Whence "freak flag?"

May 3, 2006 9:30 AM

What's the original source of the phrase, "fly your freak flag high?"
posted by Chrysostom to writing & language (11 comments total)

The earliest I ever heard it: In the song "Almost Cut My Hair" by David Crosby.

Almost cut my hair
It happened just the other day
It was getting kind of long
I could have said it was in my way

But I didn't and I wonder why
I feel like letting my freak flag fly
And I feel like I owe it to someone
posted by wryly at 9:33 AM on May 3, 2006

"Almost Cut My Hair" by Crosby Stills Nash & Young comes close, and is the first time I heard it.

Almost cut my hair
It happened just the other day
It's gettin kinda long
I coulda said it wasn't in my way
But I didn't and I wonder why
I feel like letting my freak flag fly
Cause I feel like I owe it to someone
posted by Floydd at 9:34 AM on May 3, 2006

curse you, wryly!!!
posted by Floydd at 9:35 AM on May 3, 2006

I think Crosby, Stills, Nash & somebody sang a song about something like that.

(To all of us over a certain age, this is a no-brainer.)
posted by Doohickie at 9:41 AM on May 3, 2006

Hendrix's "If 6 Was 9" from 1967 had "wave my freak flag high."
posted by aiko at 9:43 AM on May 3, 2006

Doohickie: "...Crosby, Stills, Nash & somebody..."

And to all of us under a certain age, that's exactly the name of the group.
posted by Plutor at 10:42 AM on May 3, 2006

Hendrix was first.
posted by timeistight at 11:08 AM on May 3, 2006

I will now proceed to entangle the entire area
posted by Goofyy at 11:06 AM on May 4, 2006

I'd bet the phrase appeared multiple times in the mid-60s underground press before it showed up in rock music.
posted by mediareport at 7:40 AM on May 5, 2006

How much?
posted by timeistight at 3:38 PM on May 5, 2006

It's an expression, timeistight, but you knew that. I'm making a guess based on listening to and reading about mid-late-60s underground culture, where ideas/phrases often seemed to show up in popular chart-topping radio hits *after* appearing first in smaller-circulation underground books/zines/pamphlets/etc. In my experience, giving priority to pop stars in situations like this is almost always off-base.

YMMV.
posted by mediareport at 9:32 PM on May 5, 2006