That Time Frank Zappa and Dee Snider Put U.S. Senators in Their Place. (mid-1980s)
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That Time Frank Zappa and Dee Snider Put U.S. Senators in Their Place. (mid-1980s)
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View Reddit by groomleader – View Source
In the mid-1980s, Washington’s Parents Music Resource Center compiled a list of what they deemed as obscene music artists and pushed for warning labels on records with sexual or violent content. Members of the music industry were outraged at the censorship attempts and several of the biggest names in music spoke before the U.S. Senate on the issue. It was clear that most of the politicians assumed the rockers would be dumb, inarticulate, drug-heads, who would react with anger and aggression to the senators’ questions. What they got instead was Twister Sister singer, Dee Snider, and Frank Zappa, two of the most family-oriented, educated, articulate, intelligent representatives of the music industry.
Dee Snider remembers
Tipper Gore. Still weird how she and Al divorced.
Glorious times when artists stood for freedom of expression…
Never seen Dee Snyder in quite the same light since watching Strangeland. Terrifying!
John Denver was the Ace in the hole.
I remember those hearings. Im an adult now who works in DC. This was an absolutely ridiculous farce. I knew it was as a teenager and still shake my head. Yes, these themes were scary to the pearl clutching set but it boiled down to freedom of speech. The labels that had to go on CD’s probably sold more albums than it prevented. Dee killed it at that hearing. The congress folks thought that he was going to be stupid but what they got from him was an erudite and well thought out line of defense. Dee basically said, “Were not gonna take it anymore!”. 1st amendment held. Thank God.
Theyre not gonna take it!
I guess that Mr. Zappa went to the Senate to advise them to never eat the yellow snow.
You’re rocking with Dee Snyder on the HOUSE OF HAIR
There is an interesting theory out there that these hearings cost Al Gore the 2000 presidential election.
The PMRC was headed by Tipper Gore, wife of then-Senator Al Gore. When Al Gore ran for President in 2000, there were at least some people who normally would vote Democrat who refused to vote for him because of his wife’s PMRC involvement.
The 2000 election was infamously close, to the point where even if a few hundred more people had voted for Gore he would have won and been President for the 2001-2004 term.
I remember watching this on TV. Tipper got owned.
Frank was the man. He was critical of everyone and everything. We could really use his ‘frankness’ and satire right now.
Snider fucking wrecked then specifically. They did not see that coming and it was glorious
Even John Denver popped off, in his own way. Poor guy got denied going into space by some vindictive prick after that.
John Denver (of all people) was there too.
Music was a lot better when they let ugly people make it…
They’re not gonna take it!
I saw Dee and his son (about 4 at the time) in an interview doing Shakespeare. It floored me.
The thing you’ve got to love is how things turned out 30 years later. Tipper gore – the one screaming about family values and drugs – is divorced.
Dee Snyder – the one screaming about, well, anything really – has been happily married for 30 years.
Alice Cooper was also pulled infront of the PRMC, he’s a devout Christian and his drug of choice seems to be golf.
Zappa was a musical wizard
Fucking legends.
They did not expect Frank Zappa to be as articulate as he was but it really blew their f****** minds when Dee Snider got up there and started telling them how it is. Oh and I’d like to thank the PMRC for putting those labels on things. it made all the kids want all that metal even more. Up the irons m************.
Frank Zappa looks like John Turturro in this picture.
Wish Frank was still here so he and Dee can do it all over again. Fuck our dysfunctional government
♫ Hey there people, I’m Bobby Brown… ♪
**Jazz from Hell** – the only album with no lyrics to receive an explicit lyrics warning!
Short hair Zappa always reminds me of the soup nazi
Dee Snider’s testimony in defense of music is one of the greatest anti-censorship arguments out there. Especially when talking about symbolism and “controversial” subjects.
Zappa was involved pretty deeply on the censorship move in the 80’s.
and John Denver! He and Dee became very good friends because of this.
A person in my dorm claimed she was a nanny for Tipper Gore and it was her copy of The Violent Femmes first album that launched the crusade.
I was glued to the TV watching the testimony. I am a huge fan of Zappa, and hated every aspect of the idea of putting labels on music.
But as much as I loved the back and forth between these two musicians and the Congressmen they put in their place, I have to admit that it was the testimony of John Denver that made all the difference.
Frank Zappa was on a whole different plane of existence
And also John friggin’ Denver. Don’t forget he also spoke at the same hearing.
How Mike Love continues to get a free pass for his involvement in the PMRC is beyond me. He’s garbage.
Please look into Frank Zappa. Any random YouTube videos – they’re all good. He’s the voice of reason we need now, gone far too soon. Also…his music is god-tier.
John Denver did the most damage at these hearings. He was able to reach and make points to people that otherwise probably would have sided with the Gores.
I love that all those stuffy politicians expected him to side with them, but turns out he didn’t agree with their bullshit either.
His speech was phenomenal at these hearings.