One can not make much of an argument that Frank Sinatra was not one of the greatest individual starts of the twentieth century; his music reached the captive ears of millions, he was a successful actor who even netted an academy award. Throughout his career he maintained an air of sophistication, surely most who imagine Frank Sinatra imagine him dressed to the nines, in a full suit with a fedora to complete the look. His musical style mirrored his appearance, with his songs consisting of his smooth clear voice, usually crooning over a big band or similar instrumental group. His incredible talent and popularity lead him to be able to voice his opinion on matters unrelated to his music, and thus he made a brief stint into politics and the Civil …show more content…
For instance, his hit song My Way was originally a french song called Comme d'habitude, with English lyrics that were written specifically for Frank Sinatra by Paul Anka, another performer who was a long time friend of his (Queenan). As a result of his failure to use his music to push forward his political ideas, Sinatra instead had to push his views through what he said outside of his music. One of his more direct contributions to the civil rights music took place in 1945, where he went to a high school in Gary, Indiana to give a speech about racial tolerance to high school students who where protesting their school’s pro civil rights policies (Kelley, 543). This was an astounding example of how an incredibly well known figure such as Frank Sinatra could use his influence to push a productive political viewpoint. Frank Sinatra is also well known for his Rat Pack, a collection of celebrities that included an African American performer: Sammy David Jr, whose rise to fame was certainly contributed to by his friendship with a star as large as Sinatra …show more content…
During the Cuban Missile Crisis, when cold war tensions were at an all time high in the United States, Bob Dylan wrote a song that would become known as A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall, which depicted the world after a nuclear cataclysm. He song provided imagery such as “a newborn baby with wild wolves around it” and “a young woman whose body was burning” (Dylan). Compared to Sinatra, Dylan’s music was extremely politically motivated and used to push a message, it was also composed by Dylan himself. This difference is most likely due to Sinatra’s origin in the Big Band era of Swing Music, where a singer would exist as part of a large ensemble if one existed at all, and the band director would be primarily in charge of songs that the orchestra performed. Whereas Dylan was a child of the Folk Music revival, which valued music less for setting a mood but rather as a means for creative expression for a given artist. Even if a difference in era is the root in Dylan’s music being far more politically motivated, it did lead to him being able to have a large amount of influence of the political views of his listeners. Dylan was also notoriously racially tolerant, with the singer Victoria Spivey saying that to him “Everybody was people, not color” (Sounes, Chapter 3). One of Bob Dylan’s biggest hits was Blowin’ In The Wind,
Just as it was a crucial time for America in terms of politics and social issues, it was just as big for the music industry. People expressed their social opinions and political beliefs in a way that was the most true to them. Music was, and still is, a worldwide phenomenon for it has been able to take the shape of justice and to mold the minds of it’s listeners. Artists at the time had extreme social and political influence and used their defined stances on cultural issues to influence their music as well as their
At only 22, he was crowned the voice of a generation. His audiences became mesmerized with his expressive lyrics and soulful harmonica. He changed the way the world looks at songwriting and protest, and inspired countless future musicians from the moment he stepped up on the stage in his railroad hat, denim jacket, and harmonica brace. However, it is clear that there is so much more behind Bob Dylan than just a rough voice and a collection of poetic songs. As one man said about Dylan’s early days in Greenwich Village, “There’s a quality of determination and of will that some people have that when they’re doing something, they’re really doing it and you
For example, there was this one time when his father took Cash’s puppies and put them in a box together with rocks then later throwing them into the river making Cash watch as they drowned. Cash further stated that his father also shot the dog that had given birth to the puppies, (Tunnel& Hamm, 2009. Pp. 272). This implies and shows how Johnny Cash used his life experience to create a productive and meaningful life to himself and others who felt an impact through his music. Therefore, in general country music has motivated artists such as Johnny Cash into engaging both in music and politics at the same time and having an influence on other people’s lives and change them for the better. The evidence is how even Johnny Cash was jailed to his political engagement but never quit since he went on to fight for social justice even after he was released from jail, (Tunnel & Hamm, 2009. Pp. 270). This shows that in the music industry and his own personal life, there were cultural biases that affected musicians in some negative manner. Another example is Johnny Cash was jailed due to his expression of politics through country music. They were not allowed to stand against what they did not believe in and express it through
