When pop music collides with politics, the outcomes are sometimes life-changing and intricate. 33 Revolutions Per Minute outlines this connection by using 33 central songs which include Billie Holiday serenading “Strange Fruit” to Green Day’s Iraq War rampage. Dorian Lynsky goes into the song artists, concepts and procedures behind each individual song which demonstrates to the reader how protest music has manifested social changes since the 1930s. 33 Revolutions Per Minute is a history of protest songs which “addresses a political issue in a way which aligns itself with the underdog” (Lynskey). Lynskey uses protest songs to take today’s reader back to that era in order to display the original context of the songs and chart the evolution of political thought in pop music. Dorian Lynskey uses these songs to testify how pop songs have helped branch social protests.
…show more content…
Each chapter is dedicated to one of the 33 protest songs and clearly describes why the songs were written, the writers intentions and career, and the political and musical background behind the lyrics. Lynskey viewed the song lyrics briefly and used them as opportunities to analyze topics such as civil rights, black-power movement, the Vietnam and Middle East wars and many others. He also included more present day entertainments such as U2, Public Enemy, R.E.M., Steve Earle, and Rage Against the Machine. Lynskey exhibits complete domination and is critical of the music he speaks of along with the measures that triggered them to be written in the first place. For example, he critiques John Lennon for failing to achieve portraying his ideas through music along with critiquing The Clash and Rage, and he also argues against Public Enemy’s paradoxes and recurring misguided standpoints to support his own personal views and
Each chapter is dedicated to one of the 33 protest songs and clearly describes why the songs were written, the writers intentions and career, and the political and musical background behind the lyrics. Lynskey viewed the song lyrics briefly and used them as opportunities to analyze topics such as civil rights, black-power movement, the Vietnam and Middle East wars and many others. He also included more present day entertainments such as U2, Public Enemy, R.E.M., Steve Earle, and Rage Against the Machine. Lynskey exhibits complete domination and is critical of the music he speaks of along with the measures that triggered them to be written in the first place. For example, he critiques John Lennon for failing to achieve portraying his ideas through music along with critiquing The Clash and Rage, and he also argues against Public Enemy’s paradoxes and recurring misguided standpoints to support his own personal views and