UN Forces (Get Out of the Democratic Republic of Congo)(Vumbi Dekula) Cry, Accursed country! The people of the Democratic Republic of Congo formerly, Zaire, and before that Belgian Congo a.k.a. King Leopold’s personal estate, have endured war, genocide, Cold War politics, Grand Corruption, death and despair and neighbourly interference from Rwanda, Angola and Uganda for decades. The UN mission MONUSCO, which stands for the United Nations Organization’s Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (in French) like several other such missions has been given a shitty job which they are , according to many critics, like Vumbi Dekula, a guitarist from East Kivu one of the worst spots in a sad and violent country, doing a shit job of. My recommendation for a wonderful podcast which often takes deep dives into this part of the world is the International Crisis Group’s Hold Your Fire.
New York Time Blues (Tony Dolan) OK, this I did not expect. Anthony R. Dolan, long -time advisor and speechwriter for Ronald Reagan and prominent Republicans in the 80s and 90s, ‘Tony’ Dolan gave the world The Evil Empire speech and the Ash heap of History, two of the Ray-gun’s memorable public outings. He was still giving advice to DJT in the (real) early days of Trump2 but passed away in March this year. Before his stellar rise in conservative politics, Tony tried his hand as a protest singer; with a twist. He was conservative and like all good Cons loved to rail against the New York Times which probably was regularly rejecting his submissions!
(Wanted) Dead or Alive (The Manhattan Transfer) calypso tribute to some our favourite tyrants of the 60s and 70s. No gold stars for identifying the songwriter—the one and only Mighty Sparrow.
Ready or Not (Jackson Browne) The one he wrote after breaking up with Joni Mitchell and getting his new girlfriend ‘in a family way’. The last verse of which he is horribly embarrassed by, even today. Start at 28.30
The Battle of Blair Mountain (JD Allen) Born in Detroit, Michigan, on December 11, 1972, sax player JDAllen first became interested in music listening to classic funk and R&B albums by Sly and the Family Stone, Prince, and Marvin Gaye. The Battle of Blair Mountain sonically depicts the 1921 labor uprising (the largest in American history) and armed resistance in West Virginia, sounding half-heroic and half-doleful in its procedures.
In Bed with the Enemy (Jack Hardy) As an antidote to track 5 here is a more modern protest song calling out the usual rats who run Big Business and Big Politics. Jack Hardy has been around a long time making good records. He’s featured in several volumes of my Forgotten Country Rock of the 70s series.
Abe Lincoln vs. Madison Avenue (Bob Newhart). Bob never gets old!
The Year King Uzziah Died (The Soul Stirrers) Unlike so many of the Biblical heroes (David, Solomon, Abraham, Moses) King Uzzaih is on pretty solid ground as far as historicity goes. In another weird interest of mine, Biblical Archeology, I recommend a lively, irreverent yet serious podcast that explores the Bible’s narratives against the solidity of history.
Brisbane Blacks (Mop & The Dropouts) In September 1982, Brisbane hosted the 12th Commonwealth Games. With the world’s eyes on Australia, First Nations people from around the country converged on the Queensland capital to march for Aboriginal rights. Local muso Mop Conlon wrote ‘Brisbane Blacks’ so Aboriginal rights wouldn’t become yesterday’s news. Despite what seems like an annual hand-wringing of hands over ‘what to do about the Aboriginals’ Australia’s leaders’ ability to make headway is one of the sorriest stories in First Nations history. Deaths of black Australians in custody is something that just keeps on happening, despite countless ‘investigations’ and thousands of recommendations for change. Shame.
Tijuana Bible (Tom Russell) Lana Turner, a violent gangster and a frightened girl. What is a Tijuana Bible you ask? Have a look. What does Johnny Stompanato have to do with Tijuana Bibles, you ask? Well, he may not have been a featured character in a Tijuana Bible but as Russell suggests, the story of his death is exactly the sort of sensational scandalous material TB’s loved to publish.
