Historical facts you remember thanks to pop music

  • Thread starter Thread starter John_Lazarus
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
J

John_Lazarus

Guest
Anyone here able to remember certain historical facts or information based on a pop song, video, or somesuch?

Specific example: I always remember the date and city of MLK Jr’s assassination from the song “Pride (In The Name Of Love)” by U2:

“Early morning, April four,
Shot rings out in the Memphis sky…”

Anyone else?

(No, don’t post back that you know what WILL happen in 2525…) 😃
 
“Tin soldiers and Nixon coming… Four dead in Ohio”

The late sixties and early seventies captured much of what was going on at the time. I was only 8 years old when the Kent State shooting occurred, but when I hear that song Ohio I always picture that iconic photograph of the grief stricken woman over the body of the student.
 
“Biko” - Peter Gabriel [anti-apartheid icon]
“April 29, 1992” - Sublime [L.A. riots]
“TV Party” - Black Flag [name-drops 70’s TV]
“Heroes” - David Bowie [about the Berlin Wall]
“Man On The Moon” - R.E.M. [Andy Kaufman]
“Seconds” - Human League [JFK assassination]
“Free Nelson Mandela” - The Specials [and he was]
“We Didn’t Start The Fire” - Billy Joel [historical timeline]
“Diane” - Husker Du [about the real-life murder of a waitress]
"What’s The Frequency, Kenneth? - R.E.M. [Dan Rather broadcast snafu]
“I Don’t Like Mondays” - The Boomtown Rats [early school shooting from the 70’s]
“Money For Nothing” - Dire Straits "I want my MTV’ – they don’t play videos anymore]
 
The Night Chicago Died, Paper Lace (Al Capone’s Chicago)
Candle in the Wind, Elton John (homage to Princess Diana)
Tears in Heaven, Eric Clapton (his young son’s accidental death)
Circus Left Town, Eric Clapton (homage to his son)
 
A lot of ships go down, a tragedy for all concerned, but thanks to Gordon Lightfoot, the Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald is one shipwreck most all of us (of a certain age :)) remember.
 
Harry Truman, Doris Day, Red China, Johnnie Ray
South Pacific, Walter Winchell, Joe DiMaggio

Joe McCarthy, Richard Nixon, Studebaker, television
North Korea, South Korea, Marilyn Monroe

WE DIDN"T START THE FIRE!!!
 
The War in Vietnam seemed to provide inspiration for plenty of tunes:

The Unknown Soldier, by the Doors
Requiem for the Masses, by the Association
I Feel Like I’m Fixin’ to Die Rag (Fish Cheer), by Country Joe and the Fish

And many more.
 
Casilda said:
The Night Chicago Died, Paper Lace (Al Capone’s Chicago)
Candle in the Wind, Elton John (homage to -]Princess Diana/-]
Code: 
Marilyn Monroe (but I don't think any specific dates are mentioned)
)
Tears in Heaven, Eric Clapton (his young son’s accidental death)
Circus Left Town, Eric Clapton (homage to his son)
Click to expand...
Among other facts, I can recite (sing) the preamble to the US Constitution thanks to Schoolhouse Rock! :bounce:

tee
 
christofirst said:
A lot of ships go down, a tragedy for all concerned, but thanks to Gordon Lightfoot, the Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald is one shipwreck most all of us (of a certain age :)) remember.
Click to expand...
I was thinking of the same song. 👍
 
the day the music died?

(plane crash that killed Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper and Buddy Holly.)

No date mentioned…but…
 
Actually, both 😃 I must be from a slightly younger generation as I remember this version

 
jediliz said:
the day the music died?

(plane crash that killed Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper and Buddy Holly.)

No date mentioned…but…
Click to expand...
This…and Edmund Fitzgerald, for sure! Candle in the Wind (I’m 40 with older sibs, so I was thinking Marilyn first).
 
tee_eff_em said:
Among other facts, I can recite (sing) the preamble to the US Constitution thanks to Schoolhouse Rock! :bounce:

tee
Click to expand...
This is what I’m looking for. Stuff where you can quote a fact or something in the song lyrics.

For instance, I can remember that the approximate speed of the earth’s rotation at the equator is 1000 mph thanks to Monty Python’s song in The Meaning Of Life.

OTOH, “Done Too Soon” (Neil Diamond) mentions Mozart, HG Wells, Buster Keaton, etc, but does not say anything about them, any facts I can use.

AAAAAND…I just found out that my U2 song was wrong…MLK was shot in the evening, not the morning. Oh well, at least the date is correct. 🤷
 
John_Lazarus said:
This is what I’m looking for. Stuff where you can quote a fact or something in the song lyrics.

For instance, I can remember that the approximate speed of the earth’s rotation at the equator is 1000 mph thanks to Monty Python’s song in The Meaning Of Life.

OTOH, “Done Too Soon” (Neil Diamond) mentions Mozart, HG Wells, Buster Keaton, etc, but does not say anything about them, any facts I can use.

AAAAAND…I just found out that my U2 song was wrong…MLK was shot in the evening, not the morning. Oh well, at least the date is correct. 🤷
Click to expand...
Davy Crockett
 
Cant think of the band, but that 60s or 70s song about ‘cherokee nation’…went something like…

“Cherokee people, Cherokee pride, so proud to be here, so proud to die”.

One of my old friends loved this song, anyone know the band?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top