My head is hanging heavy with the thoughts of him in mind
‘Tis sacrilege for us to take advantage of the blind
So, tell before you come to me from out of yonder skies
A man’s a man who looks a man right between the eyes
And the pain that we can bring to him
I don’t think he could beat
Please don’t ask me how I know
I’ve just been up that street
and all the people living there
Have been silenced by their own lies
- written and performed by Graham Nash
WHAT a week it was; former president and now congresswoman Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is the new Speaker of the House. Conchita Carpio-Morales is no longer the Ombudsman. The Court of Appeals junked Rappler and on top of all these Rodrigo Duterte is still President.
Not a good time to wake up every morning for Noynoy Aquino and the rest of the “devotees to the cult of the yellow ribbon.”
And it’s time to take a break from politics and segue into music and revisit this poignant love song by Graham Nash.
The turbulent era of the ‘60s and the ‘70s, the “dazed and confused” days of the Woodstock generation were characterized mostly by loud psychedelic rock music. That generation spawned the music of Led Zeppelin, The Who, Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, and Carlos Santana to name a few.
But from out of that “Purple Haze” a new genre of music emerged, a fusion so to speak, of a much newer rebellious musical form and an older much more sedate but equally expressive music.
This new music genre came to be known as “folk rock.” This new music produced artists such as Bob Dylan, Simon and Garfunkel, The Byrds, James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Carole King and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.
It was a more subtle, a bit laid back and cool music characterized by acoustic guitars and an almost if not poetic lyrics usually having a social and political message. This “folk rock” music is also fused with a bit of blues and jazz.
From that free online encyclopedia a.k.a. the internet:
Folk rock is a music genre combining elements of folk music and rock music. In its earliest and narrowest sense, the term referred to a genre that arose in the United States and the United Kingdom around the mid-1960s. The genre was pioneered by the Los Angeles band the Byrds, who began playing traditional folk music and songs by Bob Dylan with rock instrumentation. The term “folk rock” was coined by the US music press to describe the Byrds’ music in June 1965, the month in which the band’s debut album was issued.
.As with any genre, the borders are difficult to define. Folk rock may lean more toward folk or more toward rock in instrumentation, playing and vocal style, and choice of material. Still, the term is not usually applied to rock music rooted in the blues-based or other African American music.
“Right between the Eyes” is a song by Graham Nash of what I dare say epitomizes the “folk rock” genre of the ‘60s and the ‘70s. He is one-fourth of that iconic group; “Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young or CSNY as they are more popularly known.
Sounds like a law firm but it’s not, rather the extreme opposite, and performing and recording some of the most well-known protests songs of the Vietnam War and peace movement era.
But we will talk about CSNY in another column; for now let’s talk about Graham Nash and one of his songs.
Graham William Nash, OBE (born Feb. 2, 1942) is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Nash is known for his light tenor voice and for his songwriting contributions as a member of the English pop/rock group the Hollies and the folk-rock supergroup Crosby, Stills & Nash. Nash became an American citizen on 14 August 1978 and holds dual citizenship of the United Kingdom and United States.
He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Crosby, Stills & Nash in 1997 and as a member of The Hollies in 2010.
Nash was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2010 Birthday Honours List for services to music and to charity.
Nash holds four honorary doctorates, including one from New York Institute of Technology, one in Music from the University of Salfordin 2011and his latest.
From www.songfacts.com here’s a comment:
I thought this was a good song, but it made no sense. It drove me nuts, and I came to hate this song after busting my brain to discern the meaning. Then I read that Graham Nash said it was a about a woman he became involved with who he later learned was married. The lyrics came directly in focus. It is a good and meaningful song.
Graham Nash in an interview with Rolling Stone Magazine:
I was seduced by a beautiful woman down in Long Island. She was married. The song is a confession to a friend. (brotherlouie16@gmail.com/PN)
