Does that rabble-rousing agitator arouse flutters of the heart? Don't have the words to express that special kind of activist amor? Troubadours of discontent sound off on injustice but sometimes troublemakers need a little more. Sure, soul rebels like Bob Marley sang about plain ol' love with the best of balladeers. What of the bond between political partners though? Left-wing love jams are a rarity but the Weekly assembled the best in baby-making music for militants.
Hopefully the songs aren't too “problematic” or taken as a mixtape for macktivists!
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5. The Nightwatchman – Ease My Revolutionary Mind
I first learned about Woody Guthrie's “My Revolutionary Mind” when Emma's Revolution, a lesbian folk duo couple, played a cover version of the song at a Unitarian church for a concert fundraiser benefiting a non-profit sheltering homeless women and feeding hungry kids. Tom Morello, the black Woody Guthrie, has his own take on the romantic ode to a special rebel woman. He performed it Nightwatchman style at the centennial celebration of the folk singer updating the song all along the way! It doesn't hurt the cause when armed with amazing guitar skills and a baritone voice.
Sexy lyrics: “I need an anarchistic woman / I need a brick throwing woman / Ain't no reactionary baby / Can ease my revolutionary mind.”
4. dead prez – Intelligence is Sexy
Ever since dead prez debuted in 2000 with Let's Get Free the duo made it a musical point to jettison radio rap misogyny. They came with lyrics praising women above and beyond their physical attributes. Putting “Mind Sex” on this list is too easy though. M1 and stic.man dropped a similarly styled song on the deluxe version of their last release, Information Age. Too many hip-hop heads slept or hated on the album, but it included gems like “Intelligence is Sexy.” Changing their classic sound up, dead prez stays steady in showing their appreciation for politically minded women of the Left.
Sexy lyrics: “I love her healthy lifestyle and her sexy ways / A girl like that, comrade, I swear we can have mind sex for days / Frantz Fanon, Khalil Gibran she says, “it turns me on” / A lot of these beautiful girls be freaks, but weak in the mind, hers is strong.”
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3. Los Abandoned – State of Affairs
When Latin Alternative heroes Los Abandoned debuted with Mix Tape in 2006, “State of Affairs” struck a chord with its bouncy sound. Lead singer Lady P lamented about those who found her political conversations “depressing” like it was a bad thing to show concern for society in troubled times. Can't handle real talk about the world? She'll wonder about a special someone who can!
Sexy lyrics: “Why can't I find someone who cares? / Am I meant to be alone / Or is there someone born / Who'll want to share my home?”
2. John Lennon – Woman
Yoko Ono still gets a heaping of hatred and blame for breaking up the Beatles. But as John Lennon moved on with life as a solo artist he penned a tribute to his lady. “Woman” is dedicated to Ono whose peace activism is often overshadowed. The two famously protested with a bed-in on their honeymoon as the Vietnam War raged on. There's no poetic praise of her politics in the song, but listen closely to what Lennon whispers in the beginning as he says, “For the other half of the sky.” The line paraphrases a saying popularized by Chairman Mao Zedong. We hope he was enchanted by the pure poetry of the saying and not by the authoritarian socialist who said it!
Sexy lyrics: “Woman I know you understand / The little child inside the man / Please remember my life is in your hands / And woman hold me close to your heart / However, distant don't keep us apart / After all it is written in the stars.”
1. Quetzal – Politics y Amor
Before Quetzal won a Grammy for their Smithsonian Folkways released Imaginaries album, the East Los Angeles band sang of Chicana skies, zapatistas and cholos on the wrong path. Dialing it back to their 2000 self-titled debut, Quetzal also recorded a ballad “Politics y Amor” that is about as straight forward as a left-wing love jam can get. Singer Martha Gonzalez and guitarist Quetzal Flores are actually married giving the song that little added authenticity. “Politics y Amor” is definitely baby making music that will result in future kiddos named in Nahuatl or after famous revolutionaries.
Sexy lyrics: “Out of sight / Out of mind / Critical you / Beautiful you / I want you!”
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Gabriel San Román is from Anacrime. He’s a journalist, subversive historian and the tallest Mexican in OC. He also once stood falsely accused of writing articles on Turkish politics in exchange for free food from DönerG’s!