Road rage inspires singer's troop tribute (Chely Wright and "The Bumper of My SUV")

CNN.com ^ | 14 December 2004 | Billboard Magazine

[Moose4]

NASHVILLE, Tennessee (Billboard) -- Leave it to sunny Chely Wright to turn an ugly situation into a popular -- and meaningful -- song. Now, that song has helped her land a new label deal.

About a year-and-a-half ago, Wright -- an established singer and performer -- was driving the Nashville streets when a motorist in a minivan behind her noticed the Marine Corps sticker on her bumper. Wright's brother is a Marine who sent her the sticker before he shipped off to Iraq.

The agitated woman began honking, swerving and flicking her lights. "I look in the rear view, and she's flipping me the bird, hard," Wright says. "I thought I cut her off, because I'm a really bad driver."

When the woman finally pulled up next to Wright and motioned for her to roll down her window, she gave the artist an earful of opinions about the war in Iraq.

"Your war is wrong," Wright remembers the woman screaming at her. "You're a baby killer."

She went home and immediately wrote a song about the incident, "The Bumper of My S.U.V." She put a demo of the song on tape, then tucked the tape in a drawer and promptly forgot about it.

[Moose4]

I haven't heard this song since I don't listen to country radio; the only country radio we have around here is the typical Clear Channel crap. It's an interesting story, though.

}:-)4

[Frank L]

Per rules.

[Voice in your head]

I don't plaster my political views on my car, for the same reason that I don't play my music loud enough for others to hear it - it is just obnoxious. But, this is over the top. A Marine sticker is offensive? I don't know if I could have resisted the urge to drive that nutcase off of the road.

[RebelBanker]

Here's the last paragraph of the story. Chely says she has "questions" about the situation in Iraq, but can ask them because we are free. Then she says:

"Nobody is pro-war," she continues. "Good God, what kind of an idiot is for war? But as long as we've got men and women on the ground risking life and limb to protect my freedom and to protect that lady's freedom to flip me the bird, I feel an obligation to take 10 days out of my busy life pretending to be a country music singer" and go perform for the troops.

[Blueflag]

http://chely.com

Buy the album for $15.

for the men ... scroll down about half way and order the, ahem, autographed "NLYE Autographed Glossy Color 8x10 " tank top < wink wink > temporarily sold out item.....

[I'm ALL Right!]

I've got a bright red sticker on the back of my car,
Says: "United States Marines."
An' yesterday a lady in a mini-van,
Held up her middle finger at me.
Does she think she knows what I stand for,
Or the things that I believe?
Just by looking at a sticker for the US Marines,
On the bumper of my S.U.V.

See, my brother Chris, he's been in,
For more than 14 years now.
Our Dad was in the Navy during Vietnam,
Did his duty, then he got out.
And my Grandpa earned his Purple Heart,
On the beach of Normandy.
That's why I've got a sticker for the US Marines,
On the bumper of my S.U.V.

But that doesn't mean that I want war:
I'm not Republican or Democrat.
But I've gone all around this crazy world,
Just to try to better understand.
An' yes, I do have questions:
I get to ask them because I'm free.
That's why I've got a sticker for the US Marines,
On the bumper of my S.U.V.

'Cause I've been to Hiroshima,
An' I've been to the DMZ.
I've walked on the sand in Baghdad,
Still don't have all of the answers I need.
But I guess I wanna know where she's been,
Before she judges and gestures to me,
'Cause she don't like my sticker for the US Marines,
On the bumper of my S.U.V.

So I hope that lady in her mini-van,
Turns on her radio and hears this from me.
As she picks up her kids,
From their private school,
An' drives home safely on our city streets.
Or to the building where her church group meets:
Yeah, that's why I've got a sticker for the US Marines,
On the bumper of my S.U.V.

[namsman]

When Namsman jr. becomes PFC Namsman next month, I'll have a Marine emblem and a bumper sticker ready to go on my car. My wife is already wearing her blue star pin and has a "Marine Mom" bumper sticker ready to go on the van. Picking a bumper sticker from the scores of great ones out there is a difficult task. Right now I'm favoring one that says: "One Nation Under God Protected by His Marines". Anybody that takes offense can kiss my pink Polish a**.

Namsman sends.

[Voice in your head]

I once saw a window sticker, designed like a common university sticker, that read "University of Vietnam - School of Warfare"

I'm still looking for one that reads "University of Iraq - School of Counterinsurgency"

[1rudeboy]

I heard this song a couple of weeks ago. Haven't listened to my country station since, for fear of hearing it again.

