Truly groundbreaking musicians never ask for permission to create their music. There has always been a rebellious attitude in what these artists or bands record, epitomizing the “we don’t give a …” attitude toward the predominant trends of the day.
Pirate Radio (Album) — Various Artists, 2009
Pirate Radio is the real-life story of Radio Caroline, a boat anchored off the coast of Britain in the ’60s with the mission of skirting the BBC’s regulations and broadcast rock and roll to the masses. The soundtrack offers a heady collection of some of the best music from that era, artfully woven into the story. The 32 tracks of soul, classic rock, pop and R&B feature the likes of The Who, The Troggs, Otis Redding, The Supremes, Procol Harum and many more. The Turtles’ “Elenore” and “Father and Son” by Cat Stevens are so significant within the film that one can’t hear them without flashing back to those scenes over and over. Buy the soundtrack and the movie; the music and film work together in evoking the power of music during that provocative and rule-breaking time.
Bringing It All Back Home (Album) — Bob Dylan, 1965
Dylan established himself early on as one of the best acoustic folk music troubadours ever, so anything he produced was considered golden in the folk community … until 1965. After being influenced by The Animals’ rocked-out version of “House of the Rising Sun,” Dylan was inspired to head into the studio and record with an actual rock band. The opening track, “Subterranean Homesick Blues,” sang out that this was a new Dylan, rocking and electric, personal and edgy with his content. The mounting alienation of his folk fan base reached a crescendo a few months later at the Newport Folk Festival. There, a largely unimpressed folk community gave him and his band a cold reception. Dylan, thankfully, didn’t need, or seek, anyone’s permission to expand his musical horizons.
The Definitive Collection (Album) — Loretta Lynn, 2005
One of eight children in a family from the coal town of Butcher Holler, Kentucky, Loretta Lynn escaped that town by marrying young and then spent more than a decade raising four kids and learning to play the guitar. Lynn broke ranks with the male-dominated country/western industry of the ’60s and ’70s, penning heartfelt and empowering “take no crap” narratives that defiantly asked nobody for permission. Feminism was on the rise, and her music changed what women in country music sang for decades to come. Among the riskier hits are songs like “Don’t Come Home a Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ on Your Mind),” about a wife unafraid to stand up to her drunk husband; and “Rated X,” a look at divorced women and the stigma of being easy. The most radical song in this collection is “The Pill,” about a wife celebrating having access to birth control. Banned by many radio stations, it still became a major hit for the coalminer’s daughter. With this collection, Ms. Lynn grants us access to her personal life and the challenges that women of all walks of life face. A rebel in lipstick, and a true original.
