Should Catholics listen to secular music?

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LegoGE1947 said:
There is a country song by Ty Herndon called “No Mercy” The song itself may be okay but the video of it I would consider pretty risque. There is an instrumental bridge during the song and the video shows this man and woman rolling around in bed. Mr Herndon claimed to be Catholic so you can’t just assume that if an artist or composer of a song is Catholic, it will be okay. A song that I don’t find anything objectionable is “Do You Know The Way To San Jose” Since you mentioned “The Look of Love” which like “San Jose” was composed by Bacharach and David.
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I hear you and respect your opinion. the risque songs don’t affect, much less bother me. we’re not going to stop playing or singing standards like Lorenz and Rogert’s *Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered *(check the original lyrics if you’re not familiar) because one of our fellow Catholics might be offended by the tune. I mean, why would a person that easily offended even be listening?

on this forum there are people who think the only purpose of dating is to find a spouse. what then are they going to make of songs like *Heatwave *or, I dunno, ten thousand other songs about teen romance? there’s a kind of holier-than-thou attitude percolating.

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LegoGE1947 said:
Don’t forget “Oh Lord it’s hard to be humble when you’re perfect in every way!” I think it is country but not sure. But inappropriate certainly, …
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its by Mac Davis. its a tongue-in-cheek song about typical male boasting. its not meant to be taken seriously.

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WingsOfEagles said:
You’re right, even with Country music, some of it is inappropriate. I’m thinking of “Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy”, “Honky Tonk Bedonka Donk”, “Here for the Party”…etc.

However, Country is one of the few secular genres that isn’t afraid to produce a song with Christian messages. “Holy Water”-Big and Rich", “Lead Me Home”-Jamey Johnson, “Three Wooden Crosses”-Randy Travis, etc.
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the Christian-message CW songs I like, they seem more authentic than the praisercize/christian rock stuff. probably because CW is more mature than rock.

but most Catholics, I hope, can walk into a bar or honky tonk, enjoy the music and walk out without their soul in jeopardy. if some can’t they shouldn’t be there. Honky Tonk, by the way, is a slice of life.

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Fairwinds said:
the Christian-message CW songs I like, they seem more authentic than the praisercize/christian rock stuff. probably because CW is more mature than rock.

but most Catholics, I hope, can walk into a bar or honky tonk, enjoy the music and walk out without their soul in jeopardy. if some can’t they shouldn’t be there. Honky Tonk, by the way, is a slice of life.

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I wouldn’t go so far as to tell someone to shield their ears and not go anywhere, but I think it’s good to keep in mind music choice when downloading mp3s/buying CDs for personal enjoyment. For example, Honky Tonk is extremely catchy, but somehow I don’t think God would be all that pleased with a song about men checking out a woman’s…um, honky tonk bedonka donk.

I know what you mean about Country with Christian messages tending to be more enjoyable than Praise and Worship type music. I don’t mind Christian Rock on occasion and like some of it, but it also tends to have that “Radio Disney” sound, which gets old.
 
WingsOfEagles said:
I wouldn’t go so far as to tell someone to shield their ears and not go anywhere, but I think it’s good to keep in mind music choice when downloading mp3s/buying CDs for personal enjoyment. For example, Honky Tonk is extremely catchy, but somehow I don’t think God would be all that pleased with a song about men checking out a woman’s…um, honky tonk bedonka donk.
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if that’s all there was to it, I don’t think He’d care.

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WingsOfEagles said:
Sin of Lust?
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I could cherry pick the lyrics of every song written since 1850 and find something objectionable to read into it, although that would be a weird hobby. in another forum they did this to* Amazing Grace* – apparently not Catholic enough. (note, I don’t like christian rock because I think its contrived and awful, not for its theological content).

as for me, I can play Honky Tonk Badonkadonk without seeing this as a paean to lust, in fact – I can admire women without lusting after them. I’d lay odds (another sin, no doubt) that there are people who can’t read* Song of Songs *without problems. imagine this to a moderate 4/4 swing tempo:
*Your breasts are like twin fawns,
the young of a gazelle
that browse among the lilies.
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Until the day breathes cool and the shadows lengthen,
I will go to the mountain of myrrh,
to the hill of incense.*
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Fairwinds said:
I hear you and respect your opinion. the risque songs don’t affect, much less bother me. we’re not going to stop playing or singing standards like Lorenz and Rogert’s *Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered *(check the original lyrics if you’re not familiar) because one of our fellow Catholics might be offended by the tune. I mean, why would a person that easily offended even be listening?

on this forum there are people who think the only purpose of dating is to find a spouse. what then are they going to make of songs like *Heatwave *or, I dunno, ten thousand other songs about teen romance? there’s a kind of holier-than-thou attitude percolating.

F/
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Orthodox Catholic here and I love ALL of the lyrics, even the racy ones, to “Bewitched, Bothered…”. They are appropriate to the character in Pal Joey who sings them.
 
Fairwinds said:
I hear you and respect your opinion. the risque songs don’t affect, much less bother me. we’re not going to stop playing or singing standards like Lorenz and Rogert’s *Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered *(check the original lyrics if you’re not familiar) because one of our fellow Catholics might be offended by the tune. I mean, why would a person that easily offended even be listening?

on this forum there are people who think the only purpose of dating is to find a spouse. what then are they going to make of songs like *Heatwave *or, I dunno, ten thousand other songs about teen romance? there’s a kind of holier-than-thou attitude percolating.

F/
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If one is offended by the lyrics to songs such as “Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered,” then good luck listening to most of the modern stuff.
 
I myself don’t like classical music no matter how secular it is. I’m not saying it’s bad, just saying that it’s not my cup of tea. I myself don’t like listening to music that clearly contain immoral messages like all the innuendo and sex talk filled songs done by a ton of modern artists. I make exceptions when the song itself uses these subjects as a way to show a good message, and I LOVE Susumi Hirasawa’s music with all it’s techno stuff etc… just because something uses an electrical guitar doesn’t mean it’s immoral and music can and does put into you a ton of feelings you wouldn’t be able to have otherwise. For example, Susumi Hirasawa’s Sign gives me feelings of hope and makes me want to be a martial artist Knight in shining armor despite sounding downright demonic in a way: youtube.com/watch?v=93cgAnAj1Pk

My point: new instruments aren’t automatically bad, just the way they are used.
 
My daughters are alumni of the University of Alabama and The Ohio State University. I admit to a certain fondness for “Sweet Home Alabama” and “Hang On Sloopy”!
 
Tampa_Dave said:
Absolutely!
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Not especially a fan of “Hang on sloopy” but “Sweet Home Alabama” you can crank that one up anytime!👍 I also like “Call Me” by Chris Montez and just about any song by Herb Alpert & Tijuana Brass.
 
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