Sadly, Still Relevant

One of the trademarks of a great songwriter is how much his or her somgs remain relevant. Judging by this scale, Jackson Browne has to rank among the very best. Consider the way that "Before The Deluge" voiced environmental concerns long before it became the cause du jour. Or the way "The Pretender" presaged the rise of the yuppie in the consumerist 80's...in 1976. Maybe he's best known for his romanric songs, and he is great at that, but Browne also has a knack forpredicting the issues that will bedevil mankind with staggering accuracy and eloquence.

Sadly, I guessyou didn't need a crystal ball in 1986 to predict that foreign wars would still be in the news today. But Browne's merciless lyrics about wars being fought for the sake of business interests andthe way war becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy by indoctrinating young people into its culture seem pretty prescient. "Children at the cannons" is a powerful image that no amount ofpolitical spin can mitigate.

I'm not a big political guy, so I always tread lightly when criticizing our leaders, simply because I feel that they, by the nature of their positions, are far more informed than I could ever be on these divisive issues. But I willsay that I've never understood the notion thatcertain lives are dispensable for thegreater good of others. Maybe I'm naive, but there must be a better way.

Hearing "Lives In The Balance" again just yesterday, I was struck by how much it still hithome. I'm sure Jackson Browne would be willing to sacrificealittle bit ofhis songwritng statureif it meant that someday, God willing, this song wouldn't be so damn relevant.