Love Me, I'm A Liberal Lyrics
Tears ran down my spine
I cried when they shot Mr. Kennedy
As though I'd lost a father of mine
But Malcolm X got what was coming
He got what he asked for this time
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal
And I put down the old D.A.R.
I love Harry and Sidney and Sammy
I hope every colored boy becomes a star
But don't talk about revolution
That's going a little bit too far
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal
My faith in the system restored
I'm glad the commies were thrown out
Of the A.F.L. C.I.O. board
I love Puerto Ricans and Negros
As long as they don't move next door
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal
Should all hang their heads in shame
I can't understand how their minds work
What's the matter don't they watch Les Crane?
But if you ask me to bus my children
I hope the cops take down your name
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal
I've learned to take every view
You know, I've memorized Lerner and Golden
I feel like I'm almost a Jew
But when it comes to times like korea
There's no one more red, white and blue
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal
They want the U.N. to be strong
I go to all the Pete Seeger concerts
He sure gets me singing those songs
I'll send all the money you ask for
But don't ask me to come on along
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal
I wore every conceivable pin
Even went to the socialist meetings
Learned all the old union hymns
But I've grown older and wiser
And that's why I'm turning you in
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal
My favorite Ochs song, it was updated by jello biafra to reflect the fair-weather liberals of our modern times. Ochs speeks of all the people who have forgotten the ideals they held in their youth and sold-out in their middle age.
This is a VERY relevant song once again, with the sell-out Establishment Democrats taking pot shots at Ralph Nader and the Green Party. The Greens are the ones who are really working for progressive values, but the Dems try to shame people into voting for their Republican-wannabe candidates instead.
Agreed, this bashes all the sell-out liberals. I love this song.
This song lampoons the "leftist elite," similar to what the Dead Kennedys do later on with Holiday in Cambodia (which I admit is much more awesome, but less humorous and clear-cut). ahisma kinda beat me to that point, but anyway, seems to me it's about the people who lean left until it conflicts with their interests as members of a higher social class, and ultimately end up as hypocrites.
allow me to add: today's hipsters to the progressives who I believe will age and turn on their past. This does not negate the message Phil Ochs had about how pathetic conservative philosophy is. All it does is point out how faux liberals become conservative. grin
I guess I easily fit into this political category...I know way too damn much...and I don't know what I stand for anymore...I think that means liberal is reality a synonym for indecisive...
Great song, by the way...Ochs has a wicked sense of humor....
I agree with all of the above. He was a clever fucker!
The song is about the limousine liberals and progressives. Living among minorities or not, a real liberal would not wear on their sleeve "I live in a diverse neighborhood/city" -- so many of today's progressives are condescending and self -righteous and those are today's limousine liberals.
I love this song as a historical document. Yes, he's singing about hypocrisy, and that will always exist, and will always be worth pointing out. But I specifically enjoy the 1960s allusions, and the audience laughing their asses off.
"Tears ran down my spine" = two-faced?