Is it a song? It's probably relevant!
May 20, 2019 1:20 PM   Subscribe

I am teaching a graduate course (social sciences) on music and social justice in the coming Fall. It's a cool course, one not offered in a long time, and I am trying to drag it back to relevance from the depths of my department's catalog. What songs do you think should go into the 'course playlists'?

I know my way around both components of the course: music and social justice! But it's a bit tricky to organize and plot things out in the syllabus, and so I find myself needing some help filling in the gaps and blindspots.

I plan on building a weekly playlist of songs to accompany readings on a range of 'social justice' topics. Some of these are easier than others; a playlist of songs, for example, that in some way address 'police' is simple, while one on 'gender' is proving more difficult.

My themes, so far, are:
Race
Prison and punishment
Feminism (or gender and sexuality)
Class, capitalism, and political economy
Health and healthcare
Police
War
Environment

Genre is not important, nor is era. My tastes tend toward hip hop, punk, soul, and country, but I am entirely open to anything. Ideally, I want to assemble playlists of 10-20 songs per theme. I don't need (or desire) songs that directly or didactically take on a topic or theme or whatever, just songs that might contain a nugget of something useful on a topic, or that might reveal some specific dimension of an issue. Or even just songs that artfully express things that we likely already know.

So, pray tell, what songs or music do you think of when you think of these themes or issues, or just 'social justice' in general? Any suggestions on themes are also useful, as tunnel vision is a real thing when putting together a syllabus with a broad topic like 'social justice'. Thanks!
posted by still bill to Media & Arts (93 answers total) 26 users marked this as a favorite
 
Lupe Fiasco’s Around My Way comes to mind.
posted by gnutron at 1:29 PM on May 20, 2019


The catchiest song about benevolent sexism ever may be No Doubt's "Just A Girl".

(And if you want to go there, there's plenty to mine about White Feminism with Gwen Stefani)
posted by hollyholly at 1:34 PM on May 20, 2019 [3 favorites]




The first thing I thought of was the Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young song Ohio about the killing of four anti-war protesters at Kent State University by National Guard troops. I think that could go under War or Police.
posted by FencingGal at 1:42 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


I would consider putting songs like "Material Girl" and "Bitch Better Have My Money" on the "gender" section, as they raise the question of the degree to which it's even possible for a song to subvert these tropes or whether it will just immediately be co-opted by capitalism.
posted by praemunire at 1:43 PM on May 20, 2019 [7 favorites]


I think it would be important to cover the 60s folk revival, which has songs covering the whole spectrum of topics you list. I can get a list together later. Also, from even earlier, union protest songs.

Generally speaking, how much do you plan to address this topic by distinct movements as opposed to themes? If I were doing a course like this I think I'd organize it by era and movement as well as by topic.
posted by showbiz_liz at 1:43 PM on May 20, 2019 [2 favorites]


gil scott-heron and brian jackson, angola louisiana, who'll pay reparations on my soul.
scott-heron is a deep vein: no knock, whitey on the moon, gun; lotsa good work on watergate and the reagan years. a little bit dated, but, alas, most of the objects of his criticism still feel fresh and unabated.
posted by 20 year lurk at 1:44 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


Feminism
Peggy Seeger - I’m Gonna Be an Engineer

Sexuality
Tom Robinson Band - Glad to be Gay
posted by Morfil Ffyrnig at 1:47 PM on May 20, 2019 [3 favorites]


There are tons of Irish rebel songs.

What about songs such as "Which side are you on?"

"Alice's Restaurant" sounds like a no-brainer for this.

"Fight the Power"


There is actually a pretty comprehensive list of songs from the last 40 years or so here. For a course, though, I'd think you'd want to include more historical examples.
posted by slkinsey at 1:49 PM on May 20, 2019 [3 favorites]


I have a massive playlist of songs like this. I'll memail the list to you once I get it organized by topic for you.
posted by irisclara at 1:49 PM on May 20, 2019


I don't know if this is allowed bc i'm actually in this band, so feel free to delete or ignore, but i'm in this band War on Women and we are current and active right now and make it a point to play shows and tours where we are not preaching to the choir or whatever. We sing about intersectional feminism and related topics and we also have really sick riffs
here's one video, there are a lot more too but i'm done self linking
(CW: lyrics talk about sexual abuse)
War on Women - Anarcha
posted by capnsue at 1:52 PM on May 20, 2019 [8 favorites]


Growing up in the 70's, I got to hear aging socialists singing Union Maid around the campfire.

"Oh, you can't scare me, I'm sticking to the union/I'm sticking to the union, I'm sticking to the union/Oh, you can't scare me, I'm sticking to the union/I'm sticking to the union 'til the day I die."
posted by Mr.Know-it-some at 1:54 PM on May 20, 2019 [2 favorites]


Prison / Punishment:
Rotting on Remand - Billy Bragg
posted by Duffington at 1:57 PM on May 20, 2019 [2 favorites]


Might be interesting to include some songs written in response to the AIDS crisis, here is a list.
posted by Waiting for Pierce Inverarity at 1:59 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


I'm a teacher and I work with TeachRock.org. We've written hundreds of lessons that incorporate music into history with a massive emphasis on social justice. I would start here with Teenage Rebellion which features The Beatles, the Rolling Stones and we have lessons with Childish Gambino, Kendrick Lamar, Elvis and everyone in between.
posted by yes I said yes I will Yes at 2:04 PM on May 20, 2019 [6 favorites]


I walked down the aisle to Union Maid, it's a good one. It's Pete Seeger's centenary year, the Smithsonian is doing a ton of related material including a new box set.

