Phil Ochs loved this country but his perspective was liberal.
What do folks think of Power and Glory?
In 1963 they stopped singing this verse;
But this land is still troubled by men who have to hate;
They twist away our freedom and twist away our fate
Law is their weapon, and treason is their cry
You can stop them if you try
They should have left it in there. That said, it is a very well constructed song clearly written by a seasoned professional. I like it.
Great song… was even covered by Anita Bryant. Used the lyrics years ago in my forum signature.
Yes, I like his honesty
Only as rich as the poorest poor? And something something padlocked door?
Yeah considering that there will aways be the poor and that some who don’t agree to live peaceable among us or leave need to be locked up. I’d say he never loved the country. ■■■■of the bull.
He did love this country. You don’t need to agree with his perspective.
You might actually like his song, Love Me I’m A Liberal. No really, you might appreciate his honesty about the hypocrisy of liberals.
There’s even a song for Trump- “Draft Dodger Rag”
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So he loved the country founded by slave owners and built on the backs of whipped men? He loved the country of Jim Crow? He loved what about this country? He loved the country discovered by the terrorist Columbus? Stop the bull. The left sees only things to tear down and burn. He loved only what he imagined the communists could do with this country… not what capitalists actually DID do with it.
The word “liberal” 55 years ago didn’t even mean what it means today.
The song means nothing anymore.
No, it’s a great song.
He was very much a later day Arlo Guthrie.
I’m serious, if you have the time, YouTube his song Love Me I’m A Liberal, I honestly think as a conservative you will appreciate his honesty.
I meant Woody Guthrie
Arlo’s City of New Orleans is cool. And I like his musical mentor’s music… Ramblin Jack Elliot, quite a bit. I don’t like their politics but I appreciate many a folk singer … even if they don’t know ■■■■about reality. I just don’t have time for their “i love America but I wish I could change everything about it.”
I love dried seaweed but only if it tastes like rib eye steak.
There’s nothing wrong with making what’s great even better.
Lib’s are like that.
Did you listen to Love Me I’m A Liberal?
Conservatives would enjoy Love Me I’m a Liberal
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A liberal willing to laugh at himself, what’s not to like?
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I have always loved Folk Song Army
Thats the thing about music, if its done well you can appreciate music from the other side of the political aisle.
Like this song by Hank Jr.
Phil has a great tribute to Woody Guthrie on the same album -
These liberals of which he sings are not representative of the left today. Ochs is singing from the perspective of a far left communist, viewing a political sector who is eager to ally itself with more radical marxists in order to gain dominance over what they perceive as their greater political enemy… the right. They will do this because they think they -being more moderate- have the numbers and when their team - which includes marxists - prevails, they can then control this smaller radical band of ideologues to their left.
Liberals such as the ones he sings about are the useful idiots. And they will learn that the energy in the relatively fewer crazed marxists is greater than the energy in the larger moderate left. That energy will eventually turn on the useful idiots that Ochs sings about. They will be added as fuel to the bonfires of revolution after they are no longer needed.
Ochs is not making light of himself.
Ochs pointed out the hypocrisy of the Left and he certainly included himself among them.
Did you listen to the song? Try enjoying it for what it is.
There’s a great documentary film “The Ballad of Ramblin’ Jack” made by his daughter. It’s on Prime, but might be able to find it elsewhere.
Also a segment about him on CBS Sunday Morning -
I like his music. Sometimes, knowing an artist’s life is helpful for understanding their art. But when the song… or verse, or painting, or sculpture… is done and in public, it takes a life of its own and the artist lets it go and live without being further encumbered with the artist’s own dreary, misguided, or misfortunate life.
We who smell it value the flower, not the manure in which it grew. He who grew it will put his hands in that soil and bring it to his nose with a sigh of reluctant love.
I might watch it … sometime.
