Controversy In Music - A Prescription Bluegrass Editorial

Junior Sisk has been in the news a lot lately and most of it in the positive sense – for awards and recognition for his many accomplishments. This past week however, the recognition for Junior has been some negative and some positive depending upon which side of the fence his fans may like to stand.
Junior recently asked the bluegrass community's forgiveness and apologized for including a song on his latest CD and in his live performances that dealt with the subject of spousal abuse. The song, “Old Bicycle Chain” says;

“it's never to late to change your ways dear, face your mistakes and take the blame … and don't come back messin' 'round here, or I'll whoop you with an old bicycle chain.”

In Junior's own words, “It was never my intention to support any sort of violence. It was a good up tempo song that we thought would cause a chuckle.”

The song recently stirred up conversation among both the panel members and the audience at the Women In Bluegrass seminar during the IBMA's annual convention in Raleigh, NC. And, as a result, has been reported in the Bluegrass Media with almost as much point and counter-point comments from readers as the old controversy over the definition of bluegrass. Junior has since pulled the song from his performances.
On one side of the issue there are those who did not get offended by the song, but are now offended at the censure that came about and the subsequent actions by the band. “Are we now going to stop playing or listening to the countless songs about murder, moonshine, and other social ills?” is the general theme of this contingent.

The other side who rejoice over Junior's decision to stop playing the tune feel that regardless of Junior's intent, the song condoned the abuse of women.
For those who are not familiar with the song we're including Junior's video here for reference.

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Let's all say congratulations to Junior on two accounts: First for recording and performing the song and next for making a conscientious decision about what he includes and what he doesn't include on his set lists. Many songs get pulled from set lists for a myriad of reasons the same as others get added to set lists.
The controversy over this song is testament to the power of the song. Music, if it's good, is supposed to evoke emotions. Obviously this song did it's job and did it well on both sides of the fence.

As a former country music radio programmer and now a bluegrass radio programmer, we've had numerous songs over the years that fit into this category of offensive or not depending upon each individual listener's perspective. Some you've heard on the radio, but many you didn't.
By Junior's decision to record and play the tune, whether one was offended or one was not, it brought the subject to the forefront at least for awhile and that is good. With awareness, progress can be made for the good.

Junior's decision to stop performing the song shows concern for his audience, which is what all performers should strive to have.
Controversy in music is nothing new. The Carter Family's 1927 recording of "Single Girl, Married Girl" is listed as number 15 on the 20 most controversial songs by women on ENGINE 145 (http://www.engine145.com/20-most-controversial-songs-by-women/).

Closer to this side of the last 100 years in music, the SteelDrivers' "Burnin' The Woodshed Down” (Hammer Down CD) is about child abuse. If enough of us are offended, can we get them to stop doing that song? As much as I shudder right down to my bones whenever I hear it, I hope they don't.

Last year, Darrell Webb recorded “The Pistol and the Pen” a song about suicide – a subject that is not often dealt with in song but one that many feel strongly about. I'm sure that there are many surviving relatives of suicide victims that cannot bear to hear this song, just as much as I am sure there are that many more relatives who applaud the song for the good it does in causing awareness and prevention. Suicide is not the most popular subject in music, and it can be highly offensive, yet we didn't see a public outcry about banning Darrell's song.

Just as much as you need an agitator in the washing machine to get your clothes really clean, you also need controversy in music. Whether we like the subject or not, it causes us to think. It motivates others to do even more and change happens because of that motivation. Just like Junior's song motivated dialog at the IBMA seminar and caused a change in Junior's set list, it may still motivate others to do more because of the news reports and subsequent dialog.

Remember that liking a song, or not liking it, is not the only measure of quality in music. Regardless of your personal feelings about this particular song, I hope you can appreciate the position that Junior is in and the actions he has chosen to take.

Junior's initial reaction to the song was that it was a good up-tempo bluegrass number they thought would get a chuckle. He has since seen other ways to view the song. When a joke stops being funny, it's time to stop telling the joke. Junior has seen the chuckles change to guffaws and sneers and has made the decisions necessary – not for the sake of pleasing any certain contingent, but for his own peace of mind.

It's this type of thinking that keeps Junior Sisk and Ramblers Choice a top-notch favorite among bluegrass fans.