"We don't need no education...." This was what my senior class chose as our class song but the administration denied it...not surprising! So "Brown Eyed Girl" edged out "1979" by Smashing Pumpkins...I guess all the people born in 1978 were bitter that they didn't have equal representation in the class song! Thank goodness I have both brown eyes and was born in 1979, a winner either way...wahooo!
Being a long time fan of classic rock, circa 7th grade, it is for the most part my favorite genre of music. American rock bands have created amazing war protest music from the Vietnam Era. Many by Credence Clearwater Revival and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young are some of my all time favorite songs. British rock on the other hand is not something that I've reflected on. The extent of my knowledge is that you were supposed to watch Pink Floyd's "The Wall" under the influence of illegal narcotics and go to a light show, which for the record, I never did. The idea that it conained historical messages never crossed my mind. Does this mean The Who's "Pinball Wizard" is not about the pinball machine at a raucous pub in Picadilly Circus? The British were not involved in the Vietnam War, but they were still dealing with the scars of WWII. Am I dumb or is this something that most adults know....especially if they are history teachers?
In 1940, the Axis essentially had control of every Western European country and Britain was left to fight alone. The Germans were sending 1,000 Luftwaffe daily to bomb Britain for an entire year. Today in my class, Pink Floyd's "Goodbye Blue Sky" was used as we studied the Battle of Britain. This was also the context that C.S. Lewis used in "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe" as the children had been sent into the country side to avoid the London bombings, as were many British children during that time. Opting not to show the imagery that goes along with "Goodbye Blue Sky" I instead had my students listen to the words and put them into the context of what we had just learned...ohhh, I get goosebumps! It takes on an even deeper meaning when you learn that Roger Waters, the song writer, lost his father in WWII.
This afternoon I have a date with my sewing machine and my British Rock section of iTunes!!! I will be listening very carefully today while I sew.
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