Rallying Cry: Songs of Social Change, the Artists They Motivated, the Movements They Inspired

Abstract

This study explores what are commonly called “protest songs.” Groups involved in mass social movements often use protest songs to create a sense of solidarity, or to make a statement at public demonstrations. Such songs are usually simple, with a common refrain. However, the study also will include more complex songs that do not have the simple words and structures of typical protest songs, and were primarily performed by a professional musician or played in recorded form (as opposed to being sung by large groups of the public at mass rallies), but were written and performed with the intention of making a statement and impacting the public’s point of view on issues of social and/or political significance. <p>This paper looks across several key songs and songwriters, and will illuminate interconnections, patterns and insights into how such songs evolved over the course o f time, principally the first three-quarters of the twentieth century. Illuminated here is a web o f artists, beginning in the early twentieth century, who have been strongly influenced by each other and have borrowed from each other’s work and ideas. Also included are those who nurtured and supported the development of much o f the musical work discussed here.