Posted on 05/26/2006 12:39:03 PM PDT by Keflavik76
Rockin' the Right
The 50 greatest conservative rock songs.
By John J. Miller
EDITOR’S NOTE: This week on NRO, we’ve been rolling out the first five and now all 50 songs from a list John J. Miller compiled that appears in the June 5 issue of National Review . Here’s a look at #1 and get the whole list—complete with purchasing links—here.
On first glance, rock ’n’ roll music isn’t very conservative. It doesn’t fare much better on second or third glance (or listen), either. Neil Young has a new song called “Let’s Impeach the President.” Last year, the Rolling Stones made news with “Sweet Neo Con,” another anti-Bush ditty. For conservatives who enjoy rock, it isn’t hard to agree with the opinion Johnny Cash expressed in “The One on the Right Is on the Left”: “Don’t go mixin’ politics with the folk songs of our land / Just work on harmony and diction / Play your banjo well / And if you have political convictions, keep them to yourself.” In other words: Shut up and sing.
But some rock songs really are conservative — and there are more of them than you might think. Last year, I asked readers of National Review Online to nominate conservative rock songs. Hundreds of suggestions poured in. I’ve sifted through them all, downloaded scores of mp3s, and puzzled over a lot of lyrics. What follows is a list of the 50 greatest conservative rock songs of all time, as determined by me and a few others. The result is of course arbitrary, though we did apply a handful of criteria.
(Excerpt) Read more at article.nationalreview.com ...
"The neighborhood bully just lives to survive, He's criticized and condemned for being alive. He's not supposed to fight back, he's supposed to have thick skin, He's supposed to lay down and die when his door is kicked in. He's the neighborhood bully."
Ping
Related thread from last night:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1638516/posts
Good stuff!
Great article, some really wonderful songs.
It don't really matter to me, baby,
Everybody's had to fight to be free,
You see you don't have to live like a refugee.
I prefer "Gloria" by Van Morrison & Them. :-]
It dont get more conservative than that!
Left off the list was the song Anthem by Rush:
Live for yourself -- there's no one else more worth living for.
Begging hands and bleeding hearts will only cry out for more.
We can do the innuendo, we can dance and sing
When it's said and done, we haven't told you a thing
We all know that crap is king, give us dirty laundry
Bush Was Right--The Right Brothers
http://www.therightbrothers.com/order.php#mp3
Okie from Muskogee
by Merle Haggard
We don't smoke marijuana in Muskogee;
We don't take our trips on LSD
We don't burn our draft cards down on Main Street;
We like livin' right, and bein' free.
I'm proud to be an Okie from Muskogee,
A place where even squares can have a ball
We still wave Old Glory down at the courthouse,
And white lightnin's still the biggest thrill of all
We don't make a party out of lovin';
We like holdin' hands and pitchin' woo;
We don't let our hair grow long and shaggy,
Like the hippies out in San Francisco do.
And I'm proud to be an Okie from Muskogee,
A place where even squares can have a ball.
We still wave Old Glory down at the courthouse,
And white lightnin's still the biggest thrill of all.
Leather boots are still in style for manly footwear;
Beads and Roman sandals won't be seen.
Football's still the roughest thing on campus,
And the kids here still respect the college dean.
We still wave Old Glory down at the courthouse,
In Muskogee, Oklahoma, USA.
Two songs I was surprised weren't on his list:
"Unborn Child" by Seals and Croft
"We're Not Gonna Take It" by Twisted Sister
I'm glad to see Rush made it twice. My initial thought was "Trees", so glad it made #11. I'll need to check the Lyrics for "Tom Sawyer" - something in there about not bowing to any god or government as I recall. (Again - probably more Libertarian than "conservative".
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Bush Was Right Freedom in Afghanistan, say goodbye Taliban Chorus Democracy is on the way, hitting like a tidal wave Repeat Chorus Ted Kennedy – wrong! Economy is on the rise kicking into overdrive Repeat Chorus Cheney was right, Condi was right, © 2005 Pool Guy Music (ASCAP), All rights reserved. |
What's the other Rush song with the lyrics -
You don't get something for nothing,
You can't have freedom for free.
You won't get rich with the sleep still in your eyes,
No matter what your dreams might be.
Leonard Cohen's The Future is pretty conservative in a bleak sorta way.
That would be Something For Nothing.
Surprisingly, a great commentary on the media by Frank Zappa:
I'm The Slime
by Frank Zappa
I am gross and perverted
I'm obsessed 'n deranged
I have existed for years
But very little had changed
I am the tool of the Government
And industry too
For I am destined to rule
And regulate you
I may be vile and pernicious
But you can't look away
I make you think I'm delicious
With the stuff that I say
I am the best you can get
Have you guessed me yet?
I am the slime oozin' out
From your TV set
You will obey me while I lead you
And eat the garbage that I feed you
Until the day that we don't need you
Don't got for help...no one will heed you
Your mind is totally controlled
It has been stuffed into my mold
And you will do as you are told
Until the rights to you are sold
That's right, folks..
Don't touch that dial
Well, I am the slime from your video
Oozin' along on your livin'room floor
I am the slime from your video
Can't stop the slime, people, lookit me go
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