My Man [Eagles] – Gram Parsons was not really an Eagles fan. He famously blew them off as ‘bubblegum’ just before he passed away in 1973. He didn’t think they were country enough, even though they were being heralded as the ultimate country-rock players, a genre most historians agree Gram Parsons almost single-handedly invented. There was always a tug-of-war in the Eagles, country vs. Rock ‘n’ roll. Eventually, the rocker’s won. The two members of the band with the strongest country music credentials, Randy Meisner and Bernie Leadon, departed after Hotel California and One of These Nights respectively. Leadon had come to the Eagles originally after a short stint in the Flying Burrito Brothers, Parsons pioneering band, during which he played on their second album, Burrito Deluxe (1970). My Man was written and sung by Leadon as a tribute to his hero. It was included on their 1974 On the Border album, though it was issued as a single only in the UK.
Malcolm X [The Skatalites] ‘As the nation’s most visible proponent of Black Nationalism, Malcolm X’s challenge to the multiracial, nonviolent approach of Martin Luther King, Jr., helped set the tone for the ideological and tactical conflicts that took place within the black freedom struggle of the 1960s. Given Malcolm X’s abrasive criticism of King and his advocacy of racial separatism, it is not surprising that King rejected the occasional overtures from one of his fiercest critics. However, after Malcolm’s assassination in 1965, King wrote to his widow, Betty Shabazz: “While we did not always see eye to eye on methods to solve the race problem, I always had a deep affection for Malcolm and felt that he had the great ability to put his finger on the existence and root of the problem”.’ Malcolm X was gunned down in February 1965. The Skatalites released this tribute later in the year based upon Sidewinder by jazz trumpeter Lee Morgan released a year previous.
Presidential Rag [Arlo Guthrie] Nice guy Arlo digs the knife into Richard Nixon a few months before he resigned in disgrace. But with lines like, “Nobody elected your family/nobody elected your friends/no one voted your advisers/ and nobody wants the men” this could not be more topical to this current moment.
John Riley [Gráda] An Irish band singing about an Irishman stuck in the San Patricios who fought bravely in the Battle of Churobusco (1847) of the Spanish-American War. “This Mexican unit actually consisted of former American soldiers, mostly Irishmen, who had deserted in the face of anti-Irish sentiments in the old army, and wary of fighting a fellow Catholic nation. The San Patricios had made a name for themselves, fighting from Monterrey, Buena Vista, and Cerro Gordo. Knowing that defeat and capture meant almost certain death for desertion, the San Patricios kept fighting, tearing down the white flag of surrender that other Mexican troops tried to fly. Finally, they were subdued.”
Ode to Olivia [Stella Parton] Dolly’s sister stands up for Olivia Newton-John whose early forays into the American music scene were criticized for not being “real country music”. A debate that will rage till the next meteor wipes us all clean off Earth. “The Country Music Association’s founding premise in 1958 was to keep country music pure; to prevent the infiltration of rock ‘n’ roll. When Olivia won Female Vocalist of the Year in 1974, she raised eyebrows and ruffled feathers. Look at the titleists either side of her winning year: Loretta Lynn, Tammy Wynette, Dolly Parton – Nashville Royalty. Olivia remains the only non-American to win the CMA Female Vocalist of the Year. Heads of Nashville convened and formed the Association of Country Entertainers (ACE) in response, to lobby on behalf of traditional country artists. (It fell in a heap when John Denver won Entertainer of the Year the following year and Charlie Rich infamously burned the envelope with Denver’s name in it).” The song is interesting primarily because Dolly was not an Olivia fan at the time. When Stella sang it for her Dolly begged her not to share with Porter Wagoner, her singing partner at the time, apparently because he would freak out!
