Veteran's Concert 2022NOV12 - Meade County History Museum
Eve of Destruction - 2011 - Barry McGuire
But “Eve of Destruction”, which is more politically minded, also holds the distinction of having been censored. So it must be some serious lyrics that Barry McGuire is kickin’, which we’re here to analyze today.
Read more at: https://www.songmeaningsandfacts.com/barry-mcguires-eve-of-destruction-lyrics-meaning/from Barry McGuire's "Eve of Destruction" Lyrics Meaning - Song Meanings and Facts
“Eve of Destruction” is what we tend to generally categorize as a social commentary song. Moreover, it came out during the 1960s, the era in which such output via the American music industry was perhaps at its peak. And we already know, based on previous research, is that such was a more puritan time, when for instance songs with perceived drug or sexual references could promptly be banned from the airwaves.
Read more at: https://www.songmeaningsandfacts.com/barry-mcguires-eve-of-destruction-lyrics-meaning/
Now again, keep in mind that 1960s was a more sensitive time in the mainstream media, with reason that goes beyond moralistic concerns. That is to say that during that decade, the United States was perhaps under more of an internal ideological attack than at any other previous juncture in its history.
For instance, it isn’t that common to come across stories of Americans being opposed to World War II. But contrarily we know that many people, perhaps even some of our own parents, have spoken out against the Vietnam War.
The aforementioned sentiment is how McGuire sets this song off, by criticizing said conflict.
But he is not only doing so in terms of massive violence being waged therein. He also points out the hypocrisy, if you will, of at the time Americans being drafted into that hellish conflict at a younger age than they were allowed to legally vote.
Or put differently, perhaps you could be a young man who is against the war yet unable to vote for a politician who shares similar views. Yet you may still find yourself on the front lines, risking or even losing your life.
So yes, this definitely reads like a direct criticism of the American government, likely contributing to aforementioned banning of “Eve of Destruction”.
But on a more macrocosmic level, the vocalist is alluding to the notion of the world being in a warlike state in general, which was definitely true as far as the 20th century is concerned. So that is why, at the end of the first verse, he also namedrops the Jordan River. Said waterbody runs through the State of Israel, i.e. one of the most volatile regions of contemporary history.
Read more at: https://www.songmeaningsandfacts.com/barry-mcguires-eve-of-destruction-lyrics-meaning/
Read more at: https://www.songmeaningsandfacts.com/barry-mcguires-eve-of-destruction-lyrics-meaning/from Barry McGuire's "Eve of Destruction" Lyrics Meaning - Song Meanings and Facts
“Eve of Destruction” is what we tend to generally categorize as a social commentary song. Moreover, it came out during the 1960s, the era in which such output via the American music industry was perhaps at its peak. And we already know, based on previous research, is that such was a more puritan time, when for instance songs with perceived drug or sexual references could promptly be banned from the airwaves.
Read more at: https://www.songmeaningsandfacts.com/barry-mcguires-eve-of-destruction-lyrics-meaning/
Now again, keep in mind that 1960s was a more sensitive time in the mainstream media, with reason that goes beyond moralistic concerns. That is to say that during that decade, the United States was perhaps under more of an internal ideological attack than at any other previous juncture in its history.
For instance, it isn’t that common to come across stories of Americans being opposed to World War II. But contrarily we know that many people, perhaps even some of our own parents, have spoken out against the Vietnam War.
The aforementioned sentiment is how McGuire sets this song off, by criticizing said conflict.
But he is not only doing so in terms of massive violence being waged therein. He also points out the hypocrisy, if you will, of at the time Americans being drafted into that hellish conflict at a younger age than they were allowed to legally vote.
Or put differently, perhaps you could be a young man who is against the war yet unable to vote for a politician who shares similar views. Yet you may still find yourself on the front lines, risking or even losing your life.
So yes, this definitely reads like a direct criticism of the American government, likely contributing to aforementioned banning of “Eve of Destruction”.
But on a more macrocosmic level, the vocalist is alluding to the notion of the world being in a warlike state in general, which was definitely true as far as the 20th century is concerned. So that is why, at the end of the first verse, he also namedrops the Jordan River. Said waterbody runs through the State of Israel, i.e. one of the most volatile regions of contemporary history.
