Songs By Boston

DOTINGA: Can rock songs be positively presidential?

Sarah Palin's nickname as a high-school basketball player was "Barracuda," so it made sense to play the Heart song by the same name at her campaign rallies in 2008. This year, the folks behind Michelle Bachmann thought Tom Petty's "American Girl" fit her to a tee, so the song made one of her rally playlists.

Neither decision went over well. Both Heart and Petty issued declarations of horror and outrage: Stop playing our songs, you ---- you ---- you Republicans!

They're joining a pretty big club, full of top artists who got snippy over their songs joining the hit parade at campaign rallies.

Sting, Talking Heads, the Foo Fighters and Jackson Browne have all gotten snippy with Republican politicians who played their tunes at rallies or in commercials, according to The Washington Post.

Of course, they have no problem whatsoever with hearing their songs on radio stations, at sporting events or even at karaoke bars where they'll be mangled to high heaven by drunks with microphones. But politics: That's different.

Oftentimes, the singers miss the irony of it all. Like John Mellencamp, who wasn't thrilled to find that the McCain campaign was playing "Our Country" and "Pink Houses" during McCain's 2008 campaign for president.

If he'd been more tuned in, Mellencamp might have let this slide. Underneath the seeming patriotic fervor of "Pink Houses" are references to "the pills that kill," "winners" and "losers" and a guy who was told that "boy, you're gonna be president." That didn't work out, actually: "just like everything else those old crazy dreams / Just kinda came and went."

Yup. Not exactly a great theme for a campaign song.

"Our Country," meanwhile, includes some non-Republican themes, including calls for help for the poor and these lines: "There's room enough here / For science to live / And there's room enough here / For religion to forgive."

Rock song irony definitely escaped Ronald Reagan, who referred glowingly to Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the U.S.A." in a campaign speech. Never mind its lyrics: "The first kick I took was when I hit the ground / You end up like a dog that's been beat too much / Till you spend half your life just covering up."

Democrats haven't had quite the same level of bad luck with presidential campaign songs, although playing Robert Palmer's "Addicted to Love" right after Bill Clinton spoke at the 2008 Democratic National Convention really wasn't a very bright idea. "C-Span showed a group of delegates dancing to the opening strains and singing along until stopping on the chorus, 'Might as well face it / I'm addicted to love,'" The Boston Globe reported.

Stations celebrate the 4th A number of specialty - Boston Radio Watch

WCRB 99.5 - Starting at 6pm on Monday night, Ron Della Chiesa and Laura Carlo will be hosting live on the Esplanade as Boston Pops celebrates the country's birthday. Keith Lockhart leads the Boston Pops, with guest host Michael Chiklis. The U.S. Army Field Band and Soldiers Chorus, special guest Martina McBride, and audience favorites including "The Stars and Stripes Forever," and, of course,Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture".

129 songs

The Atlantic monthly

Catalogue of the Barton Collection, Boston Public Library

Songs by thirty Americans

Report of the Boston Young Men's Christian Union