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Politics and Music: Class Meetings
Professor Courtney Brown
Meeting #21: Nonmovement Social and Political
Protest Music, Part IV
SELECTIONS played in class:
Video Selections:
U2: Sunday Bloody Sunday
Sting: They Dance Alone (Cueca Solo)
Rolling Stones: Undercover of the Night
Michael Jackson: Earth Song
QUESTIONS and DISCUSSION: All of the songs presented today dealt with political violence. The selections by U2, Sting, and the Rolling Stones addressed specific instances or conflicts. Sunday Bloody Sunday is about the murder of unarmed Catholic demonstrators in Northern Ireland by British paratroopers in 1972. They Dance Alone is about political violence in Chile during the repressive Pinochet regime. Undercover of the Night addresses conflict in Central America. In all of these cases, the sympathy of the song is directed toward those who are generally powerless (often women) and who suffer at the hands of those in political power. These powerful songs have "narrow" political spectrums since they address conflicts in specific nations or areas. Earth Song has a "broad" political spectrum since it addresses not only violence of man against man, but (and importantly) man against Earth (as a planet). The song's content crosses national boundaries, and it is not limited to any one conflict. The song brings to mind the concept of Gaia, the mother Earth Goddess of ancient times and the focus of attention for environmentalists such as James Lovelock and Peter Russell. It is important to be able to distinguish between "broad" and "narrow" political spectrum songs. Can you identify other songs that are political, and can you categorize them as having broad or narrow political spectrums? Try. It's fun!