Two songs are as timely today as they were when they first achieved popularity. I urge you to listen to them again (or for the first time), and think about what that means (and, of course, share your thoughts with us here at Rick’s.
One is Ball of Confusion, by the Temptations ("Great googalooga can’t you hear me talkin’ to ya?"). The other is Compared to What, by Eddie Harris & Les McCann ("We`re chicken feathers, all without one nut").
Both are terrific songs, especially the second one (if you can find it, get the live version from the Montreaux jazz festival). Written in the late ‘60’s/early ‘70’s, these songs are one voice of a generation torn apart by the civil rights movement and the Vietnam war. How much has changed, and how much hasn’t? Have we come full circle? Were the ‘80’s our ‘50’s? I don’t pretend to have the answers (yet), or to be able to glean them from two old R&B tunes, but it’s worth a listen, if not a thought.
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