This essay aims to select a sample of five Soul songs and analyze them collectively for the messaging they convey regarding the Black Power movement. While “Soul” is universally acknowledged as a style or aesthetic when applied to food or music, little does anyone realize that it also played a defining role at a particular time in shaping the history of Africa America most importantly, the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and ’60s (Guillory and Green, p. 3).
Just as there are many forms and subgenres of Soul, including Motown, Classic Soul, Philadephia Soul, and Memphis Soul, there is also a huge variety of songs and albums that reflect the Black experience in different times periods (Burnim and Maultsby, p. 11). For the sake of simplicity, we shall restrict our window of analysis to the song lyrics written mostly during or after the turbulent ’60s. The soul is a very delicate subject, generally meant to be pleasing to the senses, but it can also be a highly refined genre subject to innovative interpretations, some of which are mentioned below.
Let’s start off with the “Godfather of Soul”, James Brown, whose iconic album “Say it Loud, I’m Black and I’m Proud” became the anthem of the Black Power movement due to its strong statement on Black cultural nationalism (Vierkant, p. 2). The song addresses the system of perpetual oppression affecting a benighted Black community, but as a generalization, could be easily extended to anyone who remains under the jackboots of an unchangeable system that is thwarting his progress in life. Brown’s signature-style song lyrics radically call upon the oppressed to break free from the manacles of social oppression and identify with self-empowerment, a statement which could be considered very bold for the 60’s when the average Black wasn’t very keen on swimming against the tide.
A related song in the Chicago Soul subgenre, “keep on pushing” by Curtis Mayfield, carries the message of empowerment one step further by using the words “Hallelujah, hallelujah” as an endorsement for the Black Israelite movement again, a very powerful statement because it opines that Black Africans are the true Israelites, a very different interpretation from “Ham’s curse” which was a racist Biblical interpretation coined by Caucasians to imply that Blacks were a cursed race, and hence, to be forever subjected to servitude at their hands. Not any more!
Another song in the Philadelphia Soul subgenre, “Backstabbers” by O’Jays is a “dark, ominous meditation on treachery” faced by African-Americans in their daily lives due to a racist system that brutalizes their sense of identity, and takes away their manhood, taking a dig at liberal do-gooders who fall empty on their promises towards uplifting the Black man the song serves as a cautionary tale through its high-intensity vocals and backing voices (Jackson, p. 28).
Another song lyrics in the Classic soul category, by Staple Singers, “Respect Yourself” is a reflective yet mild advisory to the Black community, to start learning to respect their own identity and calls for empowerment through taking responsibility for one’s actions. The premise of the song is clear if minorities have to fight against oppression in their midst, they will have to start looking inward to be the change they want to see in the world. On a positive note, the song does not chastise any particular race but ends with optimistic overtones.
Finally, Sam Cooke’s “A Change is Gonna Come” reflects on the singer’s humiliation at a WHITES-only motel in Louisiana where his band was denied permission to board (Werner, 42). However, like the previous song, it ends on an optimistic note by voicing that change is inevitable, and will come sooner or later.
IN SUMMARY: Put together, the historical and social implications of Soul have been phenomenal in forging Black unity and building resistance against establishment oppression. Soul has been one of the key dimensions that have allowed all Americans of color, to collectively raise their voice in an environment of apathy, and shape the present character of this nation.
Works Cited
- Burnim, Mellonee V., and Portia K. Maultsby. African American Music an Introduction. New York: Routledge, 2006. Print.
- Guillory, Monique, and Richard C. Green. Soul: Black Power, Politics, and Pleasure. New York: New York UP, 1998. Print.
- Jackson, John A. A House on Fire the Rise and Fall of Philadelphia Soul. New York: Oxford UP, 2004. Print.
- Vierkant, Paul. James Brown and the Black Power Movement or was America’s Soul Brother. Nordestedt, Germany: Auflage, 2005. Print.
- Werner, Craig Hansen. A Change Is Gonna Come: Music, Race & the Soul of America. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan, 2006. Print.