God Speed, Mother Nature
When the Guess Who produced this song, there was an awareness that there were differences between the USA and Canada which couldn’t be more defined than in the rights of citizens to bear arms, or not.
In the context of the song, Mother Nature is mourned, because of the way humans are destroying her. Has much changed since then? No.
Rain Dance (1971)
“I’m still sitting with my next door neighbour, saying, ‘Where’d you get the gun, John?’”
Our neighbours to the South have a long history of shooting each other. Which is not to say that Canadians have never done that, but the odds are still greater in the States that you could be randomly shot in the street than if you were in Canada.
This does beg the question, ‘though: if you took away the guns, would Americans be nicer to each other? Tough one, that.
Black Day in July (1968)
Gordon Lightfoot decided to join the protest movement with this song. His choice of title practically demanded that it be banned in the States. The meaning is seen from two different points of view: Detroit’s riots in 1967 were a black mark on its history, and at the same time, Black Lives Mattered, even then.
For What It’s Worth (1967)
When your youth start to protest a foreign war, the last thing you would do is kill them, right? Not unless you are the President of the United States. Are we starting to repeat history? Yes.
Conclusion
What goes round, comes around. History has a way of making sure that we eventually learn its lessons. And on that note, I’ll leave you with one more Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young song: Ohio.
