social relevance

Concrete Angles by: Martina McBride

The song “Concrete Angels” by Martina McBride is considered to have social relevance because it is about child abuse. The song is about a little girl who is abused by her mother. In the beginning it talks about how she is going off to school all by herself, and how she got up and got herself ready. She wears clothes that cover up the bruises so no one can see, but her teacher still wonders but never asks. In the chorus, it talks about how she is strong and she tries to avoid it and stand her ground but she can’t. In the next verse, she ends up getting fatally beat that night. It states how the neighbors heard her cries, but they shut out their lights. In the end, she does turn into a concrete angel because she goes to heaven where she is loved and better off. This songs brings awareness to child abuse and sadly gives a song for children to relate to. The lyrics within this song contain a lot of imagery and are very emotional.

If Your Reading This by: Tim McGraw

The song, “If Your Reading This,” by Tim McGraw is a very powerful song. It is an example of social relevance because it is about the war that is going on over in Iraq, and about all of the troops that are over there. The song is about a soldier who wrote a letter to send to his family and wife just in case something happened to him. The narrator talks about how he only got a one a one way ticket over to Iraq and that he wishes he could of seen his family one last time. He also talks about how he won’t be there for the birth of his baby girl. A lot of people can relate to this song whether they are in the service themselves, or a family member or a friend of someone who is. Some go to this song for comfort because it helps them get through the pain of their loss, or helps them reassure themselves that their loved one will be alright. It also let others know that the men and women over there fighting for our country, do it because they love standing up for our country.

Only in America by: Brooks and Dunn

“Only in America,” by Brooks and Dunn is an example of social relevance because it is talking about all the freedom that we have in America. It’s mainly about how we all have to the freedom to dream and pursue what we want to be. It mentions about how there are kids on a bus and each one dreams about different things and how each one is going down a different path. One kid dream about being famous, the other works to help pay the rent, one could end up in prison, and one just might end up being president. In America, we all end up on different paths and we make our life how we want it to be. If we keep dreaming and just work hard to get what we want, then in the end we will end up having what we want. Not many countries have the gift of being free and getting to decide what we want out of life. In some countries, your whole life is basically planned out since the day your born and you don’t really have a choice. Many take America for granted when they really shouldn’t. Listening to this song could help people realize what a gift it is to have freedom.

The World in Six Songs

Friendship: I'll Be by Reba McIntrye

When darkness falls upon your heart and soul
I`ll be the light that shines for you
When you forget how beautiful you are
I`ll be there to remind you
When you can`t find your way
I`ll find my way to you
When troubles come around
I will come to you

Chorus:
I`ll be your shoulder
When you need someone to lean on
Be your shelter
when you need someone to see you through
I`ll be there to carry you
I`ll be there
I`ll be the rock that will be strong for you
The one that will hold on to you
When you feel that rain falling down
When there`s no body else around
I`ll be

And when you`re there with no one there to hold
I`ll be the arms that reach for you
And when you feel your faith is running low
I`ll be there to believe in you
When all you find are lies
I`ll be the truth you need
When you need someone to run to
You can run to me

Chorus

I`ll be the sun
When your heart`s filled with rain
I`ll be the one
To chase the rain away

This song shows friendship because whoever she is talking to, she is saying how she will always be there for them no matter what and that she will always help them when they are down.


Joy: Remember When by Alan Jackson

Remember when I was young and so were you
and time stood still and love was all we knew
You were the first, so was I
We made love and then you cried
Remember when

Remember when we vowed the vows
and walked the walk
Gave our hearts, made the start, it was hard
We lived and learned, life threw curves
There was joy, there was hurt
Remember when

Remember when old ones died and new were born
And life was changed, disassembled, rearranged
We came together, fell apart
And broke each other's hearts
Remember when

Remember when the sound of little feet
was the music
We danced to week to week
Brought back the love, we found trust
Vowed we'd never give it up
Remember when

Remember when thirty seemed so old
Now lookn' back it's just a steppin' stone
To where we are,
Where we've been
Said we'd do it all again
Remember when
Remember when we said when we turned gray
When the children grow up and move away
We won't be sad, we'll be glad
For all the life we've had
And we'll remember when

This song is about joy because he is talking to his wife about the life that they have spent with each other. He starts right from when they met and ends about when they are old and are looking back on their life that they have created. Although it could be a song about love, it is joy because they have shared many happy moments and still have more to come.




