Extra Credit Soc. 204 online

Option 5- Sociology of Music Lyrics Analysis

Blues Lyrics
Shemekia Copeland

Ghetto Child (Copeland)

Little girl standin’ on the corner
Somebody please won’t you lend a hand
I’m just the ghetto child
In this so-called, in this so-called free land

Somebody, somebody somewhere
Somebody please won’t you give a dime
My mother she’s sick, in the bed almost dying
And I ain’t seen, I ain’t seen my daddy in a long time

Now that this is the part that move me so much right here
She said I know, I knoooooow I oughta be in school
But I went to school one mornin’
and the teacher she told me
When you come back child, have on some shoes

I’m just the ghetto child
Somebody please please help the ghetto child
I’m just the ghetto child
In this so-called, in this so-called free land

Blues Lyrics Keb’ Mo’ (Kevin Moore)

Victims of Comfort
No rocket’s gonna fly that high
There’s no escaping the enemy he’s you and I
We poison up our water, we’re chokin’ on the air
Last stop before it gets too late or is it already to late?
Is it already to late
For the victims of comfort?
Got no one else to blame
We’re just the victims of comfort
We cannot soothe the pain

And it’s a technological merry-go-round
Dangerous solutions buried under the ground
And everyone likes a party
But no-one wants to clean
Well I’d like to see a change somehow and I believe we’re busy right now
Just a little busy right now
I am just a victim of comfort
I got no one else to blame
I’m just a victim of comfort
Cryin’ shame

Boy what have we got to lose? Everything
Yes and what do we stand to gain? Everything, so let’s
Try together before we have to cry together
It’s too soon to die together
I’m just a victim of comfort
Got no one else to blame
I’m just a victim of comfort
Got to soothe the pain
Be the victims of comfort
Got no one else to blame
I am just a victim of comfort
Cryin’ shame

We Shall Be Free
Written by: Garth Brooks, Stephanie Davis
Garth Brooks

This ain’t comin from no prophet
Just an ordinary man
When I close my eyes I see
The way this world shall be
When we all walk hand in hand

When the last child cries for a crust of bread
When the last man dies for just words that he said
When there’s shelter over the poorest head
We shall be free

When the last thing we notice is the color of skin
And the first thing we look for is the beauty within
When the skies and the oceans are clean again
Then we shall be free

We shall be free
We shall be free
Stand straight, walk proud
‘Cause we shall be free
When we’re free to love anyone we choose
When this world’s big enough for all different views
When we all can worship from our own kind of pew
Then we shall be free
We shall be free

And when money talks for the very last time
And nobody walks a step behind
When there’s only one race and that’s mankind
Then we shall be free

We shall be free
We shall be free
Stand straight, walk proud, have a little faith, hold out
We shall be free

We shall be free
We shall be free
Stand straight, have a little faith

We shall be free


Ghetto Child

Questions/Issues you may wish to consider:
1) Does the father not being around contribute to the situation?
2) What is meant by “ this so-called free land”?

In the lyrics the Ghetto Child this child has social values. The lyrics state “
I knoooooow I oughta be in school”. I believe this states that if the situation in the
child’s life was different they would be in school getting what they feel is a
needed education.
One problem the Ghetto child is facing is the change in living arrangements.
The graph on page 13 of Eitzen and Zinn shows African Americans age 17 and
younger live with mother 51% of the time. I do not know the race of this child,
but I believe that in every race across this country more and more children are
living separated from on or both of there parents. “ I ain’t seen my daddy in a long
time”.
I’m not sure which way I would analyze “ In this so-called, in this so-called
free land”.
One way would be that this child feels society should give everything to
someone when they are in need. Society has this already in place. People can get
Welfare, food stamps and free medical care. This is all give free to people who
qualify. There is also low income housing and aid for education. There are social
programs in place to help those who need and sometime take advantage of the
help.
Another way to analyze “This so-called free land” would be to look at it
from the point of every person in this country has equal opportunities. This is the
land of plenty were everyone can acquire knowledge, money and freedom. This
child may be wondering what happened to there American dream of opportunity
and justice.
The paradigm of this song is the conflict model. This child would not be on
the corner begging if society had not failed in meeting there individual needs.
“Somebody, somebody somewhere. Somebody please won’t you give a dime”.
This child is blaming the school for not going to school (“the teacher she told me.
When you come back child, have on some shoes”), rather than the child taking the
responsibility to go to school on there own.