Coined by black artists, none of the whites listened until Elvis came around. His music, which was blues, gospel, jazz, and boogie-woogie, all created by black artists, blended to make rock n roll brought whites audiences to accept black culture. Presley’s music broke the racial barriers of that time, and was a key to the movement of racial tolerance between whites and blacks. Presley was one of the first singers to be appreciated and loved by both the black and white communities. (Introduction 3) Elvis tearing down barriers opened the world to so many opportunities. Opportunities not only arrived for white people, but mostly for the black. Elvis Presley’s music was a representation of the idea of racial tolerance and supported the concept, which stated that just because your skin color is different that doesn’t mean you don’t matter. (Introduction 3) Whites were now supporting blacks, which was unheard of before the 50’s. Without Elvis, it would have taken longer for whites to appreciate black
The music that was present in World War II was extremely versatile and happy, which helped keep spirits high among everybody. Styles such as swing, blues, and jazz were popular music styles at the time. By the end of 1941, 96.2% of Americans owned radios. This granted greater access to music and information on the war. This is in contrast to World War I, where most citizens of the world were not as connected to the war through radio. In a way, the mass distribution of music was unifying for the American citizens and troops. However, many African-American musical artists used music to highlight the hypocrisy of the Americans fighting for freedom at that time because there was still a lot of segregation and discrimination in the United States and in it’s military.
To begin with, the environment and surroundings has a lot to do with how one will grow up and ultimately make decisions that will alter their future in a major way. In Gary’s situation, he based all of his decisions completely on how he grew up and the future he THOUGHT he would have. He is a 17 year old young man that struggled terribly during school, had to go through the 6th grade twice and that was the beginning of his self- doubt. Now in high school is barely getting by so in his mind college is not an option. To make matters worse, his family was very poor and his mother wasn’t much of a mother.
Frank Sinatra’s songs helped Italian Americans embrace their heritage. Sinatra brought various, diverse experiences and, through music, made them relatable to both United States citizens and non-citizens. The lyrics in which Sinatra sang allowed Italians to feel a sense of belonging in America. This project will focus on Frank Sinatra and how his music influenced Italian Americans. Though I do not have a personal stake in this subject matter, I believe it is important to tell this story in hopes that anyone going through change will start to realize that they are not alone. In this project I am looking to emphasize the role that Frank Sinatra’s music played in influencing Italian Americans and allowing them to not feel isolated.
Arguably one of the most powerful of Dylan’s social issue charged song is The Death of Emmet Till, a young black man who was unrightfully killed by the Ku Klux Klan. By 1963, Dylan and his on and off lover Joan Baez were both very well known in the civil rights movement. Baez and Dylan would sing together at rallies including the famous March on Washington. Dylan was on stage with Martin Luther King Jr. when his gave his infamous I Have a Dream speech. Though Dylan sang of American injustices, he was never incredibly interested in politics and he was ultimately frustrated by people defining him solely as a protest singer. Dylan’s frustrations with the unsought political branding are expressed in It Ain’t Me Babe, which “appears to be a song about rejected love, [it] was actually his rejection of the role his reputation and fans had thrown on him” (Carlson).
Dylan’s most famous protest song is “Blown’ in the Wind”. It became the anthem for the civil rights movement in America during the 1960s, and as result Dylan was viewed as the spiritual leader of the civil rights movement. “Blown’ in the Wind” became very popular among the American people because the lyrics of the song could be applied to any situation as the lyrics were all about humanity learning from its mistakes and a call for freedom. “Only a Pawn in Their Game” was Dylan’s most offensive protest song that he wrote, and it was first performed at a civil rights rally in Greenwood, Mississippi. This song was about a civil rights activist who was murdered by “just a poor dumb
The 1960’s was an era of revolution and social change in the United States. Painters, dancers, actors, musicians and many more artists all wanted to portray societies immoral issues through their art. Musicians played a very prominent role in providing society with an outlet on the importance of this change. Within these musicians was a folk rock singer and songwriter by the name of Robert Allen Zimmerman, or as America knows him, Bob Dylan. He is known and honored around the world for his influence on popular music and culture, however, he is much more than that (Wood 313). The beginning of Bob Dylan’s career as a singer and songwriter was marked by his repetitive emphasis on social change throughout his protest songs which include “A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall,” “Masters of War,” and “The Times They Are a-Changin’”; with each song, Dylan exposes many issues that affected, not one, but many lives as he aimed to spread social and political consciousness to society.