[aspiring.hillbilly]

Chely is a great singer, i would kiss each of her butt-cheeks in succession if only she would ask!

[Publius6961]

That bad huh?

[harpu]

"I heard this song a couple of weeks ago. Haven't listened to my country station since, for fear of hearing it again."...by 1rudeboy

"Chely is a great singer, i would kiss each of her butt-cheeks in succession if only she would ask!"...by aspiring.hillbilly

In total agreement with you, 'aspiring.hillbilly', but first I would have '1rudeboy's' ignorant ass up and down the street for an hour or so!

[1rudeboy]

Absolutely dreadful. To paraphrase a literary critic whose name escapes me at the moment, "the lyrics to this song should not be set-aside lightly. They should be thrown with great force."

[Pete'sWife]

I thought this story would end with the finger-flippin' lady on the bumper of her SUV.

Oh well...

[PleaseNoMore]

It's a good song.

[LisaMalia]

I don't plaster my political views on my car, for the same reason that I don't play my music loud enough for others to hear it - it is just obnoxious.

I don't call that obnoxious. I am still sporting a "W" sticker, as well as Bush/Cheney '04, and Interstate W ones on my ole Dodge Spirit. I also have a "Support our Troops" magnetic ribbon on my car.

What I do call obnoxious are the folks with Kerry bumper stickers who cut me off in traffic and flip me off while passing me.

I will be buying Chely's CD, and there will be some for my family members under the Christmas tree as well. I believe in contributing monitarity to those artists who support our troops, country and President, rather than the ones who disrespect them. The Chevy Chases and Babs Streisands of the world will never get another nickel of my hard earned entertainment bucks.

[Flashlight]

I thought I'd add that the line "where her church group meets" is meant to be sung with sarcasm (that's how she sang it on the Opry tv show, with her eyes rolling, as if saying "yeah, right.")

[RebelBanker]

[BurbankKarl]

Chely Wright is awesome...watch the video for free (Windows) here.

http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/wright_chely/artist.jhtml#



bttt

[af_vet_rr]

Hopefully Ms. Wright has nothing to do with her fan club's immoral activities in regards to where this song is at on the chart. It appears she is upset that some of her fan club members were calling/emailing radio stations and posing as members of the military or their families in some kind of misguided quest to drive the song up the charts.

[TheOtherOne]

Campaign of deception used to push patriotic song up charts


By JEANNE ANNE NAUJECK
Staff Writer

Country singer Chely Wright said yesterday she was dismissing the head of her fan club and shutting down a team of volunteers after The Tennessean learned that some of them posed as members of the military or their families to promote her latest song.

Seventeen members of a handpicked team of fans contacted radio stations around the country asking for more airplay for Wright's pro-military ballad, The Bumper of My SUV. It was all part of an organized campaign by leaders of the fan club who encouraged the team to do such things as ''tell 'em your husband is a marine — whatever it takes.''

[TheOtherOne]

Here are verbatim examples from the message board:

• On Nov. 22, ''Chuck'' urged team members to call several Kansas City radio stations and ''tell 'em your husband is a marine — whatever it takes.''

• On Oct. 30, ''Chuck'' said he had called about 40 radio stations under the name ''Sgt. Steve McKay.''

• On Oct. 28, ''Chuck'' posted this message: ''Sob stories and just telling how this song has affected u r going to work best. This song is what they call a reaction record and we need reaction.''

• On Oct. 25, ''Chuck'' suggested fans log on to military message boards and talk up the song. ''You can also fib a little and say you are in the armed forces and how this song needs to be heard — u get the picture,'' he wrote.

A separate e-mail to team members from Constantine contained a message that Hoffpauir said was forwarded from Walter. It said: ''I think with the Texas stations we should say — I am a Marine or Navy and so on, and tell the station they know of the song and in honor of them they should play it — it's worth a try.'' The e-mail is dated Dec. 14.

An Oct. 25 e-mail to ''special mission team'' from ''Sharon'' said, ''Remember this is a small group of special people, and as you know it has to be between us and only us (of course Chuck and Chely know LOL). We can't tell a soul outside of our family, so radio doesn't catch on.''

[Liberty Valance]

"I don't plaster my political views on my car..."

I'm with you there. A 3X5" American Flag sticker is all I need. It's also all that is needed for the folks looking at my bumper...although I did go out and buy a new Jeep Liberty to match my FReeper handle. ;o)