Rocktober 22: California Uber Alles – Dead Kennedys

I was asked the other night if I had the rest of The 31 Days of Rocktober planned out already. My answer was that I have songs that I’d like to do but I also prefer it to be extemporaneous, so the song picks can unfold with whatever happens. For example, last October I had a pick ready for Rocktober 5 but then Steve Jobs died so I wrote this instead. And this October, rates have moved up and when they spiked significantly last week I wrote this to ease the pain.

Tonight is harder. There was a giant Giants win plus the master debaters clashed one last time. And I’ve already done song picks for the Giants and the election debaters this Rocktober.

The Giants song pick was to make sure that everyone knows that Journey’s Don’t Stop Believin belongs to the Giants and not the Tigers who will try to claim it during the World Series. And the election debate pick was to remind everyone (and perhaps myself) to get off the fence on this election and choose a side.

So now that I’ve clarified that, I’m going with the Dead Kennedys’ California Uber Alles tonight. First, because it’s only right for a San Francisco band to remind the midwest that it’ll be California Above All this World Series. Second, because it’s a classic punk rock tale of political dystopia that’s perfect for an election year. The 1979 lyrics by DK front man Jello Biafra are about how then governor Jerry Brown would rise up to be president and have his secret police unleash organic poison gas on the uncool.

Well, Brown didn’t make it to president, but he is California governor again. Which you have to admit is far less dystopian than having an Austrian born steroid addict best known for playing an unstoppable robot killer and fathering an illegitimate child with his maid as your leader. Not even Jello could make that up. But his imagination and iconic punk sound stand the test of time…

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Song Link:
– California Uber Alles – Dead Kennedys