Politics & Music

With all the controversy over the Dixie Chick's comments and the happenings on the CIA outing, here's a timely article from PopMatters | Columns | Shadi Hamid | Gimme Some Truth | Politics & Music:

"Too many pundits, in these troubled times, assert that music and politics don't mix. They say music cannot be a source for change. Indeed, it is hard to measure just how much of a tangible effect music has on anything. But, have they forgotten about the 60s ? That turbulent decade showed us the potential power of music as a source of mobilization. It was songs like Dylan's 'The Times They are a-Changing' and the Rolling Stones' 'Street Fighting Man' that provided the soundtrack to the great movements of the '60s. Music was a driving force, a catalyst, a mode of angered expression. It was through music that a whole generation expressed its hopes, dreams, and aspirations. When the Beatles sang 'All You Need Is Love' in 1967, they were speaking for millions of people who wanted to believe in something greater than themselves. "

While Neil Young's Greendale doesn't quite compare to his 70's anti-war anthem Ohio , it is certainly a powerful statement mixing music and politics.

More on the Dixie Chicks Politics.

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