Category: Music

Yesterday, as you know, was the 13th anniversary of 9/11.

An event as cataclysmic as 9/11 was understandably could lead to some inappropriate reaction, the result of a trauma with no frame of reference to guide your thoughts or actions.

That bit of psychobabble is as charitable as I can be to describe this bit of ignominious history, from the Examiner:

Not only were the events of that day a change of course for history, but they were also a psychological attack on the hearts and minds of every American; and the effects still resonate to this day. It was scary. People didn’t know to react or wrap their head around what had just happened. The government reacted with immediate military action. Normal citizens reacted by donating any money they could to aid the relief effort. Some even joined the military. Some corporate entities responded with censorship.

In the days following 9/11, Clear Channel Communications, the owner of more than 1,200 radio stations covering every market demographic in the United States at the time issued a ban of around 165 songs from being played on any of their radio stations. I truly think that the Clear Channel memorandum had good intentions by trying to suppress any song about death, fire, tall buildings, or bombs because music moves people emotionally and Clear Channel must have been of the opinion that American minds had been put through enough horror. Clear Channel felt the need to spread only positivity through the power of the airwaves, therefore attempting to keep the public’s heads up by pure psychology. (You see this in bars and restaurants all time. When’s the last time you bought a cheap drink at a bar that was playing classical music? You haven’t)

The reasoning behind the decision was one thing. The list itself is crazy. Songs that personally make me feel inspired and empowered such as “New York, New York” by Frank Sinatra, “What a Wonderful World” by Louis Armstrong, and “Imagine” by John Lennon were on this list. Any time I hear any of those three songs, I receive a feeling inside that not many songs can dish out. I feel hope in the face of adversity. I see a light at the end of the tunnel. I feel an ability to overcome. And most importantly, I feel inspired to try to make the world a better place with my own two hands.

So the very thought of a song about New York City or a song inspired by a war 30 years prior we as Americans were considered too fragile to hear. If history has taught us anything, it has taught us Americans are resilient and hold a rock-solid resolve. History has also taught us that simply you can’t stop New York City.

Before 9/11 was the 1989 World Series earthquake in San Francisco, which WOLX radio in Madison announced, followed by, I kid you not, Carole King’s “I Feel the Earth Move Under My Feet.” This is what happens when a radio station creates a playlist who knows how long in advance, and doesn’t have DJs in the building who can make the decision to pull an temporarily inappropriate song. (Or doesn’t give the DJ the ability to do so.)

Clear Channel’s list is indeed crazy, including:

It seems that nearly every grunge rock band from the ’90s was blacked out.

The list includes at least one ironic choice: Paul Simon sang “Bridge Over Troubled Water” at a 9/11 benefit concert. And not playing “New York, New York” defies explanation. Yes, 9/11 took place on a Tuesday, but what reason other than that is there to not play Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Tuesday’s Gone”?