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4. Social Revolution - Popular Music Empowering Class |
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Popular music, apart from providing good entertainment, has also proven to be a force
for the oppressed and the exploited as we can demonstrate with respect to women,
coloured peoples, and others. At times, however, it also speaks for other downtrodden
sectors or classes in society - `the lower class’, both in the West and also in the Third
World.
for the oppressed and the exploited as we can demonstrate with respect to women,
coloured peoples, and others. At times, however, it also speaks for other downtrodden
sectors or classes in society - `the lower class’, both in the West and also in the Third
World.
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In this segment we examine some of the music and the messages therein aimed at spreading awareness of the oppression of certain other `sectors’ of our society. |
John Lennon - Working Class Hero
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Class
As we know, all Pop music stems from a social context – and as such, it has also
represented, or reflected various class backgrounds, and often the woes of various
classes. It is also certainly possible to identify music with certain classes and ethnic
groups, or other human communities, certainly with African Americans and others, and
certainly with the hopelessness of the working class.
What Is Class?
OK – before we go any further we need to work out what we mean by ‘class’. And
when we do that we find the concept of class has quite often been linked to socialism –
or socialist theorists. While socialists believe in the existence of a common humanity,
they also have stressed the importance of social class, and have traditionally linked their
views to the interests of the working class.
As we know, all Pop music stems from a social context – and as such, it has also
represented, or reflected various class backgrounds, and often the woes of various
classes. It is also certainly possible to identify music with certain classes and ethnic
groups, or other human communities, certainly with African Americans and others, and
certainly with the hopelessness of the working class.
What Is Class?
OK – before we go any further we need to work out what we mean by ‘class’. And
when we do that we find the concept of class has quite often been linked to socialism –
or socialist theorists. While socialists believe in the existence of a common humanity,
they also have stressed the importance of social class, and have traditionally linked their
views to the interests of the working class.
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Much of the working class has been represented in the Communist International and the music of that movement. And much of the rural working class has been represented in Country and Western music. |
The Communist International
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What Do We Mean By Class Then?
Simply speaking, class designates a group of people who hold a common economic
position and therefore share similar working and social experiences, or in Marxist
terms, share the same position vis a vis the relations of production.
The notion of social class is important because capitalism is based upon social
inequality, and an unequal distribution of income or wealth. Capitalist society is in fact
characterized by deep social divisions, between the rich and the poor, employers and
workers, or `capital’ and `labour'. The working class is therefore generally considered
to be exploited and oppressed. As a result, the working class has provided somewhat of
a natural constituency for socialist ideas, and even at times the prospect of realizing
socialism. Socialists have, therefore, traditionally seen the working class as an agent of
social change and even social revolution.
Simply speaking, class designates a group of people who hold a common economic
position and therefore share similar working and social experiences, or in Marxist
terms, share the same position vis a vis the relations of production.
The notion of social class is important because capitalism is based upon social
inequality, and an unequal distribution of income or wealth. Capitalist society is in fact
characterized by deep social divisions, between the rich and the poor, employers and
workers, or `capital’ and `labour'. The working class is therefore generally considered
to be exploited and oppressed. As a result, the working class has provided somewhat of
a natural constituency for socialist ideas, and even at times the prospect of realizing
socialism. Socialists have, therefore, traditionally seen the working class as an agent of
social change and even social revolution.
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Class Cuts Across Boundaries In recent history, socialists have traditionally believed social class to be the deepest and most politically significant division in society. Class is seen to cut across religious, ethnic, racial and national boundaries, and as such, socialists have often tried to foster international working class solidarity. For example, the First International Workingmen’s Association was established by Marx in 1864, a Second or `Socialist’ international was set up in 1889, and revived in 1951. A Third International or Comintern’ was formed by Lenin in 1919, while a rival `Trotskyite’ Fourth International came into existence in 1936.’ |
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However, because the class system is founded upon exploitation and injustice, socialists
also believe that class divisions can be and should be removed. Some, like Marx, looked
forward to creating a `classless society’ in which all social and economic conflicts will
be resolved because wealth will be owned in common.
also believe that class divisions can be and should be removed. Some, like Marx, looked
forward to creating a `classless society’ in which all social and economic conflicts will
be resolved because wealth will be owned in common.
Marxist Views on Class
However, while all socialists believe class divisions to be important, they have not
always agreed about the precise meaning of social class. Marxists define class in terms
of economic power, the ownership of the 'means of production' or productive wealth.
Marx believed that capitalist society was increasingly being divided into `two great
classes facing one another: the Bourgeoisie and Proletariat.’
