“I was blessed with the gift of music, and I use that gift to represent the positive things in life” – Lenny Kravitz
1950s:
As the world tried to get itself back on its feet after the horrifying, unfathomable World War II, there were artists that were ready to take people to a happier time with a new frontier of music far dispersed from anything previously known.
In America, more and more discontentment spread throughout the nation in regards to equal rights, and the civil movement (1955-1968) that would change everything for African Americans was about to explode.
Elvis Presley was one of the most legendary musicians of all time. Even if you’re not a fan of his music or morality, you have to admit that he broke the conservative grasp on musicians and paved the way for future artists to push boundaries beyond the presently accepted.
After a short lived period of thrilling new upbeat music, fate worked against the music world and took the lives of The Big Bopper, Buddy Holly, and Richie Valens in 1959. This tragic accident saddened the nation and dampened a briefly lit candle that shone the path of new expression. But that period of music would be ending soon anyway, with the new forefront coming in the 1960s.
Some popular artists from the 1950s included Nat King Cole, Tony Bennett, Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Jerry Lewis, Johnny Cash, Doris Day, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, Connie Francis, and Cliff Richard.
1960s:
Both the 1960s and 1970s may have been the most influential musical decades we will ever witness. It wasn’t a time of materialism, judgmental minds, or insecurities. It was literally a revolution; one of music and its power, and one of people. It was a time of freedom: free minds, free spirits, free music, free love.
The British Invasion, including The Beatles, The Who, The Rolling Stones, and The Animals was an influx of musical talent and spirit that would forever change American culture.
Bob Dylan, one of the most respected poets and songwriters of all times, held no barrier on expressing his concern for social matters and his disregard for war and other inhumane practices. He glorified the civil rights movement and bringing people together. Perhaps Dylan’s courage to stand against the norm; not step down; not keep quiet, was a large part of the encouragement of anti-war outrage later in the decade. However, most of these “protest songs” were all written in the period between January 1962 and November 1963. Two of these very infamous antiwar anthems are “Blowing In the Wind” (1962); which was also performed along with and solely by Joan Baez; and “The Times They Are A-Changin’” (1964).
Woodstock 1969
The most famous festival held in American, if not world, history, was originally planned for 50,000 attendees in Upstate New York. Around 400,000 showed up over the 3 day milestone in American culture.
Joe McDonald was discharged from the US Navy in 1965 after several years of service. He wrote “I Feel Like I’m Fixin’ to Die Rag” and performed it at several colleges and universities, just as awareness of Vietnam War’s heinous events became more and more widespread, and more and more people wanted to do something about it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3W7-ngmO_p8
Joe Cocker “With A Little Help From My Friends”, although originally a Beatles’ track, Joe Cocker’s performance during Woodstock in 1969 gave a clear demonstration of the passion and intensity those artists and that crowd felt together.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQYDvQ1HH-E&feature=related
Other monumental songs speaking out against the war and politics include Richie Havens’ “Freedom”, Pete Seeger’s “Bring Them Home” (1966), “Simple Song of Freedom” by Bobby Darin (1969), the famous “Volunteers” by Jefferson Airplane (1969), and the equally famous “Fortunate Son” by Creedence Clearwater Revival (1969).
Watch the video for “Freedom”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQEehwydZbA
Bob Marley
One of the most significant figures of music during the 1960s and through the ‘70s was Bob Marley. From 1964 to 1974 he was part of the band called The Wailers. Unique for being able to represent Jamaica and spread his native sounds and music to the rest of the world, Marley has been revered as a musical and guitar genius by many. Not only was he quickly becoming a musical icon, he was also happy to spread the knowledge of Rastafarian beliefs and practices. Rastafarians smoke marijuana, which was widely popular with the younger generations, flower children, and hippies if you will, of that time period.
Although there were many masterful songs throughout his 20 year career, perhaps one of the most famous songs Bob Marley ever wrote, “Redemption Song” wasn’t written until 1979, around the time he was diagnosed with terminal cancer. In this song he proclaimed his “views on nuclear proliferation, and slavery,” (Wikipedia). His character, passion, and virtue led him to be an icon for Jamaica, America, and the rest of the world.
He passed away in 1981, at a far-too-young age of 36. His music and legend will go on forever.
1970s
The band Chicago’s Robert Lamm and Terry Kath wrote “It Better End Soon” in 1969/1970 with lyrics that would be in no way misconstrued for anything else than the truths of the effect of war.
The music that engulfed a majority of the 1960s, referred to by some as soul music or free music, carried on to the beginning of the 70s.
Although folk music lost significant popularity back in 60s to the new rock and soul taking over the scene, one artist who kept folk music alive (still to this day actually) was Joni Mitchell. Her songs were peaceful, eloquent, and feel-good, the sort of free spirited vibe that era represented. After attending Woodstock in ’69, by one month later Joni had written and performed a song she entitled “Woodstock”. In it she sings:
“And I dreamed I saw the bombers,
Riding shotgun in the sky,
And they were turning into butterflies,
Above our nation.”
