Protest Music - Vietnam vs. Iraq

I will admit I have never posted to this board before. I don't know a whole lot about music, which is why I've stayed away and am now asking for help.

I'm trying to compare the Vietnam Conflict with the current War in Iraq (or whatever it is these days). My hypothesis is that there was more music protesting Vietnam than there is protesting Iraq. I would love information either proving or disproving this theory. All I really need are song titles and artists' names (and genre if possible).

Thank you all in advance for your help.

A lot of the Vietnam/Woodstock-era protest songs sprung from the once vibrant folk music scene. Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan and many more. You could always catch a few Wonder Years reruns and get caught up.

Tom Waits' The Day After Tomorrow and a couple other songs on the Future Soundtrack of America compilation.

Green Day's new album, I guess.

I'm sure the new Public Enemy album has plenty of stuff like that.

The Beastie Boys, probably. In a World Gone Mad was pretty political, too.

Hip-hop is probably your best place to look.

Don't worry about lack of knowledge. If anyone is going to be a dick to you after such an earnest, forthright post, then they are an asshole squared and fuck 'em.

Here's my list of my pre-show protest music from the play I'm working on...

The Doors - Five to One
CCR - Fortunate Son
Barry McGuire - Eve of Destruction
Neil Young - Revolution Blues
Edwin Starr - War
Jefferson Airplane - Volunteers
bob Dylan - The Times They Are A-Changin'
Country Joe and the Fish - Feel Like I'm Fixin' to Die Rag
Neil Young - Ohio
Kingston Trio - Blowin' in the Wind
The Beatles - Revolution 1
The Youngbloods - Get Together
Buffalo Springfield - For What It's Worth
Joan Baez - We Shall Overcome

john fogarty has a single called 'deja vu all over again'; i think it's in reference to viet nam vs. iraq.

Is this really a protest song? Unless "protesting the protesters" counts.

What I could think of right now:

bobby conn - we come in peace
decemberist - sixteen miltary wives
ted leo - shake the sheets
bright eyes - Let's not shit ourselves

then:
Fugs - "Kill For Peace"
almost anything from Phil Ochs

now:
Sleater Kinney - "Combat Rock"
The Legendary K.O. - "George Bush Doesn't Care About Black People"
Immortal Technique - "Philosophy of Poverty" and "Cause of Death" (warning - he has sick political lyrics, but he falls for some of the same misogynistic and homophobic bs as other artists)

but the protest music from the 60's was better, especially in the sense of being much more prominent. Or maybe we just remember it better?

and most political protest music these days comes out of hip-hop, there's a good place to look.

This is one my my favorite protest songs ever. I'm also a fan of SK's "Faraway" which appears on the same album. It's about the 9-11 attacks. This line always sends a chill down my back:

"...and the President hides while working men rush in...and give their lives."

Noticing that MisterDionysos mentioned Phil Ochs, I seem to have left a couple of my list. There's also "I Ain't Marching Anymore" by Ochs, "What's Goin' On" by Marvin Gaye, and "This Land is Your Land" by Woody Guthrie.

and there's always Graham Nash's 'Military Madness'. It should be on 'Songs for Beginners'.

I think that, just as most Vietnam-era protest songs don't mention Vietnam, most Iraq-era protest songs don't mention either gulf war. Sometimes, it's only in retrospect that you see a thing for what it truly is.

The fact is that protest rock in terms of actual mainstream bands on major labels is essentially dead. Labels and multi-platinum artists simply do not have the guts to "alienate" their audience. It's pathetic. Green Day should be applauded for being a notable exception to this rule.

With that said, the underground is where it's at. Ted Leo's Shake the Sheets is one of the best protest records to come out in a long time.

Excellent point I hadn't thought of! Could you name a few?

(Typing early in the morning is not my forte.)

[Edited on Nov 14, 2005 by GangstaSwan]

That brings up a good point-and I agree with Keith that it always struck me as a sneer at the half hearted people in the "scene" who were just going through the motions ( like owning a copy of the little red book etc but not doing anything about it)
of intrest perhaps is this link:
PROTEST RECORDS
which has about 8 volumes or so of free mp3 mixes to download-all dealing with the protest songs from both wars...as well as free stencils to download to help you spraypaint your disgust...

Moxy Fruvous did a song about the Gulf War.

Appropriately, it's called the Gulf War Song.

I think it was mocking the extremists more than the half-hearted scenesters. It was saying "Well, I agree with you, but not when you're asking for money for hateful people, or calling for a revolution, or destruction, or talking about how great Chairman Mao is..." Which is something anyone who's ever been to an anti-war protest has thought when looking at the fringe people who show up: "What the fuck? I'm against the war and everything, but I don't want a communist revolution.."

listen to Bono talk

I like rage against the machine's Sleep Now In The Fire.

I would say too that music has changed over the years.......now any protest music has been watered down due to our eroding freedom of speech....Now the larger selling bands that take a stance are called traitors and help feed the war on TERRR according to the multiple smear campaigns mounted against various people and musicians who have spoken out against gods greatest child George W.

Dixie Chicks for example, They had every hick in america burning their cd's.....although not the greatest music in the world they got sucked in to the whole post 9/11 patriotic ballyhoo. And said a few things that were undeniably true.......but the dumb deaf and blind of the right coul dnot fathom it..........

Sorry to say that if you put up a big enough stink it might hurt your record sales.......there are a few doing it but not enough.......back then it was a new and hip thing to protest the war, now you are called a traitor and a terrrist. Punk rock has been watered down, there are no more styles of music to water down and no great things in the wings to take its place, unless some kid in a garage playing a guitar has a great idea that we eagerly await.

I think you're misplacing the blame. Who's "eroding freedom of speech" when it's the public that's causing the stink? Even on SG I hear people who criticize overtly political bands, like politics and music are fundamentally incompatible.

Sage Francis. Makeshift Patriot is probably the best example.

Thanks to everyone who contributed. Hopefully this makes my paper a little easier to manage.

Keep in mind that a majority of protest music is just that because of what it's lyrics convey. What this thread has failed to mention is the slew of electronic artist that voice their opinions by nonverbal means. Most notable is Richard H. Kirk, ex Cabaret Voltaire founder, and huge proponent to all war, especially the war in Iraq. This is evident by his last few releases:
http://www.discogs.com/image/R-150-195433-001.jpg
Biochemical Dread-"Bush Doctrine"
http://www.discogs.com/image/R-150-53541-001.jpg
Al Jabr- "One Million & Three"
http://www.discogs.com/image/R-150-155073-1074289785.jpg
Richard H. Kirk- "T.W.A.T." (The War against Terror)
http://www.discogs.com/image/R-150-336734-1102502932.jpeg
Richard H. Kirk- "Meets The Truck Bombers Of Suburbia Uptown Vol. 1"



[Edited on Nov 17, 2005 by DamnDirtyApe]