By Richard Lee
John Fogarty wrote “Fortunate Son” for Creedence Clearwater Revival in 1969 while the nation was divided about America’s role in Vietnam.
But Fogarty has said the song is about the unfairness of class rather than war itself.
“You’d hear about the son of this senator or that congressman who was given a deferment from the military or a choice position in the military,” he wrote in his 2015 memoir that bears the same title as the song. ”They seemed privileged and whether they liked it or not, these people were symbolic in the sense that they weren’t being touched by what their parents were doing. They weren’t being affected like the rest of us.”
Hunter Biden could be one of those “fortunate sons.” He was pardoned from federal felony gun and tax convictions yesterday by his father, President Joe Biden.
But in issuing the pardon, Biden suggested that Hunter’s family ties were unfortunate rather than fortunate.
“The charges in his cases came about only after several of my political opponents in Congress instigated them to attack me and oppose my election,” the elder Biden said in a statement about the pardon. “No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter’s cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son.”
Whether you agree or disagree, “Fortunate Son” is a timely choice for this week’s Sharp Notes Monday selection.
Richard Lee, executive director of the Jandoli Institute, is a former music journalist who often writes about the intersection of music and current events.
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As part of our “Sharp Notes, Sharp Thoughts” music and social media project, we share a song every Monday to start your week.
View previous Sharp Notes Monday selections.
Categories: Jandoli Institute, Music and Social Justice, Sharp Notes Monday, Sharp Notes Sharp Thoughts
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