One of the great things about music is that it has not only has the power to uplift, but it also has the ability to make you stop what you're doing and reflect on the world. Your foot may still be tapping, but the lyrics end up take you down a trail you might not otherwise have followed.
At CivilizedNation.com we're constantly trying to find songs of social significance.
These may include, but are generally different from protest songs, labor union songs, anti-war songs, etc.
Because songs of social significance are found in every genre of music. Rap, hip-hop, rock n roll, country, folk, you name it. Different artists from every genre have at one time or another sung at least one song dealing with social issues.
Paul Simon's song, "Boy in the Bubble" is a perfect example of this. He's not trying to "stick it to the man" with his words, but the things he's singing about give us plenty of material to contemplate.
It's a turn-around jump shot
It's everybody jump start
It's every generation throws a hero up the pop charts
Medicine is magical and magical is art, think of
The Boy in the Bubble
And the baby with the baboon heart
And I believe
These are the days of lasers in the jungle
Lasers in the jungle somewhere
Staccato signals of constant information
A loose affiliation of millionaires
And billionaires and baby
These are the days of miracle and wonder
This is the long distance call
The way the camera follows us in slo-mo
The way we look to us all
The way we look to a distant constellation
That's dying in a corner of the sky
These are the days of miracle and wonder
And don't cry baby, don't cry
Don't cry
So if you know of any songs out there that really cause you to think and wonder and dream, please let us know, because we're actively looking for them, and we want to help give them a collaborative home here at CivilizedNation.com, where we believe that songs of social significance from every genre and ever corner of the globe have the ability to inspire and the potential to change the world.