Music Blogs

With the 4th Of July bearing down on us, it's time to think about those who either represent this great nation or think they do. All it takes is putting a little "U.S.A" into your groove and WHAMO! you make the list! Samuel Johnson called patriotism "the last refuge of the scoundrel." But he must've either been having a bad day or had a brother-in-law who was making a killing selling flags. I know List Of The Day is America's Blog! And I'm still planning on finishing up those state songs I haven't yet gotten to.

In the meantime, here are ten acts who make you want to break out the picnic basket and head to the park and celebrate our national identity, which isn't all kooks and weirdoes. Some of us have employment lined up in the future! I neglected to put Jay and the Americans on the list. No excuse, except to say, I wasn't thinking! Imagine that.

10) Lee Greenwood: He wrote "God Bless The U.S.A." in the early 1980s and it's one of those songs that gets adopted every time there's a need for a guy in a flag-spangled jacket to take centerstage and let us know we're OK. It says here he founded his first group, Apollo, in 1962! This guy spans decades.

9) Toby Keith: He sang "Courtesy Of The Red, White And Blue" and he wasn't shilling beer, though he has sung a song about getting beer for his horses. The deeper meaning behind all this eludes me. But surely this man is a genius.

8) The MC5: OK, so the last time the MC5 tried to play a public park things didn't go so well. Everyone deserves a second chance.

7) Paul Revere And The Raiders: C'mon. They wear revolutionary war garb! Not only is that pro-American, it's corny as heck! They look like they work at that fish joint Judge Reinhold got stuck at in Fast Times At Ridgemont High.

6) The Beach Boys: Every 4th of July some incarnation of this group makes it to the stage, no? In 1983 Secretary of the Interior James Watt banned the Beach Boys from playing the National Mall in D.C. after they'd been there as a regular act from 1976-1981 since they attracted "an undesirable element." (Watt was referring to my friends in high school, if my dad is to be believed.) The "Boys" were brought back in 1984. Watt resigned after making other less than brilliant comments about his cabinet. 

5) Ted Nugent: He's a loudmouth and an unapologetic hunter of animals without the guns to defend themselves. And I imagine he likes to think of this country as "Ted, White and Blue." He's really great and if you're not sure, just ask him, he'll tell you. And in case you forget, he'll remind you. Do they make Ted Nugent alarm clocks?

4) Bob Seger: I don't think if Bob Seger had charged less for his songs to be used in car commercials the U.S. Auto Industry would be more financially viable. I think the problems go deeper than how much Chevy paid for "Like A Rock." While in "Night Moves" he gets it going on in the backseat of his Chevy, Seger recorded a tune called "Makin' Thunderbirds" and that's a FORD! Amazing he never named an album Skylarking while he was at it. Can you see Seger in a Toyota?

3) John Mellencamp: Yep, car commercials and "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." You don't get much more obvious than that. And if the rest of us have to settle for "Little Pink Houses," well that's just how the class war rolls on. I still liked him better when he had the "Cougar" in his name.

2) Bruce Springsteen: Yes, "Born In The U.S.A." is a song about how Vietnam Vets didn't get their fair shake when they came back home, but the song's anthemic chorus guaranteed it became a celebratory anthem. That's how it works. The people want to pump their fist in the air. They don't want to "deconstruct" the message and host forums to achieve a greater understanding. Praise the Lord and pass the Schlitz! Now!

1) Chuck Berry: When not collecting cars, Chuck Berry can usually be found playing with some anonymous pick-up band who haven't even been told what key they might be playing in. Few performers, however, have captured what it was to be a happy-go-lucky teenager back in the day before war, famine, disease and all the other societal ills that rock n' roll brought to the masses in the ensuing decade better than ol' Chuck, who was always technically an outsider looking in. Violator of the Mann Act or not, Chuck Berry should have his face on the Two Dollar Bill.