Nation & World

<< Previous   of   Next >> Associated Press  (click to enlarge) No, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is not about to burst into song, but his campaign did choose ABBA's "Take a Chance on Me" to play at rallies. Associated Press  (click to enlarge) Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., was straining to hear a question over Ben Harper's "Better Way," which was selected as his campaign song.   ADVERTISEMENT   ABBA's "Take a Chance on Me"   ADDITIONAL ITEMS • Ben Harper's "Better Way" (External Link)   Related Stories • With a song in our hearts 6/11/08 • McCain, Obama spar over economy 6/11/08   CONTACT THE HERALD Do you have a news tip? newstips@heraldnet.com | 425.339.3400   Published: Wednesday, June 11, 2008 Forget picking a veep; get a good song By Mark Brown Scripps Howard News Service Campaign theme songs seem like a modern invention -- if you consider 1789 modern. That's when George Washington took the presidency with "Follow Washington," a little ditty urging, "Lads, march on and follow Washington." At least "Follow Washington" made sense at the time. The portly William Howard Taft -- known to friends as "Big Lub" -- had "Get on a Raft with Taft," an invitation most might decline. The least-inspiring song might be William Henry Harrison's tepid endorsement of himself, "He's All Right." Other classics: "Grant, Grant, Grant;" "Wilson, That's All;" "Buckle Down With Nixon;" and the timeless "Jimmy Polk of Tennessee." In recent years some musicians have asked that their songs not be used, most famously Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA," which was briefly adopted by Ronald Reagan in the 1984 presidential election. Other songs that artists have asked to be removed in recent campaigns were Tom Petty's "I Won't Back Down," John Mellencamp's "Pink Houses," Boston's "More Than a Feeling" and John Hall's "Still the One." Most bizarrely, Isaac Hayes demanded his "Soul Man" back but only after Bob Dole's 1996 campaign had reworked it to "Dole Man." This year Hillary Rodham Clinton had Celine Dion's "You and I," Barack Obama has "Better Way" by Ben Harper and John McCain, for some unknown reason, has used ABBA's "Take a Chance on Me." Past campaign ditties 1960 John F. Kennedy: "High Hopes" Sample lyric: "All problems just a toy balloon / They'll be bursted soon / They're just bound to go pop / Oops there goes another problem ker-plop." Richard M. Nixon: No song found. Upshot: By '68 Nixon wised up and followed Washington's custom-tune lead with "Nixon's the One." 1976 Gerald R. Ford: "I'm Feeling Good About America" (custom-written) Sample lyric: "I'm feeling good about America / And I feel you ought to know." Jimmy Carter: "Why Not the Best?" (custom-written) Sample lyric: "He talked about the government / and how it used to be for you and me." Upshot: In the year of America's Bicentennial, this is the best they could come up with? They made Wings' "Silly Love Songs," the No. 1 hit that year, seem profound by comparison. 1992 Bill Clinton: "Don't Stop" by Fleetwood Mac Sample lyric: "I know you don't believe that it's true / I never meant any harm to you." Ross Perot: "Crazy" by Patsy Cline Sample lyric: "I'm crazy for tryin', crazy for cryin'." Upshot: Hey Ross, perhaps a song that reaffirms what much of the electorate already suspects about you isn't such a good thing. 2000 George W. Bush: "We the People" by Billy Ray Cyrus Sample lyric: "We the People of the United States / In order to form a more perfect Union, establish justice." Al Gore: "Let the Day Begin" by The Call Sample lyric: "Here's to the winners of the human race / Here's to the losers in the game." Upshot: Cyrus offered his song to both campaigns and was chagrined when Bush accepted. The lifelong Democrat told the Los Angeles Times, "It's a working people's song, y'know, and I've never really thought of the Republicans as the party of the working people. Am I wrong?" 2004 George W. Bush: "Only in America" by Brooks & Dunn Sample lyric: "We all get a chance / Everybody gets to dance / Only in America." John Kerry: "No Surrender" by Bruce Springsteen Sample lyric: "'Cause we made a promise we swore we'd always remember / No retreat, baby, no surrender." Upshot: Regardless of your politics, sometimes the best song doesn't win.

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