This could be Joni’s way of expressing how everyone was scared of the war, and scared of it coming over to America, or more young innocent men being drafted to go overseas to fight. These thoughts were being expressed during Woodstock and the time around it; it was a chance for artists to try and reach out to the public to get the masses to stand up against what’s wrong.
Another single hit that had an enormous impact on the nation (in a time of protest and unanimous discontent) and still does today was Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On”. This song was released in 1971, a time when there was no light at the end of the tunnel yet for the end of the war, and Americans (especially youths) were still protesting, still struggling to be heard in their strong opposition. “What’s Going On” was so impacting in 1971, that is was redone in 2001 by several modern music artists trying to express their desire to make a difference in society.
The entire song rings true for the times, but what I think are the most potent lyrics:
“Mother, mother
There’s too many of you crying
Brother, brother, brother
There’s far too many of you dying
You know we’ve got to find a way
To bring some lovin’ here today .”
“Father, father
We don’t need to escalate
You see, war is not the answer
For only love can conquer hate
You know we’ve got to find a way
To bring some lovin’ here today.”
As well as:
“Picket lines and picket signs
Don’t punish me with brutality.”
Another massive music art form was psychedelic music such as the timeless masterpieces composed and performed by the members of Pink Floyd. Although they formed in 1965, the band wasn’t really arranged until 1968, with several composition changes to occur. Pink Floyd’s amazing guitar and keyboard work and heart breaking lyrical poetry made the world fall in love, or in a trance. Due to the ever popular hallucinogenic drugs in the ‘60s and ‘70s, Pink Floyd locked fans in for life with their amazing light shows and visual performances along with brilliant music for their shows.
Some of Pink Floyd’s music, such as “Another Brick in the Wall” and “Welcome to the Machine”, unmistakably spoke out against “the system”, or lack of freedom and creativity that follows a strict government-controlled society.
By 1975 all American troops were out of Vietnam. However, the mental and physical damage and grief upon much of the American youth had been done. Now the younger generations didn’t want to be told they couldn’t listen to certain music, or that songs can’t have profanity. A new era of music was dawning, albeit a much darker one.
1980s
From the turn of the decade it was apparent that the music was going to be quite different there on out. Rock & Roll became main stream, and heavier, louder music was desired by all. 1984 saw Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the U.S.A.”, a song directed at the majority of Americans to boost their nationalism, even if they’re facing hardships.
Michael Jackson
In 1982, Michael Jackson crushed the scene with his album, Thriller. To this day, it is still the best selling record of all time. Michael was part of a new movement of music that would rule the majority for many years to come: Pop. Known as “The King of Pop” he is known for his giving nature. He might not have been handing out free music on the street, but the hundreds of millions of dollars that he donated makes him one of the most generous artists in history.
In 1984, Jackson’s charity efforts and support was recognized by the President Ronald Reagan. Also in that year, Jackson donated around $8 million (all his earnings from touring that year) to charity. To continue using his celebrity for good cause, he joined with Lionel Richie the following year to compose and record “We Are the World” to increase awareness and support for those in need around the world. Jackson was able to donate millions of dollars to assist famine-stricken areas and countries in the U.S. and Africa.
Carrying onward in the ‘90s, Jackson founded Heal the World Foundation. He personally assisted underprivileged children and gave them a chance to experience more. Millions of dollars have been distributed across the globe to children in poverty, disease filled areas, and even war zones. $100 million of Jackson’s earnings from another tour was directly donated to the foundation.
In the mid ‘80s, Ryan White became famous after being expelled from his school after notification that he had HIV/AIDS. After he passed away in 1990, Jackson was determined to use his status to heighten awareness of the taboo topic. He persuaded the presidential administration to budget more money into research and medical treatments for those with the disease.
Rap & Hip Hop is born
A great feat of new expression through music came in the ‘80s with the beginning of rap and hip-hop. Artists that are accredited for this commencement include Gradmaster Flash, N.W.A., Public Enemy and more. This was a profound and effective way for an under-heard and under-represented segment of society to speak out against injustice, discrimination, and poverty.
N.W.A.’s “Fuck the Police” in 1988 was an enormous hit and perhaps eye-opener to the anger and disparity of these artists who came from these horrible living conditions and had been treated unfairly by police authorities. Police discrimination against blacks, Spanish, and other minorities became a popular topic in this new genre of music.
Also in 1988 rapper KRS-One created the Stop the Violence Movement in an effort to lower the horribly high amount of violence amongst minority communities.
Punk
Punk music steadily increased in popularity and spread into other areas, hardcore for example. Some people joined the punk movement to be part of a community that stood for something. The “Straight Edge” community was said to stem from these days. It was, and still is, a very interesting way to express yourself through your choice in music and perhaps discourage judgmental people who would automatically assume that followers of certain music genres would be into drugs, sex, and alcohol.
