[1808] Power and Glory

Come and take a walk with me through this green and growing land
Walk through the meadows and the mountains and the sand
Walk through the valleys and the rivers and the plains
Walk through the sun and walk through the rain

  This is a land full of power and glory
  Beauty that words cannot recall
  Oh her power shall rest on the strength of her freedom
  Her glory shall rest on us all

From Colorado, Kansas, and the Carolinas too
Virginia and Alaska, from the old to the new
Texas and Ohio and the California shore
Tell me, who could ask for more

Yet she's only as rich as the poorest of her poor
Only as free as the padlocked prison door
Only as strong as our love for this land
Only as tall as we stand

   -- Phil Ochs

Ever since I first discovered Phil Ochs, I have been mystified at his
relative obscurity and lack of popularity. Personally, at his best he's
every bit as good as his contemporary Bob Dylan (and a lot more pleasant to
listen to!), and seems to inspire an intensity of appreciation in his fans -
myself included - that many more popular singers would be hard-pressed to
match.

Today's song, while not really among his best lyrically, is nonetheless
nicely representative of his style. Ochs's songs were informed by his
journalism background; indeed, he described himself as a "singing
journalist", a description that Dylan echoed rather more disparagingly with
his "You're not a folksinger, you're a journalist". Either way, the
assessment was accurate, and even his less topical songs, like today's, have
a refreshing clarity and directness to them.

This is, predictably enough, a much better song in performance - it still
suffers a bit from inconsistency of quality, but the first and last verses
are both catchy and memorable, and lyrics that seem flat and trite on the
printed page acquire a vibrant energy with music added. While it might not
have been the song I'd have selected if asked for a Phil Ochs piece at
random, it's usually the first song I think of on the current theme, and
definitely worth a listen.

martin

[Links]

Wikipedia on Ochs:
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_Ochs

Some retrospectives:
  http://www.furious.com/perfect/philochs.html
  http://www.zmag.org/ZMag/articles/nov97carter.htm

Collections of Ochs links:
  http://philochs.pitas.com/
  http://www.cs.pdx.edu/~trent/ochs/

[this poem is archived, accessible and awaiting your comments at]
http://www.cs.rice.edu/~ssiyer/minstrels/poems/1804.html
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From: "Alamelu Venkatachalam" <alamelu48@>

I often feel I must have been one of the original puritans!

I find recreational sex offensive, and only humans and bonobos
seem to suffer from this deviant behaviour.

Sex is pleasurable, because otherwise the species would
simply die, since the consequences of sex are not so
pleasurable. That shouldn't make sex an end in itself, and
it is just not acceptable to indulge if one is not prepared
for the consequences. That goes for any action, period.

This is not to say I am a moralist regarding premarital sex,
extramarital sex, homosexuality etc, although once again I
have to say homosexuality is deviant as it does not lead to
procreation. However, it is usually harmless in its consequences.
Having said which, let me add that I wouldn't be surprised to
find that AIDS was invented and broadcast by condom manufacturers.

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