American Protest Music

Comparisons are often made between Vietnam and Iraq. (My favorite joke right now is "Vietnam is nothing like Iraq. Bush had a plan to get out of Vietnam.) One of the few comparisons that are completely invalid concerns the music industry's response to the Iraq war. Maybe it has something to do with the industry's blacklisting of the Dixie Chicks, or maybe it has to do with the severe decline in the quality of songwriters and performers, but when you compare the protest music during the Vietnam War era to the protest music during the Iraq war era, well, there is no comparison because aside from British singer/songwriter Billy Bragg and a handful of independent bands flying well under the radar of even satellite and college radio, there has been precious little protest music concerning the policies of the Bush government. This isn't really surprising; there's been precious little protest music in America since the 70s.

Like most revolutionary genres, protest music arose out of a response to unfair and exploitative labor practices. The first protest records sprang from the reaction to big business, also known as The Man or-as I and Homer Simpson prefer-Whitey, and the capitalist owners' desire to get as much work as possible for the least possible salary and benefits. One of the first truly memorable and effective protest records grew out of the horrendous-still-exploitation of coal miners in America: "Hard Times in Colman's Mines" by Aunt Molly Jackson. Of course, the most famous and probably misunderstood revolutionary protest song to grow out of the anger and depression caused by unfair labor practices was "Sixteen Tons." This song became a monster hit for country singer Tennessee Ernie Ford. Of course, Ernie Ford softened the impact of the astoundingly socialist cry "I owe my soul to the company store." However, if you rent Joe Versus the Volcano, you will understand better just why that song was a socialist anthem as well as a country music staple.