I spent my early twenties listening to a lot of Liz Phair and sleeping with art school dudes, so if you want some complicated discussions of feminism I recommend that first record.

Lately I have been enjoying a genre I think of as "sad raps" which encompasses some Kendrick, some Childish Gambino, some Schoolboy Q, some Wiz Khalifa, the occasional The Weeknd - everything is so depressing, everyone is so high, money floats through the air and goes nowhere, it's peculiar and terribly navel gazing and probably can be mined for lots of material about masculinity and blackness in the present moment.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 2:07 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


Prison and punishment: Steve Earle's "Billy Austin."

Now my waitin's over
As the final hour drags by
I ain't about to tell you
That I don't deserve to die
But there's twenty-seven men here
Mostly black, brown and poor
Most of em are guilty
Who are you to say for sure?

(Context, from the NYT.)
posted by MonkeyToes at 2:07 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


Response by poster: Thanks for all the suggestions so far! These are great, so keep em coming!

showbiz_liz: Yeah, I toyed with all sorts of organizational ideas, including organizing more by movement or genre. I dropped that scheme, though, because there are too many great/important songs and moments that completely throw off a more historical or chronological organization. Plus, knowing my grad students, they'll reorganize it into themes anyway!

praemunire: Congratulations, you just aced the final!

Waiting for Pierce Inverarity: Fantastic, these will really help flesh out a few thematic categories!
posted by still bill at 2:08 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]




for starters how about:
Hell You Talmbout by Janelle Monet
Do Re Mi by Woody Guthrie
Fuck Police Brutality by Anti Flag
Winning the War on Drugs by The Asylum Street Spankers
Racist Friend by They Might Be Giants
War Between The States by The Austin Lounge Lizards
Rabble Rouse and Trickle Down by the Atomic Duo
If I Had A Rocket Launcher by Bruce Cockburn
Political Science by Randy Newman
Rehumanize Yourself by The Police
Hurricane, Blowing In The Wind, Masters Of War, etc. by Bob Dylan
Backlash Blues and Mississippi Goddam by Nina Simone
(Nothing But) Flowers by The Talking Heads
Deportee - the version I like best is by Guy Clark and Nancy Griffith
Monster by Steppenwolf
Sisters are Doin' It For Themselves by Aretha Franklin and The Eurythymics
Testify by Rage Against The Machine
Burnin' and Lootin' by Bob Marley
Union Town by Tom Morello
Rosa, Rosa by Otis Taylor
Michigan Militia by Moxy Fruvous
Bread and Roses by Bobbie McGhee
Short Memory by Midnight Oil
Attica State by John Lennon
A Church Is Burning by Paul Simon
Lift Every Voice and Sing by Merry Clayton
Can't Blame the Youth by Bob Marley
posted by irisclara at 2:08 PM on May 20, 2019 [2 favorites]


Health and healthcare

Amerika v. 6.0 (The Best We Can Do) - Steve Earle

Look around
There's doctors down on Wall Street
Sharpenin' their scalpels and tryin' to cut a deal
Meanwhile, back at the hospital
We got accountants playin' God and countin' out the pills
Yeah, I know, that sucks - that your HMO
Ain't doin' what you thought it would do
But everybody's gotta die sometime and we can't save everybody
It's the best that we can do
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 2:09 PM on May 20, 2019 [4 favorites]


fela kuti - class, capitalism, political economy and police themes, maybe:
I.T.T.
Army Arrangement
posted by 20 year lurk at 2:13 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


You might check out the Flobot's album No Enemies, created as sort of "activist hip-hop." The songs touch on a lot of different issues
posted by LKWorking at 2:15 PM on May 20, 2019


Feminism:
Fallen Angel by Sister 7
Seconding I'm Gonna Be an Engineer by Peggy Seeger (god I love that song)
posted by olinerd at 2:17 PM on May 20, 2019


Chris Williamson's Waterfall from The Changer and the Changed is maybe the greatest hit of the 70s Women's Music movement.

The label it came out on, Olivia Records, was also at the center of a bunch of trans history. They hired Sandy Stone, one of the first trans women in the music industry, as a recording engineer shortly after The Changer and the Changed came out. When people beyond the label learned that Stone was trans a few years later, they forced the label to fire her by public outcry and threats. The incident got rehashed in a few very influential pro- and anti-trans books, as (depending on who you ask) evidence that trans women are "wielding their male privilege to force their way into lesbian spaces" or whatever horseshit, or as a notable early example of TERFs ruining someone's career. The Women's Music movement also was an ancestor both of anti-trans radical-feminism-aligned events like the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival and of more mainstream events like Lilith Fair.

So, lots to talk about. Not something I'd give someone as activist inspiration, but totally something I'd have enjoyed learning about if a professor of mine had brought it up.
posted by nebulawindphone at 2:18 PM on May 20, 2019 [4 favorites]


Some Billy Bragg, perhaps?