Read more at: https://www.songmeaningsandfacts.com/barry-mcguires-eve-of-destruction-lyrics-meaning/
Kenny Rogers & The First Edition - Ruby (Don't Take Your Love to Town)
The Times They Are A-Changin' - Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan first recorded this song and originally performed it at Carnegie Hall in October 1963. This song somehow has always made me feel that things will get better no matter how bad they are at the moment! A song that applies to so many generations :) i love the bob dylan version but with tracy's voice it sounds soooo good.
" The Times They Are a-Changin' " is a song written by Bob Dylan and released as the title track of his 1964 album of the same name. Dylan wrote the song as a deliberate attempt to create an anthem of change for the time, influenced by Irish and Scottish ballads.
{below --- from The times they are a changin’. The meanings behind Bob Dylan’s song | Untold Dylan (bob-dylan.org.uk)}
The opening is, of course, firmly based in the folk tradition of telling the villagers to gather around and I will tell you of wonderful things that are happening. Dylan did the same opening with North Country Blues where he commands, “Come gather round friends.”
Likewise the emphasis on an old traditional approach to songwriting is emphasised by Dylan writing “A-changing” and not “changing” in the title – a phrase dating back to 18th century English folk ballads.
And yet what has been called one of the most famous protest songs of all, isn’t really a protest song at all. It isn’t protesting about anything, rather saying, “time to wake up, the world has moved on”. It is a song about perception. You don’t have to rise up and overthrow the evil empire, but rather just admit that the world has changed irrevocably. So be careful – it might just pass you by, and you might just be left wondering where the old world went.
Certainly the world moved on at a pace none of us could have anticipated, although Dylan continued to open his concerts with the song. Talking to Anthony Scaduto, Dylan said, “Something had just gone haywire in the country and they were applauding the song. And I couldn’t understand why they were clapping, or why I wrote the song. I couldn’t understand anything. For me, It was just insane," which in a perverse way shows how a perception of a song can be influenced by those who proclaim they know its meaning, rather than by the guy who wrote it.
Bob Dylan first recorded this song and originally performed it at Carnegie Hall in October 1963. This song somehow has always made me feel that things will get better no matter how bad they are at the moment! A song that applies to so many generations :) i love the bob dylan version but with tracy's voice it sounds soooo good.
" The Times They Are a-Changin' " is a song written by Bob Dylan and released as the title track of his 1964 album of the same name. Dylan wrote the song as a deliberate attempt to create an anthem of change for the time, influenced by Irish and Scottish ballads.
{below --- from The times they are a changin’. The meanings behind Bob Dylan’s song | Untold Dylan (bob-dylan.org.uk)}
The opening is, of course, firmly based in the folk tradition of telling the villagers to gather around and I will tell you of wonderful things that are happening. Dylan did the same opening with North Country Blues where he commands, “Come gather round friends.”
Likewise the emphasis on an old traditional approach to songwriting is emphasised by Dylan writing “A-changing” and not “changing” in the title – a phrase dating back to 18th century English folk ballads.
And yet what has been called one of the most famous protest songs of all, isn’t really a protest song at all. It isn’t protesting about anything, rather saying, “time to wake up, the world has moved on”. It is a song about perception. You don’t have to rise up and overthrow the evil empire, but rather just admit that the world has changed irrevocably. So be careful – it might just pass you by, and you might just be left wondering where the old world went.
Certainly the world moved on at a pace none of us could have anticipated, although Dylan continued to open his concerts with the song. Talking to Anthony Scaduto, Dylan said, “Something had just gone haywire in the country and they were applauding the song. And I couldn’t understand why they were clapping, or why I wrote the song. I couldn’t understand anything. For me, It was just insane," which in a perverse way shows how a perception of a song can be influenced by those who proclaim they know its meaning, rather than by the guy who wrote it.
Blowin' In the Wind - Peter, Paul, and Mary
"Blowin' in the Wind" is a song written by Bob Dylan in 1962 and released on his album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan in 1963. Although it has been described as a protest song, it poses a series of rhetorical questions about peace, war and freedom. The refrain "The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind" has been described[by whom?] as "impenetrably ambiguous: either the answer is so obvious it is right in your face, or the answer is as intangible as the wind". In 1999, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. In 2004, it was ranked #14 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".
"Blowin' in the Wind" is a song written by Bob Dylan in 1962 and released on his album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan in 1963. Although it has been described as a protest song, it poses a series of rhetorical questions about peace, war and freedom. The refrain "The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind" has been described[by whom?] as "impenetrably ambiguous: either the answer is so obvious it is right in your face, or the answer is as intangible as the wind". In 1999, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. In 2004, it was ranked #14 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".