Songtitles referring to major news events

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Sunday Bloody Sunday - U2
Free Nelson Mandela - Special AKA

2 very obvious songs ofcourse, and there should be more, but I can't think of any other song at the moment. (duh)
(if this thread has been done before, don't flame me, but pls link to the thread instead)

daarkbee, Thursday, 2 October 2003 14:32 (twenty years ago) link

Enslaved - 793 (The Battle Of Lindisfarne)

Siegbran (eofor), Thursday, 2 October 2003 14:34 (twenty years ago) link

... too many folk songs to mention right here. How long you got - a couple of weeks?

Dadaismus (Dada), Thursday, 2 October 2003 14:35 (twenty years ago) link

Enslaved - 793 (The Battle Of Lindisfarne)
Yeah, that was in the headlines for at least three days. Wild stuff.

Euhhhh, Macabre's "What the Heck, Richard Speck (8 Nurses You wrecked)"?

Øystein Holm-Olsen (Øystein H-O), Thursday, 2 October 2003 14:40 (twenty years ago) link

bob dylan - who killed davey moore?

Bob Shaw (Bob Shaw), Thursday, 2 October 2003 14:40 (twenty years ago) link

Oxford Town - Bob Dylan
Storm The Embassy - Stray Cats

proggist, Thursday, 2 October 2003 14:42 (twenty years ago) link

'wreck of the edmund fitzgerald' - gordon lightfoot

Rob Bolton (Rob Bolton), Thursday, 2 October 2003 14:42 (twenty years ago) link

Ohio - CSN&Y

BrianB, Thursday, 2 October 2003 14:47 (twenty years ago) link

enola gay - OMD

Rob Bolton (Rob Bolton), Thursday, 2 October 2003 14:49 (twenty years ago) link

"The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia," Vicki Lawrence
"The Day John Kennedy Died," Lou Reed
"The Night Chicago Died," Paper Lace
"Woodstock," Joni Mitchell
"41 Shots," Bruce Springsteen
"Elvis is Dead

s woods, Thursday, 2 October 2003 14:54 (twenty years ago) link

oops, last one should be by Forgotten Rebels ("the big fat lazy fuck is dead!")

s woods, Thursday, 2 October 2003 14:55 (twenty years ago) link

"Son of Sam" Chain Gang

Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 2 October 2003 15:05 (twenty years ago) link

Ahhhhh I fucking love that song...

Sid Did It - Nazis Against Fascism

DJ Mencap (DJ Mencap), Thursday, 2 October 2003 15:06 (twenty years ago) link

From Mojo Nixon's Sock Ray Blue album:

I Don't Want No Cybersex
The Ballad Of Country Dick
Drunk Divorced Floozie (The Ballad Of Diana Spencer)
U.P.S. My Heart To You
Machines Ain't Music/I Got My Mojo Working
Disney Is The Enemy
Rock n' Roll Hall Of Lame
I Got A Crazy Wife
You Can't Buy Cool
Tankman Blues
Orenthal James (Was A Mighty Bad Man)
Redneck Rampage
When Did I Become My Dad

Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 2 October 2003 15:38 (twenty years ago) link

(so they're not ALL news-related but I thought for the sake of whatever listing the entire album was worthwhile)

Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 2 October 2003 15:48 (twenty years ago) link

"Son of Sam" by the Dead Boys

Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 2 October 2003 15:57 (twenty years ago) link

"Gary Gilmour's Eyes" by the Adverts

Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:02 (twenty years ago) link

"Three Mile Smile" Aerosmith

David Gates of Delirium, Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:03 (twenty years ago) link

"Ted, Just Admit It" by Jane's Addiction (the Ted in question being serial killer Ted Bundy)

"Bombs Over Baghdad" by OutKast?

Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:05 (twenty years ago) link

"Fake Headlines" New Pornographers

Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:07 (twenty years ago) link

"where were you when the world stopped turning" - alan jackson
"let's roll" - neil young
"john walker's blues" - steve earle
etc...

but not:

"The Night Chicago Died," Paper Lace

what news event was that referring to? the great gangwar on the, ahem, "east side of chicago"?


fact checking cuz, Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:10 (twenty years ago) link

"Sid Vicious Was Innocent" by the Exploited

Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:11 (twenty years ago) link

"Holiday in Cambodia" by the Dead Kennedys

Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:12 (twenty years ago) link

"Bonzo Goes to Bitburg" by the Ramones

Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:12 (twenty years ago) link

"Riot in Tompkins Square" by the Undead

Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:13 (twenty years ago) link

"Aren't You Hungry?", MOD

dave q, Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:14 (twenty years ago) link

tons and tons of ancient blues

Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:27 (twenty years ago) link

"tora tora tora" by depeche mode
it was actually martin's first song released with lyrics.

Felcher (Felcher), Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:33 (twenty years ago) link

All from the amazing When the Sun Goes Down series from RCA Bluebird/BMG:

Pearl Harbor Blues - Doctor Clayton
The Ninety-Nine Year Blues - Julius Daniels
Panama Limited - Bukka Washington White
Frankie And Johnny - Frank Crumit
Telephoning the Blues - Victoria Spivey
Judge Harsh Blues - Furry Lewis
Statesboro Blues - Blind Willie McTell
Cocaine Habit Blues - Memphis Jug Band
Sales Tax - The Mississippi Sheiks
Devil's Island Gin Blues - Roosevelt Sykes

Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:33 (twenty years ago) link

"The Oh How I Wish That George Bush Would Die In A Pit Of Flames Cuz He's Ruined The Country And Don't Ever Forget That He Is A Deserter From The U.S. Army And I Want Cheney's Head On A Stick As Well Blues".
I haven't actually recorded it yet, but its gonna be big.

scott seward, Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:37 (twenty years ago) link

"the ballad of john and yoko" - the beatles

fact checking cuz, Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:40 (twenty years ago) link

Kenneth, What's The Frequency?

gygax! (gygax!), Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:52 (twenty years ago) link

Rocked by Rape - ECC

gygax! (gygax!), Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:52 (twenty years ago) link

alex, i think you mean "bombs over baghdad" by dr. ring-ding.

mitch lastnamewithheld (mitchlnw), Thursday, 2 October 2003 16:54 (twenty years ago) link

"sink the bismarck" - johnny horton
"the battle of new orleans" - johnny horton
"the star-spangled banner" - francis scott key
"ballads of sacco & vanzetti" (the entire album) - woody guthrie


fact checking cuz, Thursday, 2 October 2003 17:12 (twenty years ago) link

"You Can Have Watergate But Gimme Some Bucks And I'll Be Straight"--Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s
"Rockin' Funky Watergate"--Fred & the New J.B.'s

Douglas (Douglas), Thursday, 2 October 2003 18:06 (twenty years ago) link

that gut-wrenching(in a bad way) jon benet ramsey song by eyes adrift

Felcher (Felcher), Thursday, 2 October 2003 18:15 (twenty years ago) link

"Biko" -- Peter Gabriel
"Hurricane" -- Bob Dylan
"Waltzing Matilda" -- Pogues
"Presidential Rag" (re: Nixon) -- Arlo Guthrie

christoff (christoff), Thursday, 2 October 2003 18:48 (twenty years ago) link

Not about a Major News event, but Woody Guthrie's "Deportee" was written after he read a newspaper article about a plane crash where they just refered the victims as "deportees" instead of by their names.

BrianB, Thursday, 2 October 2003 18:56 (twenty years ago) link

"blind river boy"-amy correia (about jeff buckley's death)
almost every track on protestrecords.com
"son of a bush"-public enemy

Felcher (Felcher), Thursday, 2 October 2003 19:05 (twenty years ago) link

Human League: Seconds

Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 2 October 2003 21:26 (twenty years ago) link

There was the Chronics "Calling All Cardinals" from 1978(which curiously coulda been a song from last year as well).

