A Song about California
Song Can Tell about the Past
Several historians assume that songs may reflect to a certain extent the society in which they were produced. To my mind, this view of music is reasonable: a musical work is a part of the culture from which it rose from. “Songs serve to unify groups of people and to move them to common action or help them express common emotions” [1]Having listened to various songs in order to select the most appropriate I eventually have come across San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair) sung by Scott McKenzie, an American renowned singer and songwriter.
The song was hugely popular during the Summer of Love in 1967 as it was one of the well-known Hippie hits. At that time, hordes of young peace activists arrived in San Francisco. They wore flowers in their hair and adore this song for its lyrics and as a result 7 million of copies were sold. “Flower children” were focused on music, painting, and poetry as well as on religion and meditation. Also they distributed floral-themed decorations that symbolize ideas of universal belonging, peace and love. One of the participants says: “The 60s and 70s were decades that changed the landscape of social and political culture in America. Yes, I was sure to wear flowers in my hair.” [2] Owing to the hippie counterculture movement numerous 'ordinary citizens' began questioning about themselves and the environment around them. Furthermore, it reaches number one in the United Kingdom music chart and most of Europe which meant that Eastern philosophy and spiritual concepts reached a larger audience. Some of the little hippie health food stores are now large-scale, profitable businesses, due to greater interest in natural foods, herbal remedies, vitamins and other nutritional supplements.Sounding MattersIt is obvious that music can express attitudes by its sounding.
The selected song belongs to easy listening kind of music and therefore can be associated with white beaches, blue cloudless sky, golden sun and ocean. Consequently the state is also called the land of flowers, honey, fruit and vine. However June is the saddest month with its fog and gray skies which cause anxiety. Still Californians do not dread earthquakes in comparison to most of the world’s population. The color of the song tone is not loud but very melodious and breathy. Judging by its simple but harmonic structure one can claim that people there are gentle as well. Although the song is old, I believe it is gold likewise the state with its long and rich history.All these components express widely shared values such as cordiality, outgoing, unconventional thinking, love of life and desire to be unique that are always met with warm approval from residents of the state.By the way, Scott McKenzie wore flowers in his hair while recording this song.
This may be the main reason for its charming tone which can evoke in listeners both melancholy and happiness at the …
