Paste Magazine had a clever music-related idea for honoring the presidents on this President’s Day. They took each president’s term and matched it with a song that correctly related to said president. You can view all of the pairings here.
A fun commander-in-chief music game? Count me in. What else am I supposed to do on my day off? Now, of course, many songs can fit different presidencies, but I think the author did a good job establishing fun pairings. There were a few cop-out choices. Picking a song about specifically about the president to describe his candidacy is a little too convenient. But seriously, what better song describes President James K. Polk than the They Might Be Giants’ classic?
I don’t know what’s funnier; the song itself or the kids dancing.
For President Teddy Roosevelt, the writer chose an Elvis song, “Teddy Bear” because of obvious reasons (the Teddy Bear was/is important). But, come on, Teddy is known for being a presidential bad-ass; a big-game hunter and environmentalist who met adversity with pugnacious fortitude. Teddy Bear? Come on. He deserves something a cooler than that. Here’s my choice for the U.S.’ brash 26th president and one of our biggest patriots.
Pretty much a no-nonsense patriotic tune about the United States. It would obviously be anachronistic in Teddy’s time, but, I think it suits presidential passion well.
Best choice on the list?
Guess the president? Haha. I also liked the choice for President Obama. The author mentioned the temptation to pick “A Change is Going to Come” by Sam Cooke, which he did use in his campaign. I would also have been tempted by this particular version of “We Shall Overcome”:
What do you think are some good songs that represent presidents? Comment!
The Music Court 
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