Comfort: Im only Me When I'm With You by Taylor Swift

Friday night beneath the stars,
in a field behind your yard,
you and I are paintin' pictures in the sky.
And sometimes we don't say a thing;
just listen to the crickets sing.
Everything I need is right here by my side.
And I know everything about you
I don't wanna live without you.

[Chorus:]
I'm only up when you're not down.
Don't wanna fly if you're still on the ground.
It's like no matter what I do.
Well you drive me crazy half the time;
the other half I'm only trying to let you know that what I feel is true.
And I'm only me when I'm with you.

Just a small town boy and girl
livin' in a crazy world.
Tryin' to figure out what is and isn't true.
And I don't try to hide my tears.
The secrets or my deepest fears.
Through it all nobody gets me like you do.
And you know everything about me.
You say that you can't live without me.

[Chorus]

When I'm with anybody else it's so hard to be myself.
Only you can tell.

[Chorus:]
That I'm only up when you're not down.
Don't wanna fly if you're still on the ground.
It's like no matter what I do.
Well you drive me crazy half the time;
the other half I'm only trying to let you know that what I feel is true.
And I'm only me
Who I wanna be
Well, I'm only me when I'm with you
With you
Uh huh
Yeah




Knowledge: Live Like You Were Dyin' by Tim Mcgraw

He said I was in my early 40's,
With a lot of life before me,
And a moment came that stopped me on a dime.
I spent most of the next days, lookin' at the x-rays,
Talkin' 'bout the options and talkin' 'bout sweet time.
Asked him when it sank in, that this might really be the real end.
How's it hit ya, when you get that kind of news.
Man what ya do.
And he says,

[Chorus]

I went sky divin',
I went rocky mountain climbin',
I went 2.7 seconds on a bull name Fumanchu.
And I loved deeper,
And I spoke sweeter,
And I gave forgiveness I've been denying,
And he said someday I hope you get the chance,
To live like you were dyin'.

He said I was finally the husband,
That most the time I wasn't.
And I became a friend a friend would like to have.
And all the sudden goin' fishing,
Wasn't such an imposition.
And I went three times that year I lost my dad.
Well I finally read the good book,
And I took a good long hard look at what I'd do
If I could do it all again.
And then.

[Chorus]

Like tomorrow was a gift and you've got eternity
To think about what you do with it,
What could you do with it, what can
I do with with it, what would I do with it.

[Chorus]
Sky divin',
I went rocky mountain climbin',
I went 2.7 seconds on a bull name Fumanchu.
And I loved deeper,
And I spoke sweeter,
And I watched an eagle as it was flyin'.
And he said someday I hope you get the chance,
To live like you were dyin'.

To live like you were dyin'.
To live like you were dyin'.
To live like you were dyin'.
To live like you were dyin'.

This is an example of knowledge because it is about a man realizing he has cancer and his time is running short. He decides to live life to the fullest because he knows he is going to die shortly.


Religion: Jesus Take the Wheel by Carrie Underwood

She was driving last Friday on her way to Cincinnati
On a snow white Christmas Eve
Going home to see her Mama and her Daddy with the baby in the backseat
Fifty miles to go and she was running low on faith and gasoline
It'd been a long hard year
She had a lot on her mind and she didn't pay attention
she was going way too fast
Before she knew it she was spinning on a thin black sheet of glass
She saw both their lives flash before her eyes
She didn't even have time to cry
She was sooo scared
She threw her hands up in the air

Jesus take the wheel
Take it from my hands
Cause I can't do this on my own
I'm letting go
So give me one more chance
Save me from this road I'm on
Jesus take the wheel

