I first heard this song when I was a "lost" teenager in the early 70s. I think it is a history of the USA, but only the negatives - slavery, war (WW2 and Vietnam), the collapse of democracy(?). I admit to getting lost in Ochs lyrics - not sure what he's getting at in some of the verses. But I do think the song is about the rise and fall of the American empire. Phil was not exactly someone who lived to pump sunshine up your ass.
I first heard this song when I was a "lost" teenager in the early 70s. I think it is a history of the USA, but only the negatives - slavery, war (WW2 and Vietnam), the collapse of democracy(?). I admit to getting lost in Ochs lyrics - not sure what he's getting at in some of the verses. But I do think the song is about the rise and fall of the American empire. Phil was not exactly someone who lived to pump sunshine up your ass.