From the liner notes of Homework #8 "The Chronics set out to perform instant 'chronicles' of contemporary news stories: --which is how we end up here with the unlikely theme of the election of John Paul II. Other tunes included 'Jonestown Survivor' and 'Cardinals' flipside, 'Test Tube Baby.'"

scott m (mcd), Thursday, 2 October 2003 21:44 (twenty years ago) link

The Police - "Walking on the Moon"
Pop Will Eat Itself - "Not Now James, We're Busy" (A major news event if you're a fan of the Godfather of Soul)
The Pogues - "Streets of Sorrow/Birmingham Six"

Bruce Urquhart (Bruce Urquhart), Thursday, 2 October 2003 22:17 (twenty years ago) link

"California Dreamin": Beach Boys

Nichole Graham (Nichole Graham), Thursday, 2 October 2003 22:20 (twenty years ago) link

"Touched by the Hand of Ciccolina" by Pop Will Eat Itself

(member of Italian Parliament/porn star)

Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 2 October 2003 22:28 (twenty years ago) link

Honeydrippers - Impeach the President
Angelic Upstarts - Murder of Liddle Towers [?]
Jesus Jones - Right Here Right Now

Bill E (bill_e), Friday, 3 October 2003 00:22 (twenty years ago) link

Boomtown Rats, "I Don't Like Mondays"
It's a contender for Worst Song In The World, but: The Cranberries, "I Just Shot John Lennon"

abree b (abreebb), Friday, 3 October 2003 05:43 (twenty years ago) link

Tim Finn, "Parihaka"
Gillian Welch, "April the 14th Part 1" and "Ruination Day Part 2"

Jeremy (Jeremy), Friday, 3 October 2003 06:05 (twenty years ago) link

"New York Mining Disaster 1941"

mark grout (mark grout), Friday, 3 October 2003 09:05 (twenty years ago) link

"Space Oddity"?

dave q, Friday, 3 October 2003 09:08 (twenty years ago) link

(("Elvis is Dead

oops, last one should be by Forgotten Rebels ("the big fat lazy fuck is dead!") ))

Erm, isn't it by Peter & The Test Tube Babies?

L7 - Boys in Black --> actually most of the Free the West Memphis Three compilation

Sasha (sgh), Saturday, 4 October 2003 06:35 (twenty years ago) link

Give Ireland Back to the Irish Paul McCartney / Wings
SYMM The Manics (South Yorkshire Mass Murder, about Hillsborough)

btw. quite a lot of the titles upthread don't refer to the news events even if the lyrics do. So does Do They Know It's Christmas count?

ailsa (ailsa), Saturday, 4 October 2003 08:25 (twenty years ago) link

one year passes...
Zack de la Rocha and too many other rappers - Mumia 911

Mumia Abu-Jamal is a political prisoner either on death row or dead. I'm pretty positive that I would've heard if he was alive, though.

AJ Wooton, Monday, 28 February 2005 01:08 (nineteen years ago) link

uh, "I Don't Like Mondays"

Al (sitcom), Monday, 28 February 2005 01:11 (nineteen years ago) link

Kentucky Rain

kornrulez6969 (TCBeing), Monday, 28 February 2005 01:29 (nineteen years ago) link

Cripes, AJ, it's called google, use it sometime.

http://www.mumia.org/freedom.now/

Still alive.

Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 28 February 2005 01:31 (nineteen years ago) link

Nina Simone, "The King of Love Is Dead"

Joseph McCombs (Joseph McCombs), Monday, 28 February 2005 03:15 (nineteen years ago) link

Guns Of Brixton - The Clash

VegemiteGrrl (VegemiteGrrl), Monday, 28 February 2005 05:35 (nineteen years ago) link

Abraham, Martin & John - Dion

jim wentworth (wench), Monday, 28 February 2005 06:04 (nineteen years ago) link


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