"Sexuality"

He also recorded a number of Woodie Guthrie-penned tunes with Wilco on the Mermaid Avenue albums.

Co-signing "Amerika V. 6.0." and adding James McMurtry's "We Can't Make It Here" as part of Class, capitalism, and political economy.

Bruce Springsteen covering "How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live?" should be somewhere on your list.

Oh, and Steve Earle's "Good Ol' Boy (Getting Tough)."

"It's gettin' tough
Just my luck
I was born in the land of plenty
Now there ain't enough "
posted by MonkeyToes at 2:22 PM on May 20, 2019 [3 favorites]


Any suggestions on themes are also useful, as tunnel vision is a real thing when putting together a syllabus with a broad topic like 'social justice'.

If you can find enough examples, it could be interesting near the end of the course to include songs that address problems within social justice movements on a meta level. The #1 example that comes to mind for me is Love Me, I'm A Liberal by Phil Ochs:

Sure, once I was young and impulsive; I wore every conceivable pin,
Even went to Socialist meetings, learned all the old Union hymns.
Ah, but I've grown older and wiser, and that's why I'm turning you in.
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal!
posted by showbiz_liz at 2:22 PM on May 20, 2019 [3 favorites]


Issues faced by indigenous peoples definitely show up in music and might expand your topic list. A specific example that comes to mind just because the artist was on Conan a few weeks ago: "Premiere: Briggs - ‘The Children Came Back’" (YouTube; another version; and the song it responds to).
posted by Wobbuffet at 2:22 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


Amerika v. 6.0 (The Best We Can Do) - Steve Earle

In the mid-2000s I went to an outdoor Steve Earle concert where he frontloaded the show with his earlier music and then started playing his newer, more explicitly political music. A notable minority of the audience got up and left. So it occurs to me that another potential topic to explore is what happens when a singer becomes more political as their career goes on, and how that impacts their audience. See also The Dixie Chicks. And Beyonce, come to think of it.
posted by showbiz_liz at 2:25 PM on May 20, 2019 [5 favorites]


Speaking of blind spots: Pro-Life Songs, and these 10 songs celebrate carrying a gun. (Not what I would consider social justice, but the singers clearly do.)
posted by Mr.Know-it-some at 2:36 PM on May 20, 2019


"War is old, so is sex
Let's play God, you go next
Heads go up, men go down
Try my luck, stand my ground
Die in church, live in jail
Say her name, twice in hell
Uncle Sam kissed a man
Jim Crow Jesus rose again"

All of the above, because she is amazing: Janelle Monáe, "Americans." SO GOOD. (And you can dance to it.)
posted by MonkeyToes at 2:39 PM on May 20, 2019 [4 favorites]


Hazel Dickens' Black Lung would be a good one for health and healthcare. It was definitely a subject where she knew what she was singing about — she came from a mining family, wrote the song about her brother, and was directly involved in mine union activism as well as writing political music.
posted by nebulawindphone at 2:43 PM on May 20, 2019 [2 favorites]


I am always uncomfortable with “This Land is Your Land” since while I get that it’s meant as a powerful statement of inclusion it is even more powerful a statement of settler colonialism.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 2:49 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


My favorite politically-engaged Janelle Monae song is "Django Jane"

Tupac's "Changes" is a perennial favorite.

My favorite 21st-century anti-war song is "16 Military Wives" by The Decemberists. PJ Harvey's "The Words That Maketh Murder" is a close second.

Gun violence isn't on your list, but "Pray for Newtown" by Sun Kil Moon is worth a listen.
posted by zeusianfog at 2:51 PM on May 20, 2019 [2 favorites]


Health and healthcare

Chemo Limo by Regina Spektor
posted by Snarl Furillo at 2:52 PM on May 20, 2019


Came in to mention folk music from the 60s and beyond, as others have done. Maybe take a look at Roy Bailey - most of the songs he performed were originally written by other people but he made them his own, might give you a good selection of stuff. He was a sociology lecturer and life long socialist and such a beautiful performer. We miss you, Roy!
posted by penguin pie at 2:55 PM on May 20, 2019




I am always uncomfortable with “This Land is Your Land” since while I get that it’s meant as a powerful statement of inclusion it is even more powerful a statement of settler colonialism.

Lawn Beaver, I beg you to re-consider this song as performed by Sharon Jones (Rest in Power) and the Dap Kings. It is a totally different experience, and is appropriate for this class, too; it's a powerful re-telling of the original.

And how did I forget Fantastic Negrito's "In the Pines (Oakland)"? (Race, police; a gorgeous re-think of a classic.)
posted by MonkeyToes at 2:58 PM on May 20, 2019 [3 favorites]


We Are The Halluci Nation - A Tribe Called Red ft. John Trudell.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 3:00 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


For labor songs, in addition to Pete Seeger you could listen to Utah Phillips' album We Have Fed You All for a Thousand Years and Anne Feeney's album Have You Been to Jail for Justice? including War on the Workers. And going way back Paul Robeson's version of Joe HIll is astonishing. For war try Buffy Sainte Marie's Universal Soldier.(all SLYT)
posted by Botanizer at 3:02 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


Oh and another great English socialist folk singer to go with Roy Bailey - Leon Rosselson. And also Scot Dick Gaughan.
posted by penguin pie at 3:05 PM on May 20, 2019


Ice Cube's Good Cop Bad Cop immediately sprang to mind for Police, Race, and Prison and Punishment.