Victims of Comfort

The lyrics of this song seem to be about the dominant US values.
Progress (pg. 102) “And it’s a technological merry-go-round”. Americans
love new technology. Technology allows us to do things faster, easier and is more
convenient. Along with this new technology comes problems that are not being
resolved. “We poison up our water, we’re choking on the air”, “Dangerous
solutions buried under the ground”. This is a part of progress that we are not
really doing much about as a society. We expect companies and people to be
willing to clean up after themselves without any regulations. This as we know
does not always happen.
We as a country do not Defer gratification (pg. 102). “And everyone likes a
party. But no-one wants to clean”. People want it now without considering what
we are doing to the world around us. People want success (pg. 99) and with
success comes the ability to get things or have power. People are so busy with
there own lives we don’t take the time to solve societal problems that technology
brings. “Just a little busy right now.” People don’t want to give up the comforts
to solve the problems, such as pollution.
Not all cultures strive to have the comforts as much as Americans. We as a
country consume more products than any other nation. The lyrics in this song are
true when it comes to American’s ?Got no one else to blame. I’m just a victim of
comfort”.
The lyrics of this song represent the conflict model paradigm. We blame
society for our wants. We blame society’s socialization agents (pg. 22) for the
situation we are in.
In the family agent, the norms and values could be of consumption and
those norms and values learned. These norms and values were learned not only
from the parents but by society, so society is at fault. It doesn’t matter that the
individual has the option not to pollute the air with there vehicles, or buy the best
in technological devices. Conflict paradigm blames society not individuals.
The media shows our country how we should live, in movies, on the news.
and in magazines. The good life is everywhere. That is how we as a society is to
live. That would mean the media is a social problem rather than an individual
making there own decisions.



We shall be free

The lyrics in this song have to do with social class (pg. 62), Race (pg. 63),
Ethnicity (pg. 64), Religion (pg. 65) and values.
Social class is people who occupy the relative same economic rank. Social
class divides people into separate neighborhoods, schools, and groups. “ When
the last child cries for a crust of bread. When there’s shelter over the poorest
head.” These lyrics refer to the poor and some of the hardships that come with this
class. We as a nation judge people by how much money the make. This is a form
of success. Some believe if you are poor it is by choice because you are not trying
hard enough.
“And when money talks for the very last time” refers to the power money
can buy and the unequal treatment money has. Society sees money as power,
people who have it move on to bigger and better things, people who do not have
do not have the power to change.
Social Race divides people and sometimes denies equal rights. “When the
last thing we notice is the color of skin”. Racism can be learned. This can be
taught by family. In Eitzen and Zinn learning racism is discussed in Society’s
Socialization Agents (pg. 122). Racism can be taught by parents, passing there
beliefs on to there children, teaching them the worth of another social group.
Racism can no only harm the hated group but also the person doing the hating. To
some equality is not given to someone other than your own race.
Religion also plays a role in the lyrics of this song. “When we all can
worship from our own kind of pew”. Religion can be a reason for social
separation and racism. Religion can be part of the family norms and values.
Family can tech us the value of the bible, the importance of services and the faith
to believe and not believe in.
Society has many different religious beliefs, each one has it’s own values,
goals and norms. Not understand a religion can lead to fear, anger and frustration.
In the lyrics of this song if all these different things happen and society
comes together than and only than will the people of the world truly be free. Free
from judgment, fear, hate and social inequality.
These lyrics are definitely the conflict paradigm. Everything is based on
society, not the accomplishments of individuals. If all these things the songs talks
about would happen then we would have the perfect order paradigm. Equality,
peace and harmony.