Do you know who Janis Ian is? If you are of a certain generation, you do. If not, you probably don’t.
I recently watched American Masters’ “Janis Ian: Breaking Silence.” Janis is both an amazing artist and person. For those of you who don’t know her, she wrote, and recorded the iconic “Society’s Child,” a song about a teenage black male and white female couple. (https://open.spotify.com/search/society’s%20child?flow_ctx=07a325e3-ae7c-4ffe-9b79-edf590a18e34%3A1758257549#login)
(If you would like to read about Janis Ian: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Janis-Ian)
The 1960s – a time of great civil unrest, when singer-songwriters were just emerging. Legends like Bob Dylan, who came out with “Like a Rolling Stone” the year before “Society’s Child,” and Joan Baez were coming on the scene and putting up a mirror to society through song decrying the ills of the time. These songs were central to the movement. They inspired, galvanized the youth of the country to stand up and make their voices heard.
But, there was something different about “Society’s Child.” As Herb Jordan, music producer and author said in the documentary: “You have this young girl with a guitar taking on the beast – interracial relationships.”
And, Janis was young. She was 14-15 years old when she wrote and recorded the song. You see pictures of her at the time. She was just a kid.
Janis recalls that, after the song was recorded, Shadow Morton, the music producer, took her outside and said, “You don’t have to do this, but if you change this one line, ‘Shining black as night,’ to any other line, you can change it to whatever you want. ‘Shining like the moon,’ ‘Shining like a fight.’ Whatever you want. Just not ‘black.’ If you change that line, I will guarantee you a number-one record.”
That was how powerful and threatening that one word was – “black” – it could make or break the song as a hit.
Janis told him no.
I wonder if she would have been able to first “take on the beast,” then stick with that one word “black” had she been older. I imagine there was an innocence, naiveté to her, as would be with any teenager, that allowed her complete honesty in and fidelity to the song without awareness or regard to the controversy that would surround it.
Artie Butler, keyboard artist/arranger, played the Hammond B3 organ as well as a harpsichord on the record. His intro and finale on the harpsichord were a standout. He said of Ian, “She made a record that is true art. It’s foresight . . . It’s foresight about what the world should be like.”
Foresight about what the world should be like. A movement in song.
We have entered another period of great civil unrest. Political violence dominates the news. Rights are being trampled. The tenets of our democracy being mocked and dismantled.
The scariest thing, though, is voices are being silenced. The right has dubbed the left “cancel culture,” but sees no hypocrisy in actually canceling culture themselves.
Where would we be today if the voices of Janis Ian, Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, etc., had been silenced? What would have happened without the protests of the time? Alarmingly, today these critical vehicles of change are being quashed.
More than ever, we need some Janis Ians – people courageous enough (or maybe naïve enough) to take on the beast.
I don’t mean to say Janis isn’t capable of rising to the needs of the time. But she lacks a crucial factor to authentically tackle the beast– the future.
Janis Ian, with “Society’s Child,” was speaking not just to what she wanted to see as the future, she was speaking to her own future.
Many of us of a certain generation, who are horrified at what we are seeing today, who know change comes only by action, are acting. Some are protesting. I write.
But, this isn’t our battle. This battle belongs to you whose future is being reshaped in front of your eyes. Where are you?
In answer to that question, my son picked up his phone and looked into it. “This is where they are,” he said.
I ask you twenty-somethings, what do you think the future should be like? Is the direction we are headed the future you want for yourself, for your children?
If not, then you need to do something. Understand, though, sharing memes with like-minded friends, commenting on someone else’s meme isn’t doing something.
To do something, you need to put down your phone and engage with the world.
Once your phone is out of your hands, then what? If you don’t know where to start, do one thing – talk to people, write to your representative, attend a protest.
Are you artistic? Create a cartoon and submit to newspapers. Compose a song!
Can you write? Write opinion pieces and send to newspapers.
Are you really ambitious? Organize! Or, run for office yourself!
And, of course, VOTE!
Take on the beast. Galvanize your peers. You can do it. Prove me right.