If you could write a song about the financial meltdown, what would you say?
I have this unbelievable opportunity to collaborate on a song, and umm, hopefully several, about the financial meltdown. It’s with a talented musician whose music you probably hear everyday.
Update: 3.22.10 Music -> art can be used to inspire “the people” to ensure we are protected from our currently horrendous financial system. Art can raise awareness for the need for change.
Original post continues below:
It’s intended to get the public to raise hell to find the truth and to prosecute those who should be. Comment below, or in the Facebook section for this post and leave your ideas.
If you know of any interesting/entertaining quotes, names of people, financial “products”, etc, that you believe could fit into a catchy song – please share ‘em.
Update:
Are you a finance/econ geek who’s heard some lyrical quotes that would be great put to music?
Or maybe, you’ve rapped about Credit Default Swaps and the Asset-Backed Commercial Paper Money Market Fund Liquidity Facility?
You’ve maybe even translated for your non-finance/econ-geek friends so now they understand why they should be screaming from the rooftops for more transparency and financial regulatory reform.
Please share links to your vids, songs, etc that you’ve seen that could help inspire others to write their own diddy.
“Think” financial meltdown & investigations into how it happened, need for transparency, & financial reform, players who are involved, how about complicated finance/econ terms “translated” for the masses, crazy or not so crazy quotes…
Let’s help inspire the FCIC do the job they are tasked to do. Let’s not settle for the status quo or anyone responsible getting off easy.
Here’s one, as an example of a comedy song but it doesn’t really explain why we should demand transparency & intelligent financial reform. From Rhett and Link:
Check out the comments and trackbacks below for more inspiration.
[...] If you could write a song about the financial meltdown, what would you say? Tim Solanic [...]
Links 1/14/10 « naked capitalism
14 Jan 10 at 4:17 am
[...] If you could write a song about the financial meltdown, what would you say? Tim Solanic [...]
Links 1/14/10 | Gulag Blog
14 Jan 10 at 11:03 am
Uh, feel free to insert the STALLED, FAILED, NEVER-BUILT PROJECT OF YOUR CHOICE:
Somewhere Over the Asphalt
Somewhere, over the asphalt, way up high.
There’s a Marriot hotel
That’s up and gone bye-bye.
Somewhere, over the asphalt, taxes are due.
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Just don’t always come true.
Someday I’ll wish upon a dollar and
Find the Bubbles far
behind me.
Where troubles melt like councilmen
Away above the basis paid:
That’s where you’ll find me.
Somewhere, over the asphalt, prices rise.
Debts rise over the asphalt
Why then — oh, why can’t I?
If City subsidies fly beyond the viewshed,
Why, oh, why can’t I?
With apologies to Arlen & Harburg
Stephen V.
14 Jan 10 at 12:57 pm
They said that a rising tide lifts all boats – so why am a bailing as fast as I can while the yachts swamp by throwing kisses?
erisa
14 Jan 10 at 1:03 pm
We wrote a song called “You can ask Bernie Madoff”:
http://www.purevolume.com/QDoso/albums/You+Are+Your+Own+Revolution
I ain’t lying and you can ask Bernie Madoff,
Everybody’s getting theirs but you don’t get yours,
It’s so obvious that the skies are see through,
The pendulum swings and hypnotizes the people,
A spell on you,thatt’s what you heard,
Read straight out the book of the magic word,
The lines are blurred between right and wrong,
They won’t fight hunger but they’ll fight this song,
Useless music, the blues won’t stop,
Two bit hooligans like you got you locked in a maze,
Runnin a rat race, I chase for the cheddar,
American dream to get better,
I choke off cigar smoke from fat cats saying follow the rules, pay your dues,and that’s that,
The dealer still’s dressed in black, and drops by with a suit and a tie and a brief case full of lies,
Can’t read the fine print so I’d rather sign on the dotted line for things I can’t afford,
Everybody’s getting theirs but you don’t get yours
Theyll be preemptive so be pre-preemptive
and strike with common sense for instance
freedom of thought is the only chance
fools cant control the force, Jedis dont dance
Speculate on armaggedon/ Ima pull out my weapons
a big book full of crooks and a history lesson
on a rain slick precipice overlooking a deficit
to fall for the traps is effortless
Not paranoid bout paranoia off the cuff
paranoid bout not being paranoid enough
I aint drinking they stuff
times is rough time to call their bluff and take back
Government gets bigger than Shaq at the playoffs
poor guy gets laid off/ rich guy gets ripped off
I aint lying and you can ask Bernie Madoff
Everybody’s getting theirs but you don’t get yours
Nobody’s getting theirs so you better get yours
Q-Doso
14 Jan 10 at 1:22 pm
I’d have to be some punk rock being that they have behaved like a bunch of punks and criminals.
