In the wake of the most vital mid-term US elections in a generation, the rocker’s 1972 song that is often wheeled out on these occasions, but less known is that it is a reworking of an earlier song, Reflected. US politics has never been more of a pantomime of lies and hate speech than under the current president, Donald J Trump, and his campaign directors who use emotions and prejudice to stir up votes, as opposed to facts. The Senate and House elections my reflect or reject this strategy, and offer the country a chance to accelerate, or reverse this dark, downward rightwing spiral. Alice Cooper’s (aka Vincent Damon Furnier’s) second best known song was released with the album Billion Dollar Babies during the same year that another crooked president Richard Nixon, was re-elected, during a period of crisis, before eventually being impeached. Cooper’s song is a timeless ironic take on the farce and lies of political ambition, with a riff and melody that is still just as strong now.
[Verse 1]
I'm your top prime cut of meat, I'm your choice
I wanna be elected
I'm your yankee doodle dandy in a gold Rolls Royce
I wanna be elected
Kids want a saviour, don't need a fake
I wanna be elected
We're all gonna rock to the rules that I make
I wanna be elected, elected, elected
[Verse 2]
Good evening Mr & Mrs America and all ships at sea
The candidate is taking the country by storm
I never lied to you, I've always been cool
I wanna be elected
I gotta get the vote, and I told you 'bout school
I wanna be elected, elected, elected
Hallelujah, I wanna be selected
Everyone in the United States of America
[Verse 3]
We're gonna win this one, take the country by storm
We're gonna be elected
You and me together, young and strong
We're gonna be elected, elected, elected
Respected, selected, call collected
I wanna be elected, elected
[Verse 4]
"And if I am elected
I promise the formation of a new party
A third party, the Wild Party!
I know we have problems
We got problems right here in Central City
We have problems on the North, South, East and West
New York City, Saint Louis, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Detroit, Chicago
Everybody has problems
And personally, I don't care."
And here he is on that fatal night in November 2016, with just as much irony:
But it is really a reworked song, originally titled Reflected, from the band’s debut album, 1969, Pretties For You, which is more in the psychedelic rock genre:
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