I also thought of the following by Dessa, who's got a lot of social justice themes in her catalogue:
Ride (Gender, Race, Police, Class)
Fire Drills (Gender)
Skeleton Key (Race)
Fighting Fish (Gender)
Dixon's Girl (Gender)

And the following by Daniel Kahn & the Painted Bird, whose entire catalogue probably qualifies:
Freedom Is a Verb (War, Class/Capitalism/Political Economy)
March of the Jobless Corps (Class/Capitalism/Political Economy)
Six Million Germans / Nakam (War)
Inner Emigration (War, Race)

I also thought of Universal Soldier and Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Buffy Sainte Marie (War and Race & Class/Capitalism/Political Economy & Environment respectively) and several tracks by A Tribe Called Red like How I Feel (Race), Soon (Race, Prison, Police) and Before (Race, Prison).
posted by northernish at 3:07 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


Oh, and pretty much anything by Shawna Virago for gender - like Objectified.
posted by northernish at 3:13 PM on May 20, 2019


I mean, I would imagine a thread throughout the course would be the difference between "social justice songs" and "songs about lived experiences that people in the dominant culture view as social justice songs." IS there a difference? Are we reducing art to politics when we label a song a "social justice song"? I would say "The Hurricane" is a social justice song, but is Akon's "Locked Up"? Or "99 Problems"? (My version of this class would have a lot of Jay-Z and a lot of Kanye for the early aughts section, I think).

Tupac's overall catalog is definitely "conscious rap" (and no course of this type would be complete without a heavy dose of Tupac), but I hear "Good Day" and "Juicy" on the radio about four times more often than any of Tupac's songs. Which of those is and isn't "social justice music"?

"Sixteen Tons" is DEFINITELY a social justice song, but is "The Legend of John Henry's Hammer"? You could spend a whole week/class/month/year both on labor songs and on union songs.

There's also a rich vein of country love songs and break up songs in which the narrators just have regular jobs and have to stop halfway through the song to clock in or talk to their boss(Diamond Rio's "Beautiful Mess," "That's How I'm Doing These Days" by Rascal Flatts, "It's Getting Better All the Time").

Is Ronnie Dunn's "Cost of Livin'" a social justice song? Can a rich dude like Ronnie Dunn even MAKE a legitimate "social justice" song? If he can't, what makes him different than Bob Dylan? There's a rich vein of "ordinary hard working people" songs sung by rich country dudes that you could spend a whole class discussing. I would assume that section would have to end with Dolly Parton's "9 to 5."
posted by Snarl Furillo at 3:20 PM on May 20, 2019 [2 favorites]


Ladies First by Queen Latifah and Monie Love
Talking About a Revolution or Fast Car by Tracey Chapman
Mississippi Goddamn by Nina Simone

Plenty Tough and Union Made by the Waco Brothers
posted by brookeb at 3:27 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


Also have to add People Have the Power by Patti Smith
posted by brookeb at 3:30 PM on May 20, 2019


I'm just gonna assume that if punk is included in your tastes you already know which Bad Religion songs your going to use, or you already have good reasons for why you don't want to use any Bad Religion songs.

***

Likely you're also familiar with The Weakerthans already, but if not you're in for a treat, because they're good for this. They probably have too many useful songs to mention them all, but in particular:
"Confessions of a Futon Revolutionary"
"Letter of Resignation"
"Everything Must Go"
"History to the Defeated"
"Exiles Among You"
"One Great City!"
"Hymn of the Medical Oddity"
"Relative Surplus Value"
John K. Samson, the lead singer and songwriter of The Weakerthans, also has solo work, and these songs, among others, might be good:
"When I Write My Master’s Thesis"
"Letter in Icelandic from the Ninette San"
"www.ipetitions.com/petition/rivertonrifle"
"Postdoc Blues"
"Vampire Alberta Blues"

***

Vermillion Lies have a humorous song called "Global Warming," a song called "White Picket," and a song called "Done Wrong" that might be interesting for your purposes.

***

The album 100 Years Ago Tomorrow is about the Everett Massacre.

***

I feel like there are clear gender dynamics going on in the background of some of Lauren O'Connell's songs, particularly "Moon Hang Low," "In on the Joke," and "Shimmering Silver."

***

The Pretty Reckless have a few tracks you might find interesting: "House on a Hill," "Why'd You Bring a Shotgun to the Party?" and "Fucked Up World" from their second album.

***

Dorothy's first album opens with "Kiss It" which has a fairly feminist theme. Some of her other songs might be good too, but you'd be a better judge than me.

***

The Murder by Death songs "My Hill" and "Hard World" from Bitter Drink, Bitter Moon and "Hunted" from Big Dark Love.

