‘You Can’t Tell Me Music Doesn’t Change the World’
The article discusses the impact of protest songs on social change, highlighting their ability to convey messages that resonate emotionally with listeners. It references influential artists like Bob Dylan and Neil Young, who have used their music to address political issues. The author emphasizes that music can change hearts and minds, making it a powerful tool for activism.
- ▪Bob Dylan referred to protest songs as finger-pointing songs, emphasizing their poetic nature.
- ▪Neil Young's song 'Ohio' is noted for its impactful simplicity in response to the Kent State shootings.
- ▪The author has written several songs addressing the death penalty, illustrating how music can influence public opinion.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
B ob Dylan had a term for protest songs back when he was writing them. As deeply poetic as they are, he called them finger-pointing songs. “Masters of War” was the ultimate finger-pointing song. “Blowin’ in the Wind” was one too. I think a lot of people have sung that song never even realizing it was a protest song. They didn’t think of it that way. The first time I ever wrote anything political was probably “Christmas in Washington.” When I wrote that, I was connecting with Woody Guthrie because he was a socialist. When he was writing, a lot of poor people, especially people in the Dust Bowl area who got fucked over, became socialists. They wrote songs about things that were going on, and those songs got rewritten using the same melodies. They called that folk music.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Rolling Stone.
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