From Smithsonian Folkways
The Smithsonian Folkways label has issued a CD of folk protest songs. If you are feeling nostalgic for the folk boom of the 1960′s or are curious, this CD might a good start.
Protest songs are as old as man had music and the little guy wanted to speak out without losing his head. Folk singers like Leadbelly and Woody Guthrie created some of the early protest songs of the last century. Jazz singer Billie Holiday’s “Strange Fruit” was a protest song against Negro lynch mobs.
The folk boom of the 1960′s made protest songs part of the popular culture. Bob Dylan’s early career was built on protest songs like “Blowin in the Wind”, “Masters of War”, “Maggie’s Farm” and “Time They Are A Changing”.
Warning – Explicit Content follows