***

From Amanda Palmer's Who Killed Amanda Palmer (Just learned this: I preordered this fucking album but I don't have "Straight" because it was an iTunes and Amazon exclusive. Thanks Amanda!):
"Runs in the Family"
"Ampersand"
"Blake Says"
"Strength Through Music"
"Guitar Hero"
"Have to Drive"
"What's the Use of Wond'rin?"
"Oasis"
"The Point of It All"

From Amanda's old band the Dresden Dolls:
"Good Day"
"Girl Anachronism"
"Missed Me"
"Half Jack"
"Sex Changes"
"Delilah"
"Shores of California"
"Mandy Goes to Med School"

***

The July Talk songs:
"Paper Girl"
"Gentleman"
"Summer Dress"
"Don't Call Home"
"Picturing Love"
"Jesus Said So"


***

In a totally different category of music, I feel like you could do something interesting by directly juxtaposing and discussing the T.I. original "Whatever You Like" and the Weird Al version. Maybe?

***

Finally, can I throw out Lorde's "Royals"?
posted by Caduceus at 3:38 PM on May 20, 2019 [2 favorites]


In 1972 John Lennon and Yoko Ono released a feminism themed song. To my surprise, it's on youtube Woman is the N-word of the World. In this clip from the The Dick Cavett Show, Cavett prepares his audience for what is to follow, then John and Yoko explain why they wrote the song, then perform a short version of it. Lyrics.
posted by Homer42 at 3:41 PM on May 20, 2019


Racist nursery rhymes. There are so many in English and at least one in French was on my radar recently for being anti Chinese.

Social justice addresses what we teach children with and without realizing that the words are problematic. (When I was a kid my objections to racist kids songs were met with ‘but they’re just songs!)

And in the other direction, Yes to nearly everything from Billy Bragg. And John Prine.
posted by bilabial at 3:48 PM on May 20, 2019


Not directly related -- it sounds like you're fairly well covered here, but... lots of my colleagues have tried to make playlists for their classes and have received complaints about the racial orientation of the songs (in course evals, on social media, to the chair, etc.). This ranged from "Why isn't there any country music? I feel discriminated against" to "Interesting music choices from white artists in the 1990s."
As such, I'd suggest setting up some sort of way for your students to submit songs themselves - maybe as a shared Spotify playlist or some sort of form that they can submit a song name and you add it. And remind them again and again to submit.
posted by k8t at 3:49 PM on May 20, 2019 [9 favorites]


I'll bite...

Race
White Riot

Prison and punishment
Junco Partner

Feminism (or gender and sexuality)
Lover's Rock

Class, capitalism, and political economy
Know Your Rights

Health and healthcare
Drug Stabbing Time

Police
Guns of Brixton

War
Straight to Hell

Environment
London Calling, Johnny Appleseed

Bonus: American Imperialism
Washington Bullets

They mattered. Just sayin'
posted by j_curiouser at 3:59 PM on May 20, 2019 [3 favorites]


Why isn't there any country music? I feel discriminated against

This raises an important issue for a graduate level course on this topic. You can't just go by the lyrics and the perceived social position of the artist. Dolly Parton is hugely popular and resonant in Africa. There are tons of indigenous country musicians. Bob Marley is blasted at white frat parties. "Strange Fruit," the most devastating song about lynching, was sung by Billie Holiday but written by a Russian Jewish man. I am sure this class will address the context of music, but a list like this suggests easy correspondences between lyrics, performers, traditions and reception that begs to be complicated.
posted by nantucket at 4:04 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


Finally, can I throw out Lorde's "Royals"?
Yes, but the puddles/postmodern version.
posted by j_curiouser at 4:05 PM on May 20, 2019 [2 favorites]


Can't believe I forgot about Marvin Gaye!

Mercy, Mercy, Me - Environment
What's Going On - Social Injustice/ Anti-War
Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler) -


And don't forget Sam Cooke's A Change is Gonna Come
posted by brookeb at 4:25 PM on May 20, 2019 [5 favorites]


Feminism
Ani DiFranco! (She has a memoir coming out!) "Not a Pretty Girl," "Lost Woman Song," "Blood in the Boardroom," & "Out of Range" are all good picks.
Janelle Monae - "Pynk"

Class/capitalism/politics
Neko Case - "Margaret vs. Pauline"
Fleet Foxes - "Heplessness Blues"
Cake - "Rock 'n' Roll Livestyle"
Leonard Cohen - "Democracy," "Everybody Knows"
Sleater-Kinney - "Combat Rock"

And of course, Joan Baez - "Prison Trilogy (Billy Rose)," "What Have They Done to the Rain"
posted by toastedcheese at 4:36 PM on May 20, 2019


Midnight Oil - Blue Sky Mine
posted by evilmonk at 4:42 PM on May 20, 2019


Ghost town by the specials
posted by evilmonk at 4:44 PM on May 20, 2019 [2 favorites]


So many great recs already, but here are a few more hiphop suggestions:

on American empire and race and colonialism: Brother Ali, Uncle Sam Goddamn, one of the most blistering protest tracks of the Bush II administration as far as I'm concerned. It might be interesting to pair this one with Mississippi Goddamn, for obvious reasons.

on police violence/BLM: Blue Scholars, Oskar Barnack ∞ Oscar Grant

(there are actually a lot of Blue Scholars tracks I'm tempted to suggest--"50K Deep" is about the 1999 WTO protests, so police, protest, and global capitalism, and "No Rest for the Weary" is about like half the topics on your list, but I'd probably file them both under the "political economy" heading for your purposes; "Joe Metro" might belong there too and the video is lovely).

gender and feminism: SALT'N'PEPA, especially "None of Your Business" and "Let's Talk About Sex"; maybe this will be old hat for today's undergrads, but it was so formative for (some of) us 90's kids.