It was still getting colder when she made it to the shoulder
And the car came to a stop
She cried when she saw that baby in the backseat sleeping like a rock
And for the first time in a long time
She bowed her head to pray
She said I'm sorry for the way
I've been living my life
I know I've got to change
So from now on tonight

Jesus take the wheel
Take it from my hands
Cause I can't do this on my own
I'm letting go
So give me one more chance
Save me from this road I'm on

Ooh, Jesus take the wheel
Ooh, I'm letting go
So give me one more chance
Save me from this road I'm on
From this road I'm on
Jesus take the wheel
Ooh, take it, take it from me
Ooh ooh wah ah ooh ooh ooh

This song is religious because it is about a girl who's life isn't going as well as she would like it to so she is praying and talking to Jesus and asking him to help her get on the right track.


Love: God Blessed the Broken Road by Rascal Flatts

I set out on a narrow way many years ago
Hoping I would find true love along the broken road
But I got lost a time or two
Wiped my brow and kept pushing through
I couldn't see how every sign pointed straight to you

[Chorus:]
Every long lost dream led me to where you are
Others who broke my heart they were like Northern stars
Pointing me on my way into your loving arms
This much I know is true
That God blessed the broken road
That led me straight to you

I think about the years I spent just passing through
I'd like to have the time I lost and give it back to you
But you just smile and take my hand
You've been there you understand
It's all part of a grander plan that is coming true

[Chorus]

Now I'm just rolling home
Into my lover's arms
This much I know is true
That God blessed the broken road
That led me straight to you

That God blessed the broken road
That led me straight to you.

This song is about love because he is talking to his girlfriend/wife saying how everything that didn't go as planned in his life, and all the people that broke his heart, led him to her and he is glad that it happened that way and that he went through all of those situations.

Ambiguity

Wasted by: Carrie Underwood

Standing at the back door
She tried to make it fast
One tear hit the hard wood
It fell like broken glass
She said sometimes love slips away
And you just can't get it back
Let's face it

For one split second
She almost turned around
But that would be like pouring rain drops
Back into a cloud
So she took another step and said
I see the way out and I'm gonna' take it

I don't wanna' spend my life jaded
Waiting to wake up one day and find
That I've let all these years go by
Wasted

Another glass of whisky but it still don't kill the pain
So he stumbles to the sink and pours it down the drain
He says it's time to be a man and stop living for yesterday
Gotta face it.

Cause' I don't wanna' spend my life jaded
Waiting to wake up one day and find
That I've let all these years go by
Wasted

Oh I don't wanna' keep on wishing, missing
The still of the morning, the color of the night
I ain't spending no more time
Wasted

She kept drivin' along
Till the moon and the sun were floating side-by-side
He looked in the mirror and his eyes were clear
For the first time in a while

Hey, yeah,
Oh, I don't wanna' spend my life jaded
Waiting to wake up one day and find
That I've let all these years go by
Wasted

Oh I don't wanna' keep on wishing, missing
The still of the morning, the color of the night
I ain't spending no more time
Wasted


This song is an example of ambiguity because in the chorus where whe says "That I've let all these years go by wasted," and then again, "I ain't spending no more time wasted," it can be interpreted in a few ways. The first way is that she didn't do the things in life that she wanted to in the past years, so she is saying the years were wasted. Another way it can be interpreted is an alcoholic reference.

Allusion

You said the way my blue eyes shined,
Put those Georgia stars to shame that night
I said: "That's a lie"
Just a boy in a Chevy truck,
That had a tendency of gettin' stuck,
On backroads at night
An' I was right there beside him all summer long
An' then the time we woke up to find that summer'd gone

But when you think: Tim McGraw,
I hope you think my favorite song
The one we danced to all night long:
The moon like a spotlight on the lake
When you think happiness,
I hope you think: "That little black dress"
Think of my head on your chest,
An' my old faded blue jeans
When you think Tim McGraw,
I hope you think of me

September saw a month of tears,
An' thankin' God that you weren't here,
To see me like that
But in a box beneath my bed,
Is a letter that you never read,
From three summers back
It's hard not to find it all a little bitter sweet,
An' lookin' back on all of that, it's nice to believe:

When you think: Tim McGraw,
I hope you think my favorite song
The one we danced to all night long:
The moon like a spotlight on the lake
When you think happiness,
I hope you think: "That little black dress"
Think of my head on your chest,
An' my old faded blue jeans
When you think Tim McGraw,
I hope you think of me

And I'm back for the first time since then:
I'm standin' on your street,
An' there's a letter left on your doorstep,
An' the first thing that you'll read:

Is: "When you think: Tim McGraw,
"I hope you think my favorite song"
Some day you'll turn your radio on,
I hope it takes you back to that place
When you think happiness,
I hope you think: "That little black dress"
Think of my head on your chest,
An' my old faded blue jeans
When you think Tim McGraw,
I hope you think of me
Oh, think of me,
Mmmm

You said the way my blue eyes shined,
Put those Georgia stars to shame that night
I said: "That's a lie"

Irony#1

"I'm So Happy I Can't Stop Crying" by Toby Keith

Seven weeks have passed now since she left me,
She shows her face to ask me how I am
She says the kids are fine and that they miss me
Maybe I could come and baby-sit sometime

She says, "are you o.k? I was worried about you.
"Can you forgive me? I hope that you'll be happy."
I'm so happy that I can't stop crying
I'm so happy I'm laughing through my tears

I saw a friend of mine. he said, "I was worried about you
I heard she had another man, I wondered how you felt about I
I'm so happy that I can't stop crying
I'm so happy I'm laughing through my tears

Saw my lawyer, Mr. good news, he got me
Joint custody and legal separation
I'm so happy that I can't stop crying
I'm laughing through my tears,
I'm laughing through my tears

I took a walk alone last night.
I looked up at the stars
To try to find an answer in my life

I chose a star for me, I chose a star for him
I chose two stars for my kids and one star for my wife
Something made me smile.
Something seemed to ease the pain
Something about the universe and how it's all connected

The park is full of sunday fathers, and melted ice cream
We try to do the best, within the givin time
A kid should be with his mother, everybody knows that
What can a father do but baby-sit sometimes?

I saw that friend of mine, he said, "you look different somehow."
I said, "everybody's got to leave this darkness sometime."
I'm so happy that I can't stop crying,
I'm laughing through my tears,
I'm laughing through my tears
I'm so happy that I can't stop crying
I'm laughing through my tears,
I'm laughing through my tears

Within this song there are a few examples of irony. The obvious one is "I'm so happy I can't stop crying. I'm laughing through my tears." His wife just left him not too long ago but yet he is saying he is happy and he is laughing. this is ironic because really, he should be sad and crying. Another part where it is ironic is when he is talking to his wife and she is saying how the kids miss him and he says "Maybe I could come and baby-sit sometime." This is ironic because he is the kids father and instead of being like a baby-sitter he should be with them and actually parent them.

From: http://www.musicbabylon.com

Paradox.

"I need a Good Woman Bad" by Josh Turner

Why`d she wanna make me so mad
I treat that bad woman good
Lord I need a good woman bad

Now when I asked her to go to sunday school
She went and called me a damned old fool
Now I don`t understand
Why`d she wanna make me so sad
I treat that bad woman good
Lord I need a good woman bad

Here she comes
There she goes

Well I saved my money and I bought her a car
She got it stolen outside the bar
She looks good but she might not be
The kind of woman that im likley to need

Well I don`t know why I let her walk on me
She`s impolite as she can be
Now I`m startin to think
Hey maybe I`ve been had
I treat that bad woman good
Lord I need a good woman bad
I treat that bad woman good
Lord I need a good woman bad
I treat that bad woman good
Lord I need a good woman bad

This is an example of a paradox because throughout the whole song he is saying how he needs a "good woman bad." This is a paradox because he is saying he needs a good woman really bad, and good and bad are contradictory. Also, he says "I treat that bad woman good" when really he should be treating her badly because if someone is bad to you, you don't treat them good.