Electronic Music
America’s own branch of electronic dance music, techno was formed in the late 1980s in the warehouse districts of Detroit, Michigan. Also during this time was the creation of house, a more melodic and vocal form of electronic music, rumoured to have started in Chicago before moving and growing rapidly in New York City. From there this new breadth of energy in music spread across the ocean to Europe, where it has remained mainstream and more common than most other genres ever since.
Artists working with this new form of music had the world of possibilities at their fingertips with the new concept of keyboarding, synthesizing, and using beat boxes. A new form of artistic talent and ingenuity expression was born.
1990s
Many issues in the 1990s that artists tried to reach out to people for involved gay and lesbian rights, and also equal work rights for women. Artist Ani DeFranco was at the head of this so-called third-wave feminism. Along with many others, she led in “protesting sexism, sexual abuse, homophobia, reproductive rights as well as racism, poverty, and war,” (Wikipedia). In her music, along with many other artists who stood for and wrote songs about women’s equality, she would describe women’s inhibitions resulting from years of submission and inequality. This has led the modern women to not be an individual and express herself as she should feel completely free to do. This movement proved as a great confidence surge to women of all walks of life, and actually saw increases of businesswomen in the workforce.
In government opposition, one band took a new age approach of musical demonstration. “Rage Against the Machine, formed in 1991, has been one of the most popular ’social-commentary’ bands of the last 20 years. A fusion of the musical styles and lyrical themes of punk, hip-hop, and thrash, Rage Against the Machine railed against corporate America (“No Shelter”, “Bullet in the Head”), government oppression (“Killing in the Name”), and Imperialism (“Sleep Now in the Fire”, “Bulls on Parade”). The band used its music as a vehicle for social activism, as lead singer Zack de la Rocha espoused: ‘Music has the power to cross borders, to break military sieges and to establish real dialogue,’” (Wikipedia).
As gay and lesbian culture became more and more accepted, less artists found needs to compose songs that spoke about their injustices. However, artists today still celebrate sexual freedom of our modern society. Injustices between the police and the minorities continued, as did the quickly evolving and growing genres of rap and hip hop, but it no longer seemed the main topic of song creation from those artists.
This also occurred with many of the other topics that stirred chaos and unrest for the American public over the decades. The nineties proved a relatively tame decade for demonstrations through music.
2000s
Unfortunately, overall contentment for a nation can only last so long. The resurgence of the protest song and expression through the art of music came back full speed after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
Taking a song that worked so many years before for a different war that was upsetting different people, a group of popular American artists released a remake of Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Goin’ On”. It had originally been made to increase AIDS awareness, but then video edited to provide the public with a touching and beautiful rendition of a classic protest song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPYqR1cj2Vg
As time after the attacks progressed, more and more concern about the US government’s response and strategies of waging war became apparent. Neil Young even created a protest song entitled “Let’s Impeach the President”.
Of the many artists who expressed their grief, anguish, and perhaps for some outrage, Bruce Springsteen has been a prominent figure it the new surge of protest music. He released an entire album called The Rising which demonstrates the effects that he and his fellow countrymen felt from 9/11. In 2006 he released another album of protest songs from Pete Seeger called We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions; a collection of Springsteen’s remake of popular folk protest songs.
In 2006, modern popular pop artist Pink released her track titled “Dear Mr. President”. This is a perfect example of a distraught citizen who feels her own nation’s government has betrayed her. Using her celebrity status, she held nothing back and performed it live and released it for the public, and the President to enjoy. A very strong section of lyrics is as follows:
“How do you sleep while the rest of us cry?
How do you dream when a mother has no chance to say goodbye?
How do you walk with your head held high?
Can you even look me in the eye
And tell me why?”
Lenny Kravitz has also released a track titled “We Want Peace” which he recorded with Iraqi pop artist Kadim Al Sahir, Arab-Israeli strings musician Simon Shaheen, and Lebanese percussionist Jamey Hadded. It’s a great demonstration that we’re all people, we’re all equal, we can work together to resolve conflict without the use of violence.
More directly accusing are artists like Bobby Conn, wrote composed an entire album to demonstrate his negative opinions of Bush and the presidential administration. The album is titled The Homeland.
2010s:
There are a plethora of more artists who have either entire albums or tracks that were written to express their views, opinions, and feelings about what’s going on, politically, globally, etc. Most Americans feel together, but perhaps when we hear music say the things we want to say, it makes feeling together easier. That was the inspiration behind Woodstock with the Vietnam War and the military draft. I think our country has grown softer, and that had we came together when we really needed each other in 2001 and forced answers to our questions and got celebrities together in protest, perhaps things would be different today. Whatever the outcome of the current state, one thing is crystal clear after reviewing the influential music over the last half century: music is an amazing gift that can bring complete strangers together and, with enough energy, bring about the necessary and desired changes to make a better place.