I'm guessing you're focusing on stuff with lyrics in English, but if not: the Palestinian hiphop group DAM has a lot of fantastic material ("Born Here", for example), and there are many videos with subtitles. They're heavily featured in the 2008 documentary Slingshot Hiphop, which would make a great screening for class.
posted by karayel at 5:13 PM on May 20, 2019


There are a number of political jazz pieces from the 1960s.
John Coltrane Quartet: "Alabama."
Charles Mingus: "Fables of Faubus" (there is an instrumental version and another version with lyrics).
Max Roach: "We insist!"
posted by philfromhavelock at 5:14 PM on May 20, 2019


Hope this helps!

War:
John Lennon -- Power to the People
Chi-Lites -- (For God's Sake) Give More Power to the People
Freda Payne -- Bring the Boys Home
Edwin Starr -- War

Prison and punishment:
Toots & the Maytals -- 54-46 Was My Number
Peter Gabriel -- Biko
The Specials -- Nelson Mandela
Bob Dylan -- The Hurricane

Class, capitalism, and political economy:
Pulp -- Common People
Jarvis Cocker -- Running the World [C-word alert, if that matters]
The English Beat -- Two Swords
The English Beat -- Whine and Grine/Stand Down Margaret (for the second part)

Environment:
Three Dog Night -- Out in the Country

Feminism (or gender and sexuality):
Gloria Gaynor -- I Will Survive (it was an absolute anthem for women and gay people in its time and thereafter).

Race:
Nina Simone (and a lot of covers) --(To Be) Young, Gifted, and Black

Police:
Public Enemy -- 911 Is a Joke
Jay-Z -- 99 Problems
posted by kimota at 5:27 PM on May 20, 2019




There is a track on Sinead O'Connor's Universal Mother album titled Germaine which is an excerpt from a speech by Germaine Greer. The same album has Famine which directly addresses the cause of the Irish Famine (the English) and the long lasting effects on the Irish people.
posted by soelo at 5:35 PM on May 20, 2019


Leave some gaps for students to fill in 😀
posted by Buddy_Boy at 5:50 PM on May 20, 2019 [5 favorites]


I still remember one of my junior high teachers playing both "The Ballad of the Green Beret" and "Alice's Resturant" for us and using them to explain differing points of view in the 60's.
posted by yohko at 6:01 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


Here to recommend Algiers:

"Cleveland"
"Black Eunuch"
"The Underside of Power"

You can Google the lyrics.
posted by baseballpajamas at 7:12 PM on May 20, 2019


Vietnam war: red gum: I Was Only 19 https://g.co/kgs/CvVYzd
posted by freethefeet at 8:07 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


War:

The Phil Ochs song “I Ain’t Marching Anymore” might be considered a little old and dusty but I think it is still extremely powerful.

Kate Bush’s “Army Dreamers” is a great anti-war song.
posted by cakelite at 8:36 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


Against Me! - Transgender Dysphoria Blues, True Trans Soul Rebel (nsfw lyrics and image)

In the early aughts Bloodshot Records put out a couple of compilations called The Executioner's Last Songs (1, 2)to support anti-death penalty activism. All the songs deal with crime and punishment in some way--murder ballads, punk mayhem, Johnny Cash covers, and so on. Here's Bloodshot's bandcamp with full audio for Vol. 1. My favorite of the bunch is Chris Ligon's "Great State of Texas"--such a simple song, but he's got a knack for combining the goofy with the poignant.
posted by hydrophonic at 8:44 PM on May 20, 2019 [1 favorite]


What are your learning objectives for the course? Like, is the goal to give a historical overview of music associated with social justice movements? To show that any genre of music can be put to social justice ends? To investigate how music has been used to support social justice movements? Is this primarily a course on social justice movements, or primarily a course on music? I think the topic is way too broad without choosing some sort of focus.

There have been a number of movements that have been particularly notable in their use or incorporation of music: the US civil rights movement and the IWW (the "singing union") songbook spring to mind, in recent-ish North American history. Those would be good case studies if the focus was on social justice movements, drawing on how music was used to strengthen or shape them.

From the music end, there are entire genres that arise out of specific political circumstances that could be interpreted as "music and social justice", as well: dancehall/beat/ska/reggae, blues and the Black roots of rock, Appalachian bluegrass/country/old timey poor folks music, various genres from Africa that form part of the struggles to regain cultural independence in the post-colonial era or to redefine cultures not in relation to their colonial history (I know less about these, apologies), Native American/First Nations music (which includes such genres as Buffy Sainte Marie's earlier folk music as well as electric powwow and hip hop), klezmer, etc. These would be case studies in how, in the other direction, music has been shaped by political struggles for social justice. Punk and the development of hip hop could fall into this category too. And maybe the genre of murder ballads?
posted by eviemath at 8:55 PM on May 20, 2019 [3 favorites]


