In the 221 years since ratification of the Bill of Rights, Americans have had the right to speak out. And sing out.
In recognition of the power of free speech set to music, the First Amendment Center and the Americana Music Association join together each year to honor a prominent musician who has used his or her music to contribute to the marketplace of ideas. Awardees have come from a wide musical and political spectrum, including Johnny Cash, Joan Baez, Kris Kristofferson, Charlie Daniels and Mavis Staples.
Stephen Stills, a two-time member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young and Buffalo Springfield, received the 2013 award at the Americana Music Association Honors and Awards Show at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville last week.
“For What It’s Worth,” one of his most famous compositions, is widely regarded as a protest song, but that misses the mark. Yes, the song was inspired by a confrontation between police and young people on the Sunset Strip, but his tone was one of observation, not outrage.
“There’s somethin’ happening here, what it is ain’t exactly clear” he sang on that early Buffalo Springfield hit. He even poked fun at the protesters who carried signs “most saying hurray for our side.”
Throughout his career, Stills has used his music to encourage us to look at our society and ourselves. His response to the world’s challenges has been reflective, not reflexive.
As a member of one of America’s most political bands – Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young – Stills often offered a measured counterpoint. Neil Young’s “Ohio” was a chilling indictment of the government that could shoot dead four students at Kent State University. The flip side of that single was “Find the Cost of Freedom,” a four-line Stills song about sacrifice and liberty.
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