#threetunetuesday - American Songs
Let's begin!
José Feliciano: Star Spangled Banner
What better way to start than with a rendition of the US anthem? And none other than the first popular performance of this song by José Feliciano. During the 1968 MLB world series. After the Puerto Rican singer/guitarist José Feliciano finished playing a beautiful blues-influenced tribute, he caused controversy all over the US, but that would influence further generations to interpret the American anthem their way.
Hundreds and Thousands of performances after, this song remains a classic for those who want to see the US through a beautiful, serene lens.
Don McLean - American Pie
Even If this song doesn't have to do much with America's Glory, this is a representation of events in Its story. The theme of this track is the aftermath of "The Day the Music Died", a tragic plane crash where Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens died, ending the early Rock and Roll era.
In the verses of this song, Don goes over his reaction to the bad news, the shift from the 50s to the 60s in American Music, leaving behind the optimism for a more cynic view of the world and of course, the artists of that time (Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, The Beatles, between many others).
He does all this while masterfully sneaking references to lines from Rock n Roll songs from the 50s and 60s. Such as:
Now, for ten years we've been on our own
And moss grows fat on a rollin' stone
But that's not how it used to be
Billy Joel - Goodnight Saigon
For me, one of the best examples of a song that describes conflict without taking sides. Here, Billy Joel puts himself in the shoes of a Marine, describing the torment he and his company goes through, with lines like:
We came in spastic like tameless horses
We left in plastic as numbered corpses
and:
We had no home front, we had no soft soap
They sent us Playboy, they gave us Bob Hope
This song makes the listener remember that Vietnam was not a war of good and evil armies, but a war fought by men with lives back home. Men that were received by their own country with apathy and negligence instead of a warm hug.
I hope you liked these songs! Tell me what your favorite American songs are. Happy 4th of July for the US and Good Luck!
