Category Second Listen

For your Second Listen, I’d like you to listen to your chosen song by thinking about it in terms of the context in which the song was written—or, what “C. Wright Mills called a ‘sociological imagination’: It helps musickers to see the social roots in what might otherwise be felt as individual stories or problems. It identifies collective and structural arrangements—who has power? who does the work? who gets the payoff? who decides?—as the origin of what is usually felt to be one’s personal situation” (Rosenthal & Flacks, p. 20). In your post, I’d like you to write about two things:

First, the historical context in which your song was written and released. What was happening in the world at that time? Is the song connected to a particular social or protest movement? If only maybe possibly tangentially connected, you can say so; don’t create a strong connection that might not exist.

Second, how has the songwriter integrated that context into the song? That is, what is the song’s “sociological imagination”? Please don’t site every single instance; one or two is fine.

Link to and/or embed external sources in such a way that helps educate the reader (don’t assume the reader is familiar with what you are writing about). Data and statistics are encouraged. Use direct quotation, as needed. Be thorough.

Before you publish, make sure to select the Second Listen category and add necessary tags.