Still in the midst of the Vietnam War, folk singer Barry McGuire’s song “Eve of Destruction” was banned on radio for what some believe depicted a sullied humanity: You’re old enough to kill but not for votin’ /You don’t believe in war, but what’s that gun you’re totin’? / And even the Jordan river has bodies floatin‘. Though “Eve of Destruction” was banned on radio stations, that didn’t stop the P.F. Sloan-penned song from hitting No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
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Peter Paul and Mary’s 1963 hit “Puff the Magic Dragon” was banned for its alleged references to drug use, when it was really about the loss of innocence and a child-like imagination of an imaginary friend. Originally titled “Brown-Skinned Girl,” Van Morrison changed his song title to “Brown-Eyed Girl” along with the lyrics of making love in the green grass to laughin’ and a-runnin’, hey, hey.
In 1967, The Doors were also banned from ever performing on The Ed Sullivan Show again when they refused to switch their “Light My Fire” lyric Girl, we couldn’t get much higher to Girl, we couldn’t get much better during the live broadcast.
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Sparked by the British Invasion, and the onset of psychedelic, harder, and progressive rock, the 1960s deserted the more mainstream wave from the ’50s. Much of the ’60s rock was replaced by a soundtrack of songs that were anti-war, living through the sexual revolution, and other youthful rebellions from previous social mores.
The ’60s were a revolutionary moment in time for rock, which resulted in keener scrutiny of lyrics, and the banning of some songs. Here’s a look at five classic rock songs banned during the decade.
1. “Louie Louie,” The Kingsmen (1963)
In 1963, the Kingsmen’s hit “Louie Louie” got the Portland, Oregon garage rockers’ banned on radio and even subjected to an investigation by the FBI because of the rumored meaning behind the band’s slurred lyrics.
Originally written by Richard Berry, who released his own version of “Louie Louie” with his band the Pharaohs in 1957, the song became a hit with The Kingsmen’s release and peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Even though the song was, in fact, about a sailor who was going to spend some time with his girl in Jamaica, the lyrics to “Louie Louie” were nearly indecipherable when sung by the Kingsmen’s Jack Ely. His mumbled words on the track were partly due to his wearing braces while the band was recording the song.
Me see Jamaica moon above
It won’t be long, me see my love
Me take her in my arms and then
I tell her I never leave again
Louie, Louie, oh, me gotta go
Louie, Louie, me gotta go
I say, me gotta go
The song was already a hit with teens and some believed it sent a more obscene message centered around an explicit sexual encounter. The FBI even listed several proposed lyrics in its report:
Tonight at 10 I’ll lay her again
We’ll fuck your girl and by the way
And on that chair
I’ll lay her there I felt my bone, in her hair
After running a 119-page report, the findings by the FBI were inconclusive, and there was no real proof that the more vulgar “Louie Louie” lyrics were performed. “The FBI was asked to investigate whether or not those involved with the song violated laws against the interstate transportation of obscene material,” read a statement by the FBI on the investigation, which ran from February through May 1964. The limited investigation lasted from February to May 1964 and discovered no evidence of obscenity.”
Ely left the Kingsmen in ’63 while “Louie Louie,” and there was one obscenity that was never picked up in the FBU investigation. Since the song was recorded in one live take, 56 seconds in, when drummer Lynn Easton dropped his drumstick, he can vaguely be heard saying “Fuck.”
2. “My Generation,” The Who (1965)
It didn’t take much for the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) to ban The Who‘s first big hit “My Generation.” Released on the band’s debut album of the same name, “My Generation” was banned by BBC because singer Roger Daltrey was stuttering several of the lines, which may have offended listeners with a genuine stutter problem.
Another rumor ran that when Daltrey sings f-f-f-fade away, he was actually saying the f-word.
Why don’t you all f-fade away (talkin’ ’bout my generation)
And don’t try to d-dig what we all s-s-say (talkin’ ’bout my generation)
I’m not trying to ’cause a b-big s-s-sensation (talkin’ ’bout my generation)
I’m just talkin’ ’bout my g-g-generation (talkin’ ’bout my generation)
Eventually, the BBC reversed their decision, and “My Generation” continued to get airplay and hit No. 2 on the UK Singles chart.
Read the meaning behind “My Generation” HERE.
3. “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,” The Beatles (1967)
John Lennon claimed that The Beatles No. 1 hit “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds” was not about drugs but was inspired by a drawing his son Julian made in nursery school. “Julian came in one day with a picture about a school friend of his named Lucy,” said Lennon in a 1975 interview. “He had sketched in some stars in the sky and called it ‘Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds.'”
Shortly after the release of the song, it was speculated that the first letter of each noun in the title spelled out LSD, and the BBC banned The Beatles hit.
Though Lennon denied any drug link, Paul McCartney revealed that drugs were definitely behind the band’s Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band hit. “I had mixed feelings about it, certainly, but we took it and in songs like ‘Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,’ when we were talking about ‘cellophane flowers’ and ‘kaleidoscope eyes’ and ‘grow so incredibly high,’” revealed McCartney in is 1997 biography Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now. “We were talking about drug experiences, no doubt about it.”
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In 2004, McCartney revealed that drugs influenced a number of the band’s songs during this period. “A song like ‘Got to Get You Into My Life,’ that’s directly about pot, although everyone missed it at the time,” said McCartney. “‘Day Tripper,’ that’s one about acid. ‘Lucy in the Sky,’ that’s pretty obvious. There’s others that make subtle hints about drugs, but, you know, it’s easy to overestimate the influence of drugs on the Beatles’ music.”
4. “Let’s Spend the Night Together,” The Rolling Stones (1967)
By 1967, The Rolling Stones were used to getting banned on The Ed Sullivan Show. Several years earlier in 1964, the band was first banned after a pandemonium of screaming fans in the audience wouldn’t settle down despite the host’s pleas to “quiet.”
Years later, the band’s “Let’s Spend the Night Together” was a pretty obvious song and although it was never banned on the airwaves, Sullivan refused to let the band perform it on his show. Eventually, both parties compromised, and the band agreed to sing it as Let’s spend some time together. Unlike The Doors‘ Jim Morrison, Mick Jagger kept his promise but rolled his eyes at the camera when he sang the line. (Check out Jagger’s eye roll at in the video below at the 1:18 mark.)
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After their performance, the band reportedly put on nazi outfits to rile up the host before their next performance and were asked to change, but it was Jagger’s eye roll that apparently got the Stones banned from the show another two more years.
5. “Kick Out the Jams,” MC5 (1969)
It’s time to kick out the jams, motherfuckers. That line opened MC5‘s combustible “Kick Out the Jams,” and it also kicked off controversy around the band’s song, which ultimately led to the Detroit, Michigan rockers being dropped by their label.
At first, record stores refused to sell the band’s debut album, which included “Kick out the Jams” and was recorded live over two nights at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit in 1968. Censored and uncensored versions of the LP were available, but the Hudson’s department store in Detroit refused to sell either one.
The band responded by taking out full-page ads in local newspapers with the words “Fuck Hudson’s!” noted at the bottom, along with the Elektra logo. To avoid additional financial loss and controversy, Elektra dropped MC5.
Photo: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