Lennon/Ono Some Time in New York City:
Attica State, John Sinclair

Dar Williams: When I Was a Boy
posted by scorpia22 at 9:34 PM on May 20, 2019


When the water gets too high (live, lyrics) by the Parquet Courts. You could probably use every song on their album Wide Awake
posted by askmehow at 10:53 PM on May 20, 2019


Nina Simone all over the place. "Young, Gifted and Black"


"Plane Crash at Los Gatos" by Woody Guthrie
posted by thelastpolarbear at 4:11 AM on May 21, 2019


NWA - Fuck the Police
LL Cool J - Illegal Search
Main Source - Just a Friendly Game of Baseball
Ice Cube - Who Got the Camera?
KRS-One - Sound of the Police
Brand Nubian - Claimin' I'm a Criminal
KRS-One, Last Emperor, and Zach de la Rocha - CIA (Criminals in Action)
posted by box at 5:04 AM on May 21, 2019 [1 favorite]


The Little Red Songbook
posted by eviemath at 5:04 AM on May 21, 2019


Can I gently suggest that "Feminism (or gender and sexuality)" needs to be two distinct themes? The history of feminism and the history of queer life in this country are entangled but not always in the ways we might expect, and especially not in the ways students assume. nebulawindphone's comment above speaks to the complexity of this, and the importance of making it clear that the feminist movement has not always been welcoming to queer and trans people (and that for that matter queer people have not always been welcoming to trans people), and that this has often been enacted publicly in musical movements. Similarly, queer music has not always been feminist music at all--disco is a great example of this, but certainly not the only one.

And you'll certainly want to talk about Phranc, as part of the overlap between those themes.
posted by dizziest at 6:47 AM on May 21, 2019 [2 favorites]


oh also while it's not surprising if you know their work: the Drive-By Truckers may not look or sound like the kind of band to write a song about the shootings of Michael Brown and Treyvon Martin, but they did: "What it Means"
posted by dismas at 7:27 AM on May 21, 2019 [1 favorite]


Response by poster: dizziest: yep, that 'theme' is actually two, as it covers two weeks in my syllabus, but they are grouped loosely together as there's some overlap in the reading and listening lists, precisely to tease out the dynamics you mention! After reading nebulawindphone's comment last night, I read and collected some material on the Olivia Records story, which is really helpful at illustrating those tensions. Thanks to you both for the recommendations!

eviemath: all good questions, but I'm really just looking for songs that people feel tick a thematic box. My course objectives, design, etc. are all taken care of, but more songs always help!

Buddy Boy: of course! What I am assembling is the songs that I will bring to the table, but the students are also bringing their own, which I expect will be the most enjoyable part of the class...or at least the most interesting!

All the rest: fantastic lists, all very helpful with filling in little blank spots!
posted by still bill at 8:23 AM on May 21, 2019 [1 favorite]


I know I'm late to the party...

Portrait Of The Artist As A Hood by 3rd Bass
Another World by Antony and the Johnsons
Get Fly by Atmosphere
Now Get Busy by Beastie Boys
When The President Talks To God by Bright Eyes
Freedom is Free by Chicano Batman
Tramp The Dirt Down by Elvis Costello
You Are The Problem Here by First Aid Kit
Going Underground by The Jam
Mr. Cab Driver by Lenny Kravitz
Gulf War Song by Moxy Früvous
The Kid's Song by Moxy Früvous
Sign 'O' The Times by Prince
I Am Woman by Helen Reddy
Androgynous by The Replacements
The Man Don't Give A Fuck by Super Furry Animals
B.Y.O.B by System Of A Down
Armageddon Days (Are Here Again) by The The
Out In The Country by Three Dog Night
Harrowdown Hill by Thom Yorke
posted by dgeiser13 at 8:57 AM on May 21, 2019


I love all the recs for Janelle Monae!

For Health and Healthcare, I gotta mention Lizzo. Her years long push for self acceptance and self love is a steady theme in her music.

My Skin - "Learning to love yourself, learning to love your body... I woke up in this!"
Water Me - "I AM MY INSPIRATION"
Fitness - "I don't do this for you...."
Soulmate - "Cuz I'm my own soulmate! I know how to love me!"
posted by jillithd at 9:40 AM on May 21, 2019 [1 favorite]


For gender, Good Asian Drivers - "Third Gender".
posted by Lexica at 9:54 AM on May 21, 2019


Many protest songs are just new lyrics to songs that were popular at the time. An excellent group in this vein that was important in the 1980s and '90s struggles for LGBTQ rights was The Flirtations.
posted by eviemath at 12:14 PM on May 21, 2019


(That idea would also make for a fun assignment - students could make their own social justice/protest song!)
posted by eviemath at 12:15 PM on May 21, 2019


Public Enemy - Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos. Racism, prison, class, the draft ...

Heck, you could do an entire day on PE.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:33 PM on May 21, 2019 [1 favorite]


The Drive-By Truckers have a number of outstanding songs that fit, especially about class & economic justice, with the bonus that they're written from a southern/rural/white perspective that's probably underrepresented so far (legitimately pissed off, but definitely not Trumpist).


