John Miller @ The Corner puts together a list of what he considers the 50 greatest conservative rock songs. I was particularly glad to see Rush's The Trees (No. 11) and Red Barchetta (No . 22), since I was a big fan growing up (and I love those songs). Some of his choices are a stretch (Godzilla by Blue Oyster Cult?) and I'm not really sure what makes Iron Maiden's Rime of the Ancient Mariner (No. 29) conservative. In any event, it's a fun list and, since most rock songs probably have a liberal bent, it was kind of interesting to read.
This article in the Financial Times takes issue with Miller's choice for No. 1 (which I won't reveal) and later makes the point that rock n' roll is inherently conservative because of its fairly rigid format, as well as the static nature of its instrumentation, chord structures, and time signatures. Unfortunately, a subscription is necessary to read the whole FT article. Anyway, Miller was obviously not discussing the structural elements of rock n' roll, but rather the ideological points of view of specific songs.
I think some of these songs can be viewed through either a conservative or liberal viewpoint, which the FT article sort of alludes to in its discussion of the No. 1 song.
My question: What other rock songs do you think express conservative values and why?
One for consideration: Legal Kill by King's X. A song that protests abortion. "I believe the fight for life is always real / I can't believe it's no big deal / it's a legal kill."
UPDATE: I guess 'tis the season for lists. Check out Wizbang's list of 100 best punk songs.
1 comment:
Okay, I’ll give it a shot:
“Conservative” songs:
Avril Lavigne, “Anything but Ordinary.”
Beatles, “Fool on the Hill.”
Coldplay, “Everything’s not Lost.”
Dave Matthews Band, “When the World Ends.”
Fleetwood Mac, “I’m so Afraid.”
Monkees, “Daydream Believer.”
Kidding. Just kidding.
I tried to think of some conservative songs, but I couldn’t find any. It is definitely difficult to find ‘em. Personally, I like the non-partisan songs:
Live, “Beauty of Gray.”
Louis Armstrong, “What a Wonderful World.”
Police, “Every Breathe You Take.” Wait- how did that get in there?
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