Point of View

"What Hurts The Most" by Rascal Flatts

I can take the rain on the roof of this empty house
That don't bother me
I can take a few tears now and then and just let ?em out

I'm not afraid to cry every once in a while even though
Goin' on with you gone still upsets me
There are days every now and again I pretend I'm okay
But that's not what gets me

What hurts the most
Was being so close
And havin' so much to say
And watchin' you walk away

And never knowin'
What could've been
And not seein' that lovin' you
Is what I was tryin' to do

It's hard to deal with the pain of losin' you everywhere I go
But I'm doin' it
It's hard to force that smile when I see our old friends and I'm alone
Still harder gettin' up, gettin' dressed, livin' with this regret
But I know if I could do it over
I would trade, give away all the words that I saved in my heart
That I left unspoken

What hurts the most
Is being so close
And havin' so much to say
(Much to say)
And watchin' you walk away

And never knowin'
What could've been
And not seein' that lovin' you
Is what I was tryin' to do, oh
Oh yeah

What hurts the most
Was being so close
And havin' so much to say
(To say)
And watchin' you walk away

And never knowin'
What could've been
And not seein' that lovin' you
Is what I was tryin' to do

Not seein' that lovin' you
That's what I was trying to do, ooo

Point Of View:
-First person narrative because he is talking about an event that has to do with him and he aslo refers to himself.

Point of View

"This Is Just A Dream" by Carrie Underwood.

It was two weeks after the day she turned eighteen
All dressed in white
Going to the church that night
She had his box of letters in the passenger seat
Sixpence in a shoe, something borrowed, something blue
And when the church doors opened up wide
She put her veil down
Trying to hide the tears
Oh she just couldn't believe it
She heard trumpets from the military band
And the flowers fell out of her hand

Baby why'd you leave me
Why'd you have to go?
I was counting on forever, now I'll never know
I can't even breathe
It's like I'm looking from a distance
Standing in the background
Everybody's saying, he's not coming home now
This can't be happening to me
This is just a dream

The preacher man said let us bow our heads and pray
Lord please lift his soul, and heal this hurt
Then the congregation all stood up and sang the saddest song that she ever heard
Then they handed her a folded up flag
And she held on to all she had left of him
Oh, and what could have been
And then the guns rang one last shot
And it felt like a bullet in her heart

Baby why'd you leave me
Why'd you have to go?
I was counting on forever, now I'll never know
I can't even breathe
It's like I'm looking from a distance
Standing in the background
Everybody's saying, he's not coming home now
This can't be happening to me
This is just a dream

Oh,
Baby why'd you leave me
Why'd you have to go?
I was counting on forever, now I'll never know
Oh, now I'll never know
It's like I'm looking from a distance
Standing in the background
Everybody's saying, he's not coming home now
This can't be happening to me
This is just a dream

Oh, this is just a dream
Just a dream
Yeah, Yeah


Point of Veiw:
-Stream of consciousness because she is telling a story and stating events and facts while she isn't there.
-Third person narrative mode because the whole song is about a girl talking about her boyfriend dying and how its so surreal.
-It is also third person somniscient.

Point of View

Before He Cheats by Carrie Underwood

Right now he's probably slow dancing
With a bleached-blond tramp
And she's probably getting frisky
Right now, he's probably buying
Her some fruity little drink
'Cause she can't shoot whiskey

Right now, he's probably up behind her
With a pool stick
Showing her how to shoot a combo
And he don't know

I dug my key into the side
Of his pretty little souped-up 4 wheel drive
Carved my name into his leather seat
I took a Louisville slugger to both head lights
Slashed a hole in all 4 tires
And maybe next time he'll think before he cheats

Right now, she's probably up singing some
White-trash version of Shania karaoke
Right now, she's probably saying, "I'm drunk"
And he's a thinking that he's gonna get lucky

Right now, he's probably dabbing on 3 dollars
Worth of that bathroom Polo
Oh and he don't know

That I dug my key into the side
Of his pretty little souped-up 4 wheel drive
Carved my name into his leather seat
I took a Louisville slugger to both head lights
Slashed a hole in all 4 tires
And maybe next time he'll think before he cheats

