Political Songs

[CK]

Bob Dylan was one of the first that came to mind when thinking of this one. What are some of the best "political" songs written? By this, I mean songs that directly comment on political situations, people etc? "Not Ready To Make Nice" by the Dixie Chicks is among them, but one of my favorites is definitely "American Idiot" by Green day (both songs about the same person, George W. Bush)

[Leaping Lindner]

I still reckon this is one of the best ever (if not THE best) and that's from the Kings of political songs....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIqESwzC ... re=related

[LMA]

A few songs I can think of without delving to deep into it

John Lennon - Imagine
Midnight Oil - US Force
Insurge - Political Prisoners
NOFX - Franco Un-American
The Wall - Pink Floyd
Scars On Broadway - They Say
Manic Street Preachers - If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next
Michael Franti & Spearhead - Rock The Nation
Sonic Youth - Youth Against Facism

Plus lots of Billy Bragg and Rage Against The Machine

[Magpiespower]

Believe it or not, but there are loads of political hip-hop songs.

Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five's 'The Message' is perhaps the most famous.

NWA's '**** tha Police' is perhaps the most infamous.

Always partial to some angry Ice Cube...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IemJDTSv88U&feature=related

[Gozu]

Insurge - Political Prisoners

Still an excellent song. I got Power To The Poison People when it first came out and don't know what I did with it but was able to pick up a second hand copy of the album (with bonus disc) again a couple of years ago.

What about political albums?

I love Ministry's anti-Bush trilogy of albums. Houses Of The Mole where all but one song starts with W, Rio Grande Blood which had a few songs nominated for Grammy's and The Last Sucker which has a picture of Dubya's face on the front cover that morphs into a lizard creatures face and back again playing on the David Icke consipracy theory and inside has a rip of Da Vinci's The Last Supper with Al Jourgensen in the middle with members of the Bush administration around him. All of the albums are full of samples of George W. Bush speeches and quotes too. I like the heavy industrial/metal sound anyway and always get a bit of a laugh out of all the samples.

[Gozu]

How could I forget anything by Snog (David Thrussell) too?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snog

[brod]

Incubus - Megalomaniac

Hey megalomaniac
You're no Jesus
Yeah, you're no ******* Elvis
Wash your hands clean of yourself baby
Maniac, step down, step down

[Q.]

Jello Biafra, Joey Shithead and Greg Graffin - three of my favourite political lyricists.

But the current modern-day mantle goes to the lads from Propagandhi - I reckon their political lyrics are just about unrivalled at the moment. These lyrics from one of my favourite songs:


Donald wept through the proceedings. His tears soaked through the canvas that cloaked his twisted face and they stained orange jumpsuit where with such rare distinction he once displayed the evidence of his outstanding contributions to the maintenance of a kingdom come. But those days are gone. He's nothing more than a number on a docket thick with shareholder, engineers, PR firms, politicians: war-profiteers. "How the **** did I end up here? This just isn't fair. Ain't no place for a millionaire." He searches for the words to stop this table in mid-turn, like "we are but old men" and "we only did what we were told", but the laughter from the gallery drowns out these vestiges of a profession's oldest defense. "The court will direct the record to reflect compliments from the bench; you sir, are central casting's crowning achievement. And for your outstanding performance in a comedic role, I'd like to dedicate the findings of the jury to the dead." But how can one man ever repay a debt so appalling? Can't gouge 10,000 eyes from a single head so I think we should observe a sentence that will serve to satisfy both a sense of function and poetry: so you will spend the rest of your days drenched in sweat, with your face drawn in a rictus of terror as you remove another buried land mine fuse. Meanwhile, 100 yards back behind the sandbags, a legless foreman pulls the trigger on a red megaphone. Squelching feedback. Drunken laughter. Broken English. His dead daughter's picture. Time and tide, no one can anticipate the inevitable waves of change.

[Q.]

Believe it or not, but there are loads of political hip-hop songs.

Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five's 'The Message' is perhaps the most famous.

NWA's '**** tha Police' is perhaps the most infamous.

Always partial to some angry Ice Cube...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IemJDTSv88U&feature=related

Australian hip-hop of the last decade has most often taken a very socio-political stance in its lyrics, most notably led by The Herd. There is something about Aussie hip-hop I really enjoy and perhaps it is that it focuses on issues relevant to Australians.

[leftlegger]

Skunkanansie -
Yes it ******* Political
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGZWAoXy-C4

[Pseudo]

I, I I I I I, ain't gonna play Sun City!

[Dogwatcher]

Public Enemy
Billy Bragg
The Clash
Rise Against
Redgum
Rage Against The Machine

For a start....

[Dogwatcher]

Here's an interesting couple...Marvin Gaye and Otis Redding.

[Q.]

Johnny Cash!

[ORDoubleBlues]

Here's an interesting couple...Marvin Gaye

Yep, What's Going On from the album of the same name that is probably his biggest record.

[Media Park]

Wrong side of the War- Beccy Cole
Dear Mr President- Pink

[schimma]

Pearl Jam and there song Bu$hLeaguer

some of the lyrics

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

[purch]

Sting: Russians
U2: Sunday Bloody Sunday
Midnight Oil: Short Memory
Alice in Chains: Rooster
The Doors: Unknown Soldier
REM: Orange Crush

[Magpiespower]

Sting: Russians

We share the same biology
Regardless of ideology...

[Rik E Boy]

A few songs I can think of without delving to deep into it

The Wall - Pink Floyd

Us and Them
Pigs
Waiting for the Worms
Dogs of War

regards,

REB