Episode 5: Anti-Nixon Songs of the 70s
EPISODE OVERVIEW: There was much to protest in the 1970s and President Richard Nixon was at the heart of it. Songwriters of various genres wrote songs that were inspired by Nixon’s actions and his policies. Why don’t we have protests songs anymore? Look no further than the way country music treated one of its rising stars, The Dixie Chicks, in 2003 when Natalie Maines declared to a London crowd that the band was ashamed that President George W. Bush, is from their home state of Texas as Bush justified the invasion of Iraq. We might also consider social media. A tweet or a video provides an instant outlet — and gets an instant response — for an artist’s political views or critique of the government.
PLAYLIST
“Mexico” by Jefferson Airplane (1970)
“Ohio” by Crosby Stills Nash & Young (1970)
“Watergate Blues” by Tom T. Hall (1973)
“Impeach the President” by The Honey Drippers (1973)
“You Haven’t Done Nothin’” by Stevie Wonder (1974)
“Young Americans” by David Bowie (1975)
Photographs from the Kent State University shootings on May 4, 1970
The Ohio National Guard advances on the crowd at Kent State.
Howard Ruffman/Getty Images
John Cleary was shot in the chest by a member of the Ohio National Guard. He survived.
Howard Ruffman/Getty Images
One of the most iconic and tragic photos of the 70s. A 14 year-old runaway named Mary Ann Vecchio kneels over the body of Jeffrey Miller, 20, who was shot and killed by the Ohio National Guard. The photo was taken by a student, John Paul Filo, who won a Pulitzer Prize for the photo in 1970.
John Paul Filo/Library of Congress
SOURCES
Caramanica, Jon. “At 81, Roy Hammond; Soul Singer, Producer.” The Boston Globe. September 24, 2020.
Doyle, Jack. “White Rabbit: Grace Slick: 1960s-1970s,”
PopHistoryDig.com, December 31, 2015.
Hoffman, David. “How Neil Young Came to Write Ohio After Kent State.” YouTube.com. August 12, 2018. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FzYEn_gevw&t=77s
Hynde, Chrissie. Reckless: My Life as a Pretender. New York: Anchor. 2015.
Lynskey, Dorian. “Neil Young’s Ohio—The Greatest Protest Record.” The Guardian. May 6, 2010. https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/may/06/ohio-neil-young-kent-state-shootings
MCamericanpresident. “President Richard Nixon—Address Announcing Resignation,” YouTube, 12 June 2008, www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEOGJJ7UKFM.
Naughton, James N. “Agnew Assails Songs and Films That Promote Drug Culture.” The New York Times. September 15, 1970. https://www.nytimes.com/1970/09/15/archives/article-6-no-title.html
News5 Cleveland. “Kent State Shooting Anniversary.” YouTube.com, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVCoNEJCokE. April 30, 2010.
Reilly, Michael J. “Stations Warned About Drug Songs; Licenses Threatened,” Eugene Register-Guard (Eugene, Oregon), March 8, 1971, p. 7-A.
Scott-Heron, Gil. “H20Gate Blues.” The Mind of Gil Scott-Heron, Arista Records, 1978.
Scott-Heron, Gil. “We Beg Your Pardon (Pardon Our Analysis).” The Mind of Gil Scott-Heron, Arista Records, 1978.
“You Haven’t Done Nothin’.” Songfacts.com. https://www.songfacts.com/facts/stevie-wonder/you-havent-done-nothin