American Song and Struggle from World War II to MAGA: A Cultural History

Will Kaufman now brings his award-winning cultural history up to the present: to a USA poised on the brink of autocracy under Donald Trump and the MAGA movement. His second instalment explores songs from all genres that respond to war, racism, sexism, terrorism, the climate emergency and political oppression: including the crisis of Trumpism itself. The struggles of the American project have always, the author reveals, been sung into history; and his aim is to preserve and continue this venerable tradition. The musical sweep is broad. It includes Indigenous and immigrant songs, the Broadway musical, opera, symphonic music, swing, bebop, free jazz, avant-garde and electronica, Puerto Rican and Hawaiian resistance anthems, Mexican corridos, blues, rock, soul, country, folk, gospel, punk, riot grrrl, heavy metal, disco, hip-hop, rap, and reggaeton. Revealing the myriad ways in which American song reflects the fight for social and political justice, it is an essential intervention.

"This second installment of the American Song and Struggle series secures Will Kaufman’s rightful place among the great music historians who over generations have reminded us that music has and always will play a vital role in the shaping of who we are as a nation, and as human beings with a heart that beats. Astounding and comprehensive, this book should be read by anyone who has ever been awestruck or inspired or haunted by the power of a single song. Only a writer of Kaufman’s caliber, sharp wit, and research prowess can pull off a book like this – at a time like this – and make it a vibrant and compelling read." — Tim Z. Hernandez, author of All They Will Call You and They Call You Back

"It didn’t begin with Bob Dylan or even his inspiration, the great Woody Guthrie. As Will Kaufman’s previous volume makes clear, song and struggle in America can be traced as far back as the Indigenous people resisting the European conquest. But his second volume beautifully demonstrates how a good tune and a strong message can still move us, make us ponder or think again, reassure us, and let us know that we belong to the human race in commonality. The song brings us the news that we are not alone out there. So if singing is sometimes all we can do in the face of overwhelming greed and the abuse of power, then let us sing and know that we are not alone out there." — Ralph McTell