Yesterday we finished work early. So we sat there and chilled, listening to some music. And a fine collection it was too. There was Nusrat and Eddie Vedder singing Face of Love– an amazing protest against the Death Penalty. There was Mamas and Papas singing California Dreaming. There was Janis Joplin singing Blowin’ in the Wind. Some thoughts came to mind – one is of course long live P2P networks. And the second was – where has the music gone? Where has the comment gone?

It is almost as though bubblegum has replaced angst and anger.

Whether it is India or the US – inane lyrics and ear shattering music seem to be the order of the day. The lyrics and the melody seem to be gone. There is no more Chino Arab Hamara, none of Mera Jutha hai Japani, or the Duniya Agar Mil bhi Jaaye to Kya Hai.

One refreshing trend in India though is that while bubble gum dominates Indian music, protest – soul – spirtiual music seems to be making a come back. In recent times we have had the amazing Allah ke Bandhe. Some old fashioned comment through music in films like Satya – is gradually becoming part or the main stream.

Today it was refreshing to read that Protest Music was on its way back world wide. While “corn and syrup” dominates – George Bush is becoming a rapid theme of dissent music across the US.

The musicians range from punk rockers to pop acts to older artists like Patti Smith and Rickie Lee Jones. In all, Mr. Browne reckons protest songs seem to have been more numerous in the past year and a half than in the late ’60s. “There just wasn’t that concentration of songs during the Vietnam War,” he says.

It is as though with an increased clamp down on freedom of expression, musicians and others are reverting to their own art forms to protest.