Controversial songs

[Firestarter]

In the 1960s, Bob Dylan was widely recognised as the king of protest songs, but I’m afraid I haven’t heard much protest in them…
In 1975, however, Dylan released an actual protest song "Hurricane" about the wrongful imprisonment of professional boxer Rubin "Hurricane" Carter. According to Dylan, the black Carter (and John Artis) was found guilty of triple murder because of racism, and he was innocent.
They got a new trial, and in 1976 Carter was (again) sentenced to life in prison. Artis was paroled 5 years later. In 1985, a Federal Judge ruled that Carter had not received a fair trial, that the prosecution had been "based on racism rather than reason and concealment rather than disclosure" and overturned the conviction, after which "Hurricane" Carter was released. In 1988, all charges against Carter and Artis were finally dropped.
Bob Dylan – Hurricane (1975)



In 1990, Judas Priest were sued for responsibility for the 1985 suicide attempts of 2 young men in Reno, Nevada, US (only one of them succeeded at that time). The lawsuit centred around the following song, with some imagination I could see that the songs says that it’s better to be killed (by you) than commit suicide (by me), so that sort of would be the opposite. The lawsuit was dismissed.
Judas Priest - Better by you, better than me (1978)

[Firestarter]

In 1979, Pink Floyd released its first single of the 1970s “Another brick in the wall part 2”, a protest song against education, thought control (we don’t need…), calling to the “Teacher, leave them kids alone”.
In the US, in several states the song was removed from the play lists of radio stations. The single, and its parent album, The Wall, were banned in South Africa in 1980 after the song had been adopted as the anthem for a school boycott.
Pink Floyd – Another brick in the wall part 2 (1979)



In the early ’90s, as the British army entered the First Gulf War, the BBC suddenly banned 67 dangerous songs, including “Imagine”, “Give Peace a Chance”, “Boom-Bang-a-Bang”, “Bang Bang”, “I Shot the Sheriff”, “Killing Me Softly with His Song”, “Gimme Hope Jo’Anna”, “When The Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going”, and “I’m on Fire”: https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/songs-bbc- ... -gulf-war/

This was one of those 67 songs, arguable Motown’s first “political” hit, protesting against the Vietnam war…
Edwin Starr – War (1970)


Another of those 67 unpatriotic songs, for using the word ‘atomic’…
Blondie - Atomic (1979)

[Firestarter]

"Maybellene" is one of the most legendary rock & roll songs, it was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1988.
It describes Chuck complaining and chasing his unfaithful girlfriend in her Cadillac Coupe DeVille. It was banned by the BBC for describing infidelity…
Chuck Berry – Maybellene (1955)



"Maybellene" was one of the songs in the 1950s payola scandal, in which record companies gave writing credits to popular disc jockeys to promote a record, in return for royalties (DJ Alan Freed was credited as a co-writer of "Maybellene").
To make an “end” to payola, station program directors would now decide on what songs to be played. This really made payola much simpler: instead of reaching numerous DJs, record labels only had to bribe the station's program director (sometimes paying through third parties). This also made it easier to rig the charts, and has continued to this very day: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Payola

[Firestarter]

I don’t know what their most controversial song was, but this was their catchy debut single that never became a hit, exposing the “woke” mindset more than 40 years ago, where you “always wear the happy face”. From 2011 to 2019, Jerry Brown returned as governor of California…
The Dead Kennedys were ultimately destroyed through trials over their “obscene” artwork, with lawsuits between members over royalties finishing off the band.

Dead Kennedys – California über alles (1979)

[Boadicea]

Well We've All Been Too Drunk...

[Firestarter]

In what looks like a publicity stunt to me, on 11 January 1984 Radio 1 disc jockey Mike Read stopped “Relax” in the middle of playing the song, suddenly (?) finding out that the record had a suggestive gay sleeve, and that the song was promoting gay sex. The BBC had already decided to ban the song (which he really didn’t know?)! This catapulted the song to nr. 1 on the pop chart, and made it one of the best-selling UK singles of all time.
“Relax” won both the 1985 Brit Award for Best British Single and for Best British Newcomer, and the band also got nominated for a Grammy as Best New Artist.

As for the meaning of the repeated "Relax, don't do it / When you want to sock it to it / Relax, don't do it / When you want to come"?!? Postponing an ejaculation!
The first video for "Relax" was in an S&M themed gay club.
Frankie Goes to Hollywood – Relax (1983)



The Golden Earring is the only Dutch band that can truly be called “legendary”. The following song became controversial not so much over its lyrics, but over its video in which Golden Earring singer Barry Hay goes “wild” and attempts to rape 2 women (including a nun). He gets “cured” by a lobotomy. The video was banned by MTV.
After the outrage that Hillary Clinton used the song during her 2008 presidential campaign, it was pulled from her campaign. Bill Clinton used the band's 1973 hit "Radar Love" in his 1992 presidential campaign.
Golden Earring – When the lady smiles (1984)

[Firestarter]

Austrian singer Falco scored a pop hit all over Europe, with this song about a psychopath that rapes and murders a teenage girl, with lyrics in both German and English. It is one of the few hit singles I find disturbing (mainly the German words).
In communist East Germany, it was prohibited to broadcast the song or play it in clubs. In West Germany, “Jeanny” wasn’t technically prohibited but was banned by some TV and radio stations "for ethical reasons".

Falco – Jeanny (1985)

[Felix]

Anti-Nowhere League: So What
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PA0q6Hg1sM

[Boadicea]

It's Already Been 'Disappeared!"

oobe...Poof



MR CHESWICK (CORONAVIRUS SONG) SHEEP
zapoper

[Firestarter]

This was banned (!) by the BBC for being "too depressing"... and "fucking" in the lyrics...
I don't consider it a particularly sad song... Haven't we all fell in love with somebody "so fuckin' special" that didn't feel the same about us?!?

Radiohead - Creep (1992)