R.A.M.O.N.E.S, Wallstreet Jailhouse remix (original by Lemmy/Motorhead)
———–
New York City, N.Y.C.,
Pretty mean when it wants to be,
Tailored suits, pressed pants,
Risk free accidents,
Bad loans, sell em ho,
Crank the leverage ratio,
Singsing, CEO
F.R.A.U.D., F.R.A.U.D., Fraud Loans
Bad boys lend, bad boys sell,
Gabba gabba, on the road to hell,
Alan G now hit the gas
See Nasdaq kick some ass,
No Hank, no, no, no. No Timmy o-way-o
Singsing, CEO
F.R.A.U.D., F.R.A.U.D., Fraud Loans
Bad boys then, bad boys now,
Old buddies, mau mau mau,
keep it up, bonus payol,
nothing left, sell your soul,
Larry S, he left home,
Paul V, call me on the phone.
Singsing, CEO
F.R.A.U.D., F.R.A.U.D., Fraud Loans
Kay
14 Jan 10 at 5:52 pm
It leaves me feeling Dazed and Confused, first song on the list at -> http://www.sonicviz.com/music/ktblues/music.php
Komuso Tokugawa
14 Jan 10 at 7:23 pm
Back up against the wall
have a cigarette and a moment
it’s the natural order
the sirens song and
the feeling that you
can’t go wrong
The spinning wheel
and crossing currents
impractical measure
like finding the
force of a storm
on a flying ember
Refugee or talisman?
a stroke of luck is
a flaw in the master plan
its the chance you took to win it all
or the choice you made
when you took the fall…
Roger Steinhauer
tegnost
15 Jan 10 at 12:43 am
Land of Constant Sorrow
[apologies to Dick Burnett]
We are a land in constant sorrow
We’ve seen bubbles all our days
We bid farewell to property flipping
Which is how, we got rich and in debt
Chorus (Which is how, we got rich and in debt)
For six long years we’ve seen a bubble
With no thought for future times
For in this world we’re bound to gamble
We’ve no banks that make loans now.
Chorus (We’ve no banks that make loans now)
It’s fare thee well our only savings
we never expect to see you again
For we’re bound to ride that next big bubble
Perhaps we’ll die in bankruptcy.
Chorus (Perhaps we’ll die in bankruptcy)
You can buy us some swaps and options
For many years we’ll sure go long
Then you may learn to buy real value
While we are sleeping in our graves
Chorus (While we are sleeping in our graves)
It’s fare you well to a native country
The places we have loved so well
For we have seen all kinds of bubbles
In this cruel world, no tongue can tell
Chorus (In this cruel world, no tongue can tell)
Maybe your friends think we just love danger
But our faces you’ll see no more
But there is one promise that is given
We’ll meet you in a big box store
Chorus (We’ll meet you in a big box store)
Stephen V.
15 Jan 10 at 11:47 am
Have you ever thought of adding additional videos to your blog to keep the visitors more involved? I just read through the entire post and it was very nice but since I am more of a visual learner, I find videos to be more helpful. I enjoy what you guys are always up too. Keep up the excellent work. I will revisit your page regularly for some new post.
Otis Jasionowski
16 Jan 10 at 12:18 pm
Yes we have Otis.
Do you have any you want to share that are about singing about the financial meltdown, investigations into it and that sorta thing?
tim
16 Jan 10 at 12:23 pm
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22 Jan 10 at 12:14 pm
hi
why is my site, pray tell, exactly what you are looking for ??
tim
27 Jan 10 at 9:17 am
Another great poem at naked capitalism, starts:
RED LINE vs THE NOBLE LIE
Vanilla Greed loved profit,
It used the trusty old red line,
To map out the hoods best cherries,
The pickings were always fine,
Along came Pernicious Greed,
Who cared only for control,
And saturated the hood with bubble bombs,
Entrapping ALL the marks its goal…
tim
12 Feb 10 at 10:35 am
[...] had this idea for a while to tell the story of the financial meltdown in [...]
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12 Apr 10 at 12:11 pm