As a music and politics blog, I wanted to challenge myself to think of the most conservative song ever written. I may have found it. The song "Okie from Muskogee" came out during the Nixon administration and was considered by many to be the official anthem of Nixon's conservative "silent majority." Listening to this I couldn't help admitting that conservatives have come a long way. Sort of...
We don't smoke marijuana in Muskogee
We don't take our trips on LSD
We don't burn our draft cards down on Main Street
We like livin' right, and bein' free.
We don't make a party out of lovin'
We like holdin' hands and pitchin' woo
We don't let our hair grow long and shaggy
Like the hippies out in San Francisco do.
And I'm proud to be an Okie from Muskogee
A place where even squares can have a ball
We still wave Old Glory down at the courthouse
And white lightnin's still the biggest thrill of all.
Leather boots are still in style for manly footwear
Beads and Roman sandals won't be seen
Football's still the roughest thing on campus
And the kids here still respect the college dean.
And I'm proud to be an Okie from Muskogee
A place where even squares can have a ball
We still wave Old Glory, down at the courthouse
And white lightnin's still the biggest thrill of all.
We still wave Old Glory, down at the courthouse
In Muskogee, Oklahoma, USA.
This day in age, you would be hard pressed to find a country song that doesnt have some form of political undertone to it in some way, shape, form or fashion. Okie from Muskogee tends to be where people look for the beginnings of politics in country music, but really it is everywhere!
ReplyDeleteI had never heard this song but it was definitely worth the listen. It was interesting to me that the song seemed to be a rebellion song against rebellion itself.
ReplyDeleteMusic has always been used as a political platform and its good to go back and see how politics in music have changed over time.