The Bourgeoisie, according to Marx, was/ and is, a small class of capitalists or property
owners, while the proletariat constituted the property-less masses who had been
reduced to the status of `wage slaves’. The bourgeoisie was a `ruling class’ because it
controlled massive economic power and systematically exploited the proletariat by
extracting what Marx called `surplus value’ in order to make profits. The conflict
between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat was both fundamental and irreconcilable; it
could only result in the overthrow of capitalism itself in a `proletarian revolution’.
For Marx, therefore, class conflict was the key to understanding human history and
society. `The history of all hitherto existing societies’, he declared, `is the history of
class struggles.’
However, while all socialists believe class divisions to be important, they have not
always agreed about the precise meaning of social class. Marxists define class in terms
of economic power, the ownership of the 'means of production' or productive wealth.
Marx believed that capitalist society was increasingly being divided into `two great
classes facing one another: the Bourgeoisie and Proletariat.’
The Bourgeoisie, according to Marx, was/ and is, a small class of capitalists or property
owners, while the proletariat constituted the property-less masses who had been
reduced to the status of `wage slaves’. The bourgeoisie was a `ruling class’ because it
controlled massive economic power and systematically exploited the proletariat by
extracting what Marx called `surplus value’ in order to make profits. The conflict
between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat was both fundamental and irreconcilable; it
could only result in the overthrow of capitalism itself in a `proletarian revolution’.
For Marx, therefore, class conflict was the key to understanding human history and
society. `The history of all hitherto existing societies’, he declared, `is the history of
class struggles.’
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Modes Of Production
In Marx’s view, each society was characterized by its `mode of production’, or its
economic system. History has progressed through a series of stages as each `mode of
production’ collapsed because of its own internal contradictions, reflected in class
conflict. Capitalism was, and is, merely the last in a series of class societies which have
included slavery and feudalism.
Like all previous societies, Marxists believe capitalism is unstable, and doomed because
of the conflict between the bourgeoisie and proletariat. This `dialectical’ process- i.e.
class conflict, Marx believed to be the motor or driving force of history. What made
capitalism different from other modes of production was that it was destined to be the
last class society. The proletariat was seen to be the `gravedigger’ of capitalism and,
being the vast majority in society, Marx believed that the `proletarian revolution’ would
bring exploitation itself to an end, and thus create a classless, communist society.
Russian Revolution
Modern Social Democrats View on Class
Modern Social Democrats, however, do not share this Marxist conception of class. In
particular, capitalism has not appeared to develop as Marx had predicted. Far from
becoming more intense, class conflict has actually been gradually diluted by growing
affluence, nationalist and ethnic loyalties, at least in the industrialized West.
In the West, at least, the traditional division between property owners and workers has
been replaced by a far more complicated social structure of differential rewards for
particular occupations or jobs. As a result, Social Democrats have ceased to define
class in terms of the ownership of wealth and have accepted instead the idea of
occupational class.
Class therefore reflects not an unequal distribution of economic power, but an unequal
distribution of income. The working class is no longer thought of as the property-less
proletariat, but, more narrowly, as a class of manual or `blue collar’ workers, those
whose jobs have traditionally been the lowest paid and enjoyed the least social status.
Social democrats have therefore abandoned the goal of abolishing class divisions
altogether, in favor of the desire to simply reduce them.
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Russia
As we have seen, the link between socialism and the working class, however it is defined, has weakened during the 20th century. In backward countries, such as Russia, the industrial working class was small and the Bolsheviks forged an alliance between workers and peasants, reflected in what was to become the symbol of communism: the hammer and sickle. China However, in China in 1949 and in other parts of the Third World, the peasantry rather than the working class has been regarded as the `revolutionary class.’ In the industrialized West, material prosperity has made the working class progressively less radical, encouraging some socialists, like Andres Gorz, to predict `the death of the working class’. During the 1960s, the New Left increasingly abandoned any faith in the working class or proletariat and looked instead to the revolutionary potential of groups like students, women, ethnic minorities and the Third World. |
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Either Way Classes Still Exist And Perhaps So Does Class Conflict.
There are still classes out there, and right throughout history there have been many
changing class formations and much class conflict. And as a consequence, music as a
means of communication and tool of struggle has also been a weapon of class struggle.
Let’s now look at the role of Pop music as a means of representing various classes and
spreading the message of the woes of the working class, at least in the Capitalist West.
Folk Generally Has Been The Music Of Class Struggle
Folk
As we have seen so far, Folk has generally been politicized music, the music of the
people. As such it became the music of the oppressed in the depression and it had a
resurgence in the 1950s and 1960s, particularly with the association with the Civil
Rights Movement and the Peace Movement.