That Man I Shot
Puttin' People on the Moon
Uncle Frank
The Day John Henry Died
posted by wps98 at 7:40 PM on May 21, 2019 [2 favorites]


Fire Drills - Dessa
posted by wellifyouinsist at 7:54 PM on May 21, 2019


Bob Dylan's "When the Ship Comes in" has a backstory that might fit your topic. Peter, Paul & Mary's version is not as timeworn as their other covers but is among their best.
posted by KwaiChangCaine at 8:15 PM on May 21, 2019


I would heavily caution against "Women Are The N-Word Of The World" unless you're prepared for a lesson on intersectionality.

Beyonce's Formation and the Lemonade album would work well - people have made entire syllabi for Lemonade.

Taylor Mac's 24 Decade History of Popular Music is a 24 hour performance charting US history from 1776 to now through song. It's a high camp extravaganza that goes a LOT into social justice (eg AIDS crisis, the world wars, the co-option of anti-slavery movements by White people). I made a playlist - it's incomplete and maybe a little difficult to decipher without context, but could be a good starting point.
posted by divabat at 2:14 AM on May 22, 2019 [2 favorites]


Also maybe mega group songs like "We Are The World", "Do They Know It's Christmas", and the 2001 remake of "What's Going On" to see whether or not their efforts were effective!
posted by divabat at 2:15 AM on May 22, 2019


Drive-By Truckers, "Ramon Casiano"
Jason Isbell, "White Man's World"
posted by MonkeyToes at 4:59 AM on May 22, 2019 [1 favorite]


Sleater-Kinney:
Ballad of a Ladyman
Male Model

Tacocat:
Hey Girl - catcalling
Time Pirate - mansplaining
Men Explain Things to Me - mansplaining, redux

Charly Bliss:
Chatroom (live) - A summer pop anthem about a rapist
Official video - Be warned, the official video is sinister, and contains some pretty disturbing scenes.
posted by Gorgik at 12:47 PM on May 22, 2019


Quinn Christopherson, winner of the 2019 Tiny Desk Concert sings a wonderful song about gender: "I don't know what to do with all this privilege."
posted by booth at 1:29 PM on May 22, 2019


For a deliberately provocative take on disability issues: Spasticus Autisticus
posted by hydrophonic at 6:20 AM on May 23, 2019


Prison and punishment
Bobby Fuller Four: I Fought the Law
The Zombies: Care of Cell 44, a friendly song that normalizes prison
Fun Boy Three: The Farmyard Connection, who benefits and loses from drug law enforcement/lack of enforcement
Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds: Knockin' on Joe, title is a term for self-injury to avoid hard labor, IIRC

Feminism (or gender and sexuality)
Johnny Cash: Understand Your Man, and expect nothing
Jimmy Soul: If You Want to Be Happy "...for the rest of your life, never make a pretty woman your wife"
Front Line Assembly: Wake up the Coma, about our current woes, with the spectacular phrase "some confusion of meathook and pedestal"
Kim Massie: I'm a Woman vs. Spencer Davis Group: I'm a Man--compare and contrast
Charlene: I've Never Been to Me, I find this song interesting because for me it nails the lifelong sensation of time lost by conforming to archetypes expected of me as a woman, but my understanding is that its actual intent was to communicate the far more conservative viewpoint of a simple choice for women between sexual freedom and commitment, and that only our committed years represent our true identities, so in that sense I feel it is an anti-feminist song that can be redeemed by a more modern reading

Class, capitalism, and political economy
Joe Jackson: I'm the Man, The Man always wants to sell you things
Meat Beat Manifesto: Asbestos Lead Asbestos, "equal opportunity, unless our pedigreed dogs don't like the smell of your children"
Hall & Oates: Rich Girl, in case you like the message of Pulp's "Common People" but want something a little older
Steely Dan: Razor Boy, about chasing after wealth, and what is left over

Police
Emergency Broadcast Network: Get Down
Dead Kennedys: Police Truck

War
Guns N' Roses: Civil War
The Doors: The Unknown Soldier
Megadeth: Take No Prisoners, "Your body has parts your country can spare."
Sting: Russians, "there's no such thing as a winnable war, it's a lie we don't believe anymore." This song has taken on new and unintentional shades in recent years

Environment
Seldom Scene: Muddy Water, an old song that describes what millions have ahead of them
Manhattan Transfer: The Jungle Pioneer, "as every tree was falling in the forest, it made a sound but nobody was listening"
Megadeth: Countdown to Extinction
Project Pitchfork & Sara Noxx: Earth Song
Front Line Assembly: Dead Planet or Civilization

Media/Media Literacy/Propaganda?
Fischerspooner: Modern World, social media!
Evolution Control Committee: Rocked by Rape, in which Dan Rather is made to rap. See also Coldcut: Revolution
Project Pitchfork: The Liar "Don't search for answers, don't think about yourself, you are too small"

You could certainly add industrial & NDH to eviemath's list of politically provocative genres. Were I in your shoes, I might take this opportunity to discuss the controversy around Rammstein's Deutschland single and incredible video, which is summed up here.

I'm not sure where to put it, but I think you could do a whole thing on Ten Years After's I'd Love to Change the World. This song really makes me think about the parts of the revolution that were kept and discarded by the yuppies, and why. Warning for some hateful language.
posted by heatvision at 11:43 AM on May 24, 2019


« Older Where to buy women's leather jacket in Tel Aviv...   |   How to buy a ferry ticket from Busan->Tsushima... Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.


Tags

Share