Every time Johnny Cash would step out in front of a crowd he would greet his millions of followers with the same line: “Hello, I’m Johnny Cash”. He would be greeted with roars, hollers, and cheers whenever he was seen. Cash influenced a generation and blended music genres to bring the country together. Known as The Man in Black, for it was the only color he would wear after 1957 (Streissguth 80). Cash through his more than 50 year career had thirteen number 1 hits (Macnie). Johnny Cash evolved country music and became a quintessential American hero, admired and adored by millions.
According to Wallace, the Presley family lived near the poor African American neighborhoods, and as a young child he heard a lot of blues and gospel sounds from the churches in his neighborhood. Among the white American society it was not acceptable to listen to black music, but Presley broke through these racial barriers (Wallace 14). “People definitely recognized the fact that Elvis’ music was heavily influenced by African Americans which made them very hesitant to allow their children to listen to it.” (Wallace 14) However, Elvis was not born the charming and talented singer everyone sees him to be.
To understand the sixties counterculture, we must understand the important role of Bob Dylan. His lyrics fueled the rebellious youth in America. Songs such as “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “The Times are A-Changin” made him favorable to anti-war demonstrators and supporters of the Civil Rights movement. He was commonly hailed as the spokesman for his generation. Dylan used lyrics to allow the youth to find their own form of counter-culture. The youth generation began to see the effects racism, war, etc. effect the society in America. To combat this, the youth created their own form of counter-culture to promote a peaceful change within society. Some of their actions include forming anti-war protests that opposed America’s involvement in the Vietnam War, and supporting African Americans/women get the rights they deserve through the Civil Rights Movement. Bob Dylan’s music appealed to the young generation because he openly expresses his disapproval of the establishment in order to influenced his audience to move in a direction for change. Counterculture youth rejected cultural norms of the previous generation and their values and lifestyles opposed the mainstream culture present in the 1950’s. The folk music revival of the early 1960s, as well as the counter-culture movement played an important role in advocating change. Bob Dylan wrote songs that influenced the Civil Rights Movement, New Left Movement, and Anti-War Movement.
As children growing up in a strict Southern Baptist environment, we are taught very young that the Bible is the sacred word of God and that it is not to be questioned or doubted. Therefore, it is difficult to evaluate the Bible from a literary perspective and consider the criticism against it before immediately discounting the opinions of those who call the Bible’s moral teachings or accuracy into question. Upon reading this article, I felt the familiar surge of discomfort in my gut that arises every time my beliefs are called into question. I took this opportunity to consider exactly why reading this article elicited such a strong reaction and eventually I came to the realization that the reason I felt this way is because I grew up with the Exodus story, for me it was a story of liberation and conquering that proved how powerful our God is. But the author was raised with a different perspective, raised to believe that the way of his people is absolute, their teachings are sacred and not to be questioned or doubted. So just as it was shocking for me to read someone candidly confront the Bible’s moral hypocrisy, it would be just as shocking to him to sit in a children’s Sunday school class and hear the Exodus story being told so cursorily.
ABSTRACT: The importance of planting local and religious cultural values in education is an effort to anticipate the rate of modernization characterized by sophistication in the field of communication, information, and transportation technologies bringing the countries of the world into the global network system to a new world civilization. If not anticipated by strengthening cultural and religious filters, then globalization will be detrimental to the existence of the nation's cultural values. This study examines the meaning of events and interactions of people, used orientation or theoretical perspective with phenomenological approach. The type of research used in this study is the type of qualitative research. While viewed from the place of research, this research belongs to the type of research library. The research results are: 1) The values of education that can be known from the local wisdom of rural society are as follows; a) The value of the Faith, namely the belief in the existence of God as the Lord of the universe The value of faith is also found in the philosophy of life that has been adhered to firmly; b) Value of Togetherness; c) The value of education that teaches hard work, abstinence, filial piety, obedience to the rules of religion, clean life, community life, and simple life; 2) The concept of educational development from