Blues and Jazz
Blues was also the music of class, the black working class, as was Jazz, although Jazz
was very much city music. In this respect it was interesting to note that Jazz very much
became the music of the left wing socialist movement and became very big in the
Soviet bloc.
Country and Western
Country and Western too, as we know, was the music of the poor country folk, or the
rural peasantry - to use Marxist terminology.
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Woody Guthrie - This Land Is Your Land
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Leadbelly- Bourgeois Town
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However, The Politics Of Class Has Also Been Evident In Pop Music
Just as all these elements - Jazz, Folk, Blues and Country and Western came together in
Pop, we could argue that Pop in itself can be seen to reflect class - the modern
industrialized mass class of the urban cities. It is modern working class music perhaps -
music, as we have seen, that consistently becomes co-opted and commodified.
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Some musicians have made definite attempts to draw attention to the plight of many people living 'down and out' in cities, in what for some is sheer hopelessness. Let’s look at some of this. In the Kinks - 'Dead End Street' What is this song saying? - "We are strictly second class - we don’t stand a chance" This is a song basically about the poverty and hopelessness of the city - of those working class in dead end jobs - on 'Dead End Street'. It is for some, a song about the hopelessness of class. Take Billy Joel for a further example. 'Allentown' is about the impact of a collapsing economy - about the impact of a collapsing steel industry on a steel town like Allentown in the United States. |
The Kinks - Dead End Street
Billy Joel - Allentown
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Take also the song below by Jimmy Barnes and Cold Chisel - it is directly about the
trials and tribulations of the 'working class' man.
trials and tribulations of the 'working class' man.
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Jimmy Barnes - Working Class Man
And how about this one?
The Animals - We Gotta Get Out Of This Place
Again a song about the hopelessness of the working class in large industrialized cities.
There are many, many more songs, such as those by Cat Stevens and Billy Bragg.
Much of Billy Bragg’s music for example is about the struggles of the working class as
was indeed the songs of Woody Guthrie, in a much earlier folk era.
was indeed the songs of Woody Guthrie, in a much earlier folk era.
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Billy Bragg - Waiting For The Great Leap Forward
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Cat Stevens - Matthew & Son
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Further Examples
There are many examples out there of Pop music explicitly talking about the politics or
struggles of the working class. And much or many of these issues are also linked to
the impact of the globalisation of capitalism.
Many political groups or parties have tried to use pop music to harness class
consciousness with which to build a political base, as was the case of the British Labour
Party and 'Red Wedge' in the 1980s, a group of artists and concerts, to rally support for
the British Labour Party. However, the real problem for Red Wedge was that it was
meant to appeal to everyone (along the lines of Live Aid) by using music, the collective
power of which depends on its sense of exclusion. When people feel most passionately
about music together it is because of its power to mark boundaries (this is obvious in the
case of Punk and Heavy Metal, for example); but inclusive, 'mainstream' music never
has such power.
Where 'Rock Against Racism' (RAR), at least offered an enemy, Red Wedge for all the
targeting of the 'Tories' or conservatives - only offered a vague target, and also called on
its audiences to be reasonable. And whatever else mass music may represent, it is not
the 'power of reason’.
Red Wedge - Political Impact
Both RAR and the Labour Party - through Red Wedge, tried to harness Pop for causes.
RAR succeeded but Red Wedge did not - because in the 1990s in post industrial
capitalism it was very hard to harness a class consciousness and national if not
international solidarity.
Quite simply - class politics these days is somewhat out of date - or been superseded by
globalisation and new ideologies which embrace the complex issues and cross cutting
forces and influences of the 21st Century - ideologies such as Environmentalism,
Feminism, Islamic radicalism and others.
Nevertheless, much Pop music has been about the plight of the working class, however
ill-defined, but very little about changing conditions for all, and less about offering
prescriptions about just how to bring about change and what form it should take.
Except perhaps for artists like Thunderclap Newman.
RAR succeeded but Red Wedge did not - because in the 1990s in post industrial
capitalism it was very hard to harness a class consciousness and national if not
international solidarity.
Quite simply - class politics these days is somewhat out of date - or been superseded by
globalisation and new ideologies which embrace the complex issues and cross cutting
forces and influences of the 21st Century - ideologies such as Environmentalism,
Feminism, Islamic radicalism and others.
Nevertheless, much Pop music has been about the plight of the working class, however
ill-defined, but very little about changing conditions for all, and less about offering
prescriptions about just how to bring about change and what form it should take.
Except perhaps for artists like Thunderclap Newman.
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Thunderclap Newman - Something In The Air
A Question To Consider:
Do you think Modern Popular Music has had any success in spreading awareness and
concern as to the plight of the politically and economically oppressed and/or
disadvantaged?
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