Song 15: We Didn't Start the Fire

I have to agree with Mrs. Lawson on this one. Billy Joel released this in 1989, and it reminds me of a history lesson that turned into a train wreck. I mean, as Mrs. Lawson said, it does offer a long list of terms, but not much else. And, quite frankly, only about half the terms (if that much) are even relevant to history; the rest are a mishmash of pop culture, sports, and other randomness.

While the song was catchy enough to get stuck in my head, I don't think it really helps reveal much in the way of a story (unless you are telling a story about Marilyn Monroe appearing on Wheel of Fortune in the Bay of Pigs, and, come to think of it, that might be an amusing story...). If you lived in the era of post World War II, perhaps hearing the terms again would evoke memories from the Eisenhower administration. However, if you didn't live it, it just doesn't work. Even though I have studied that era before, the terms are meaningless without context. I applaud Joel for his rapid fire lip work; it must have been incredibly difficult to run through all those lyrics on the first try, but I wouldn't recommend the song to anyone trying to study for a history exam, because all it would do is confuse them.