"I Don't Want Your Millions Mister" - an old rallying song. I couldn't find the Tom Rush version online but this one does the job (with a line or two added).
"Conservative Christian, Right Wing, Republican, Straight, White, American Males" by Todd Snider
Salon published an interview today with the underrated Todd Snider, one of my favorite singers. Snider had a brief pop culture moment back in the early 90's with the release of "Alright Guy," then has largely been forgotten by the mainstream even as he has continued to pour our a steady output of great albums and invigorating storytelling performances for a cult fan base.
In the interview, Snider discusses politics and songs from his new album, Agnostic Hymns and Stoner Fables. A comment to remember:
"I feel like I’ve always sung anti-suburban Christian songs. I grew up conservative Christian and all that, and now when someone tells me they’re conservative politically and also a Christian, I think, Why didn’t you just tell me that you’re a hydrogen bomb made out of dumb. Because those two ideas don’t gel. There’s one group that’s saying, Take everything you have and give it to the poor. And there’s another group that’s saying, Don’t tell me what to give to the poor. How can you join both groups? That’s like you’re joining Puppy Kickers Animal Rights of America. It just doesn’t gel, and that’s what I ran away from."
Salon writes: "Snider may be angry, but he’s also genuinely curious, perhaps even slightly bemused by the exaggerations and mutations of human greed and self-justification. 'At least it helps folk music, if nothing else,' he laughs at one point during our conversation."
Read the full interview here. More music videos after the jump.
Mavis Staples and Jeff Tweedy perform the title track from Mavis' upcoming album You Are Not Alone.
Los Angeles Times music critic Todd Martens wrote, "Tweedy wrote the title track for Staples, a disarming ballad that walks the line between comfort and resignation. It's the sound of maturity, dealing with themes of loss and keeping the faith, finding balance with a compassionate backing choir and a slow-burning electric guitar. Yet the song's strength is all from Staples, who puts her target on notice with a brashly delivered wake-up call. 'Open up this is a raid,' Staples sings, long past the point of feel-better niceties."
Recent Comments