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Jackson Browne — I Am A Patriot
Album: World In Motion
Avg rating:
5.2

Your rating:
Total ratings: 65









Released: 1989
Length: 3:56
Plays (last 30 days): 0
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And the river opens for the righteous
And the river opens for the righteous
And the river opens for the righteous
And the river opens for the righteous
And the river opens for the righteous
Someday

I was walking with my brother
And he wondered what's on my mind
I said what I believe in my soul
Ain't what I see with my eyes
And we can't turn our backs this time

I am a patriot
And I love my county
Because my country is all I know
I want to be with my family
The people who understand me
I've got nowhere else to go

And the river opens for the righteous
And the river opens for the righteous
And the river opens for the righteous
Someday

And I was talking with my sister
She looked so fine
I said, "Baby, what's on your mind?"
She said, "I want to run like the lion"
Released from the cages
Released from the rages
Burning in my heart tonight

And I ain't no communist
And I ain't no capitalist
And I ain't no socialist
And I ain't no imperialist
And I ain't no democrat
And I ain't no republican
I only know one party
And it is freedom

I am, I am, I am
I am a patriot
And I love my country
Because my county is all I know

And the river opens for the righteous
And the river opens for the righteous
And the river opens for the righteous
Someday

And the river opens for the righteous...
Comments (13)add comment
 flyboy wrote:
mildau wrote:
"I am a patriot And I love my county Because my country is all I know" Thats a pretty lame reason imo.
That is one of the dumbest lines I've heard in music. I was wondering if he was trying to be sarcastic. It sounds like: "I love my country because I'm an ignorant hick who doesn't know anything about the rest of the world and doesn't care." Which only serves to feed into the stereotype that the rest of the world supposedly has for us. Personally, I love this country because of the beauty of the land, the wonderful people, the opportunities to succeed, and the freedoms guaranteed under our Bill of Rights. Those may not be the greatest reasons, but at least I have a reason other than "It's all I know."
 
Listen closer if you have time. The song is more than that: 

"The message of this song is that despite the fact Steven Van Zandt (Little Steven) opposes Reagan's Republicans, it does not make him disloyal and he's still a patriot. He recalled to Mojo magazine in 2017:

"It was one of the most difficult songs I've ever written, because I knew my political stuff was gonna be very critical of the American government, and I wanted to make it clear that I was being critical from a patriotic point of view: (I'm) very proud of the ideals that our founding fathers had in mind when they created the country, but the fact is (the US is) still very much a work in progress, and very often goes off the rails. In those instances, it's up to the true patriots to say, Wait a minute, the government isn't always right, we need to be vigilant about keeping our ideals intact. So I knew it was the most important song I was ever gonna write, and I stared at that title for at least a year - I just couldn't work I just couldn't figure out how to make it work, but finally I did

When you're trying to write songs that are very simple, with no poetry or metaphor to hide behind, you have to find a way to do that without being obnoxious or boring or cornball... reggae helped!"

https://www.songfacts.com/fact...
Posted 4 years ago by sergeant_x    [ Reply ]
Okay...
Posted 4 years ago by 2020xradio    [ Reply ]
 sergeant_x wrote:
 
 
And the pic of Little Stevie is for what? Giggles? Just curious.
Posted 4 years ago by k1j2cat    [ Reply ]
 vandal wrote:
Ahhhh. . . Jackson Browne, still running on empty after all these years. . .
 

Posted 4 years ago by sergeant_x    [ Reply ]
Ahhhh. . . Jackson Browne, still running on empty after all these years. . .
Posted 17 years ago by vandal    [ Reply ]
mildau wrote:
"I am a patriot And I love my county Because my country is all I know" Thats a pretty lame reason imo.
That is one of the dumbest lines I've heard in music. I was wondering if he was trying to be sarcastic. It sounds like: "I love my country because I'm an ignorant hick who doesn't know anything about the rest of the world and doesn't care." Which only serves to feed into the stereotype that the rest of the world supposedly has for us. Personally, I love this country because of the beauty of the land, the wonderful people, the opportunities to succeed, and the freedoms guaranteed under our Bill of Rights. Those may not be the greatest reasons, but at least I have a reason other than "It's all I know."
Posted 17 years ago by flyboy    [ Reply ]
wally42 wrote:
... David Lindley Yes!!!! More Lyndley!!
I'll second that !!! You could begin with "Mercury Blues," Bill.
Posted 17 years ago by BPenni    [ Reply ]
Not his best effort. Something off any of the first 3 albums would be nice. How about "Doctor My Eyes", "These Days" or "Late for the Sky"?
Posted 17 years ago by On_The_Beach    [ Reply ]
"I am a patriot And I love my county Because my country is all I know" Thats a pretty lame reason imo.
Posted 17 years ago by mildau    [ Reply ]
Dang, Jackson... put a sock in it. Please. It sure has been a long, long time since "These Days." And you've not gotten any better. At all.
Posted 17 years ago by BPenni    [ Reply ]
Man, there has been a bunch of new stuff this weekend. I wonder...when new stuff comes in, does old stuff go out? Or is there an ever increasing library?
Posted 17 years ago by Daniel_Pittenger    [ Reply ]
Posted 17 years ago by musikalia    [ Reply ]
Great Tune, written by none other than ... David Lindley Yes!!!! More Lyndley!!
Posted 17 years ago by wally42    [ Reply ]