Vida Blue [Albert Jones] “Vida Blue burst onto the scene in major-league baseball as a fireballing left-hander for the Oakland A’s and served as one of the primary characters in the A’s streak of five division championships and three World Series championships. His career, which spanned from 1969 to 1986, would see high points, including the multiple World Series championships and outstanding pitching performances, as well as dark days, such as his suspension from the game for drug use and his involvement in one of the most publicized contract holdouts in the history of the game. In many ways, the ups and downs of Blue’s baseball career, both on and off of the field, reflected the times during which he played perhaps more than any other of his contemporaries.” Soulman Albert Jones was a Detroit boy and no doubt loved his hometown Tigers but Blue so captured the American imagination in the early 70s a song such as this is a valuable historical milestone. The song was inspired by Vida Blue’s incredible performance in 1971, when he achieved a 24-8 record with a 1.82 ERA, making him the standout player that year.
Lindy Comes to Town [Al Stewart] From Songfacts.com “Charles Lindbergh (1902-74) was an authentic American hero; he rose to fame after making the first nonstop flight from New York to Paris, but suffered personal tragedy when his baby son was kidnapped and murdered, a story that made worldwide headlines; German immigrant Bruno Hauptmann was tried, convicted and executed for the crime. Before the United States entered the Second World War, Lindbergh fought bitterly for the Isolationists, but after it was dragged in by the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, he dusted off his pilot’s wings and joined the conflict in the Pacific. Although Stewart has written many quite detailed biographical songs, this upbeat number focuses solely on Lindbergh’s epic 1927 flight in the Spirit of St Louis, a journey that took 33 1/2 hours and earned him the adulation of millions. It is an antidote to Woody Guthrie’s factually inaccurate “Lindbergh.”
Letter to Linda [Tanya Tucker] A love letter to Linda Ronstadt from Tanya Tucker.
Piney Brown Blues [Big Joe Turner] Written about a real/mythical (?) KC bartender and released in 1955. But a blues singer named Columbus Perry assumed the name Piney Brown in the late 40s and so perhaps this song is inspired by him. Maybe Perry was a bartender too? He did spend time in KC trying to get established before moving East.
Ford Econoline [Nancy Griffith] Inspired by the inspiring Rosalie Sorrells, American folk singer of Mormon roots who is way underappreciated. See more about her on the final track of this edition. Of course, the Ford Econoline, “A Workhorse with a Legacy”, has also inspired millions of Americans to haul shit around. When I was 19, we had our eye on one to refurbish and drive down to Mexico. Por supuesto, nunca lo hicimos.
Simply Spalding Gray [Steve Forbert]Spalding Gray was an iconic New York downtown actor and writer. He is most known for the autobiographical monologues that he wrote and performed for the theatre in the 1980s and 1990s. Theatre critics John Willis and Ben Hodges described his monologue work as “trenchant, personal narratives delivered on sparse, unadorned sets with a dry, WASP, quiet mania.” Gray became famous with his monologue Swimming to Cambodia, which was adapted into a film in 1987 by filmmaker Jonathan Demme. Other one-man shows by Gray that were captured on film include Monster in a Box, directed by Nick Broomfield, and Gray’s Anatomy, directed by Steven Soderbergh. Gray died in New York City, New York, of an apparent suicide in 2004.
From Little Things Big Things Grow [Kev Carmody & Paul Kelly] This song has become one of Australia’s informal national anthems. “[P]aying tribute to the Gurindji people, and becoming symbolic of the broader movement for Indigenous equality and land rights in Australia.”
Tennessee Valley Authority [Chatham County Line] The Tennessee Valley Authority act of May 18, 1933, created the Tennessee Valley Authority to oversee the construction of dams to control flooding, improve navigation, and create cheap electric power in the Tennessee Valley basin.
Brigham Young [Rosalie Sorrells] Rosalie Sorrells was one of those American folk artists that insisted on ploughing her own path which was accomplished but largely un(der)recognised. To quote an oft-quoted quote from Elijah Wald, “She traveled around the country while raising five children. She drinks strong men under the table and is the first one up in the morning, bright and cheery and planning one of her famous dinners. And she can make the noisiest barroom crowd shut up and listen when she sings.” See track 12 for Nancy Griffith’s tip of the hat to her. Brigham Young, of course, was the charismatic elder of the Morman Church during its formative pioneering years in Utah. Rosalie was not a Morman but wrote and sang a lot of songs about the community.
Missionaries, Mercenaries and Misfits 