22 Sep, 2008
If a candidate plays any of these songs at a rally, run. And consult the Book of Revelation.
- Muskrat Love
- Janie’s Got a Gun
- Hells Bells
- I Wanna Sex You Up
- I Feel Pretty
- It’s the End of the World As We Know It
- Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald
- Gypsies, Tramps & Thieves
- We Don’t Have To Take Our Clothes Off
- Yummy Yummy Yummy (I’ve Got Love in my Tummy)
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
Tags:
lists,
politics
Related posts
17 Sep, 2008
Barely Awake In Frog Pajamas inspired this post after I wrote about the music played during the Democratic convention this year. You see, there are certain songs that are played over and over at campaign events. As a former political operative, I actually made a playlist of songs once to keep the crowd exuberant.
But there are some songs that are played just way too much. It’s almost like a drinking game - it just ain’t a politicalrally without hearing them:
- “Celebration” - Kool & the Gang. Yay! Our campaign is fun! There’s a party going on right here! It’s also the whitest song ever written by an African American artist! (Also qualifies as the most overused sports song, party song, and well, most overused song in general)
- “Don’t Stop” - Fleetwood Mac. Bill Clinton took a bland yet pleasant 70s song and turned it into his own haunting anthem. As a result, I get hives whenever I hear it.
- “September” - Earth, Wind & Fire. I’m not sure why campaigns use this song, since the elections are in November, but nevertheless, I believe both parties used it at their conventions as filler music. Why? Again with the white people. We can’t name a single Curtis Mayfield or Nina Simone song, but we know all the words to “September.”
- “Taking Care of Business” - Bachman Turner Overdrive. Oh, you crazy politicians! You’re gonna go to Washington, bust into the Capitol and “take care of business.” There’s even a song about it! Get it? I think old pasty politicians use this song because they think it makes them seem hip with that young rock ‘n’ roll crowd, but God, it’s so dated, so middle of the road, it makes them seem even older.
- “Born in the USA” - Bruce Springsteen. To paraphrase Inigo Montoya, “You keep playing that song. I do not think it means what you think it means.”
- “Beautiful Day” - U2. Obama recently branched out a little and played another U2 song from the same album, which is a step in the right direction. Maybe politicians should be playing something from ‘War” or “How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb” instead.
- “God Bless the U.S.A.” - Lee Greenwood. I must confess that I’ve never heard this at a rally or convention, but I’m sure it’s been done. So for all of you politicians who are thinking of using it…don’t. Please don’t.
- “This is Our Country” - John Mellencamp. The first time I heard this, I expected it to be in a campaign event very soon. Come to think of it, the first time I heard it, it was on a Chevy commercial. He was already marketing it!, You can’t get more American than Chevrolet, apple pie and kissin’ babies.
- “We Are Family” - Sister Sledge. Another song that seems to say it all in the title (Yes! We’re a happy family! One big melting pot!), which is good, because most people know only the chorus.
- “Independence Day” - Martina McBride. The Republicans love this one, cuz it’s country, and the lyrics are about letting “freedom ring.” I’m getting a lump in my throat just hearing it in my head. No, wait, that’s bile.
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
Tags:
lists,
politics
Related posts
29 Aug, 2008
Tonight, as I was watching Barack Obama’s acceptance speech, I couldn’t help but focus more on the music than the message. And I must admit, for the most part, his taste, or his handlers’ taste in music, is pretty good.
He covered it all, starting with Stevie Wonder. You can’t go wrong with Stevie. Despite “I Just Called To Say I Love You,” he is just a likeable guy. I could have done without Michael McDonald, who always sounded as if he had swallowed a golf ball, or his tongue, or something that made his voice sound like a perpetual yawn. He sang “America the Beautiful,” and I had to laugh when he encouraged everyone to “sing with me,” not realizing that no one could guess how he was going to improvise and syncopate the song.
Then there was Springsteen’s “Born in the U.S.A.,” a necessity in American politics, and then U2, another newer necessity. Obama had previously used “Beautiful Day” at his rallies, but this time it was “City of Blinding Lights,” a good choice.
After the speech: something by Brooks & Dunn. Apparently the words of the song fit his candidacy and personality, and it probably did appeal to a certain demographic, but it just seemed - um, out of place after the speech of the year. But the evening closed with “Titans Spirit” from the “Remember the Titans,” a nice orchestral piece that sounded straight out of “The West Wing.”
We’ll see what McCain does next week with his music.
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
Tags:
politics
Related posts
