this specific video because it is my all-time favorite political rock song. Well, that and I know the story behind the song. If you're wondering what that story is check out the movie Bloody Sunday, not to plug it or anything.

Not surprisingly, a lot of the mixing of music and politics has to do with just that- war. Without war and corruption it's debatable if musicians would have ever step foot in politics.

But, when one takes a long hard look at it, it makes perfect sense why musicians and politics come together like so, and why the music is usually anti- something, be it war, tragedy, or just "The Man" in general.

Music surrounds us. It's involved in almost every aspect of our lives and we hear it every day, even if we don't even turn on the radio. And often times we, as people, don't always keep up on politics as much as we should, so music kind of reminds us to think about things like- "What is my government doing in the Middle East?" or "Are the reasons why we're still in this war really valid or true?"

Which brings me to another point- truth. Politicians are known for covering up the truth and while uncovering it is usually the journalist's job, the musicians of the world do well in exploiting in and making it known. This can work in all aspects of the modern world, like how Stevie Wonder used his song "Village Ghetto Land" to alert people to the reality of poverty in the United States. Ice Cube did the same thing in his song "Hood Mentality". Instead of making the purpose of the song clear, however, he raps under the idea that he wants to be a inner-city gangster. He's really trying to get across the message that being a gangster is nothing to yearn for. It's a read-between-the-lines kind of song. Be careful is you decide to listen to it though, it's all kinds of explicit.

Music stirs up all kinds of emotions in people, and if you throw politics into that mix, well, things can get messy. Musicians have always written how they feel, or about what they see or experience, and they always will. This relationship, it's delicate, but necessary. What's the point of free speech if our musicians can't bag on the government every now and again? Besides, it makes for interesting music.

-Whitni

The picture at the top is of the late John Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono. Posters and billboards were rented in eleven cities and read: WAR IS OVER (if you want it). John and Yoko are two of the most notable examples of the mixture of music and politics.