I might've saved a little trouble for the next girl
'Cause the next time that he cheats
Oh, you know it won't be on me!
No, not on me

'Cause I dug my key into the side
Of his pretty little souped-up 4 wheel drive
Carved my name into his leather seat
I took a Louisville slugger to both head lights
Slashed a hole in all 4 tires
Maybe next time he'll think before he cheats
Oh, maybe next time he'll think before he cheats
Oh, before he cheats
Oh

Types of Point of View:
-First person narrative mode because she is talking about what she is doing to her ex-boyfriend's car.
-Third-person narrative mode because she is talking about him and her and what they are most likely doing.
-Multiple person because it has first person and third person.

Song #1

Component of Love: Heart-break
Forever & Always by Taylor Swift

Once upon a time, I believe it was a Tuesday
When I caught your eye
We caught onto something, I hold on to the night
You looked me in the eye and told me you loved me
Were you just kidding? 'Cause it seems to me

This thing is breaking down, we almost never speak
I don't feel welcome anymore
Baby, what happened? Please tell me
'Cause one second it was perfect
Now you're halfway out the door

And I stare at the phone; he still hasn't called
And then you feel so low, you can't feel nothin' at all
And you flashback to when he said, forever and always
Oh, oh

And it rains in your bedroom, everything is wrong
It rains when you're here and it rains when you're gone
'Cause I was there when you said forever and always

Was I out of line? Did I say something way too honest
Made you run and hide like a scared little boy?
I looked into your eyes, thought I knew you for a minute
Now I'm not so sure

So here's to everything, coming down to nothing
Here's to silence that cuts me to the core
Where is this going? Thought I knew for a minute
But I don't anymore

And I stare at the phone; he still hasn't called
And then you feel so low, you can't feel nothin' at all
And you flashback to when he said forever and always
Oh, oh

And it rains in your bedroom, everything is wrong
It rains when you're here and it rains when you're gone
'Cause I was there when you said forever and always
You didn't mean it, baby, I don't think so
Oh, oh

Oh, back up, baby, back up, did you forget everything?
Back up, baby, back up, did you forget everything?

'Cause it rains in your bedroom, everything is wrong
It rains when you're here and it rains when you're gone
'Cause I was there when you said forever and always

And I stare at the phone he still hasn't called
And then you feel so low, you can't feel nothin' at all
And you flashback to when we said forever and always!


And it rains in your bedroom, everything is wrong
It rains when you're here and it rains when you're gone
'Cause I was there when you said forever and always
You didn't mean it, baby, you said forever and always,
Yeah

Imagery:
The song "Forever and Always" by Taylor Swift is a great example of love. The component of love that it goes into is heartbreak. She is in love with her supposed to be boyfriend but he has suddenly just stopped talking to her. A first example of imagery is in the first verse where she says "You looked me in the eye and told me you loved me." When I hear this, I picture a scene from a movie like The Notebook, where it is just the boy and girl and he expresses his feelings for her. The next line is when she says "And I stare at the phone; he still hasn't called." This is self explanatory but you can just picture a girl who is heart-broken just waiting by the phone, night and day, waiting for the guy shes in love with to call. The last part of imagery is the line, "And it rains in your bedroom, everything is wrong.It rains when you're here and it rains when you're gone." The rain symbolizes the hurt and tears that she is going through. It doesn't matter if he is with her at the moment or not, the love is unfortunately falling apart and there is really nothing they can do it about it.

Swift, Taylor. Lyrics. "Forever and Always" Fearless. CD. 2008. http://www.elyrics.net/read/t/taylor-swift-lyrics/forever-&-always-lyrics.html

Possible theme&genre

The theme that I am thinking of doing is Love, and the genre is country/pop. The reason being is because some of my favorite artists sing about the concept of love. Whether it is about heartbreak, or absolutely head-over-heels in love, it is something everyone goes through, especially at this age. A lot of country artists sing very meaningful songs about love, so that makes it a good genre to go with this theme.