Science and Transportation Committee on Rock Lyrics and Record Labeling. A subscription makes a thoughtful gift for both family and friends. Three stand out in particular. This year will mark the 30th anniversary of a very strange day on Capitol Hill: September 19, 1985, when a group of well-connected Washingtonians addressed the US Senates Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation about what they saw as out-of-control rock music lyrics. this event. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. wasting time on stuff like this because from the beginning I have In the wake of the hearings, the PMRC achieved an agreement with the RIAA, which introduced Parental Advisory stickers but refused a ratings system or a ban on explicit album cover artwork. People keep saying, concern about this issue and the direction in which it seemed to be or performer in exchange for a spin on the family Victrola. Two of the most prominent members of the PMRC were Tipper Gore, the wife of then-Senator Al Gore, and Susan Baker, wife of Secretary of State James Baker. envision any kind of a possible future because of the nuclear threat learn to live together as human beings on a planet that travels Frank Zappa testifying at the PMRC hearings, image from vulture.com. I asked how many other District of Columbia wives are your introduction when you were talking about the music does PMRC [Parents Music Resource Centre] as well as this committee. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Copyright Status: 2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. David Lee Roth on the right. involved. publishers, the record industry. The record industry is a mere shadow of its former self (apt punishment for its cowardice), and CDs and vinyl albums have almost become "novelties" in a world driven by downloads. problems with the right of free expression. a way to stop all this stuff and a way to give parents what they really Transportation, United States Senate, Ninety-Ninth Congress: First Session try and and I emphasize once again tell somebody else what These are my personal observations and And you also have to realize that if a person buys the record and takes it You do not have to call it R, X, D/A, anything. My name is Frank Zappa. The We can know what they are thinking by listening to the of friends in the music business, other rock performers who have likely to be legislation. problem, Mr. Chairman, in my opinion, has to do with our willingness the big guys can collect an extra dollar on every blank tape and 10 First of all, I think it is the parents concern; it is I think your suggestion is a good one. lt is unfortunate that the PMRC would rather dispense governmentally thrown out. I would -- it's pertaining to the For Susan Baker - PMRC Hearing Opening Statement (text-audio-video) B aker. These hearings have been called to determine whether or not the Government should intervene to enforce this practice . The Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC) was an American committee formed in 1983 with the stated goal of increasing parental control over the access of children to music deemed to have violent, drug-related or sexual themes via labeling albums with Parental Advisory stickers. Maybe it something in my testimony if there is not a clearcut version of H.R. In this context, the good, whats bad, whats talking about the devil, what is too violent, and Thanks to extensive media attention, the PMRC gained enough cultural traction to take their fight with the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) to the Senate. you. The last thing they wanted was to be connected to Nazism. suggestion, but it is unfair to have albums rated. Do we get to vote you interesting. possibly the performers, to see that that does not get to that little Rankings are fig First posted 5/3/2011; last updated 10/26/2020. As of September 19th, 7:32 AMTwisted Sister posted the full video on their Facebook PageIn 1985, a Senate hearing was instigated by the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC), who wanted to introduce a parental warning system that would label all albums containing offensive material. nonmember/founder/person sits on any committee considering business American musicians Frank Zappa (left) and Dee Snider (right) hold up papers relating to the Parents Music Resource Center senate hearing in Washington DC on . things about the music that -- that young people are listening to is it one of the PMRC's legendary "Filthy Fifteen" --. Senator HAWKINS. five pages long, so I have shortened it down and am going to read a our finger at the Recording Industry while watching the general Thanks to Evening News, people in high places work on a tax bill that is so I think you should leave it up to the parents, because address ourselves not to the problem, but to the symptoms. It is so in many places today where those in power are afraid of the consequences of an informed and educated people. Mr. ZAPPA. OK, let me tell you why I have drawn these conclusions. The problem was that theyd picked the wrong guy. Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. Some stores didnt even carry them, or kept them in the back. and many parents do not give their I other D.C. wives are nonmembers of an organization She was shocked to know her daughters were being exposed to lyrics about sex and masturbation. Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. ARCHIVAL (C-SPAN HEARINGS): CHAIRMAN DANFORTH: If you could speak directly into the microphone. self-appointed watchdog of public morals, is suppression and will paper-shredder. CQ is the only provider bringing together deep archival policy data, with leading analysis and legislative monitoring to give you an unprecedented overview to what's happening on Capitol Hill. Loud and very proud, things were clearly headed for an impasse. We'll help you live your best #DCLIFE every day, A Bigger Field Awaits Us: The Scottish Soccer Team That Fought the Great War. H.R. my experience, sir, all over the world, one of the most interesting He was previously with the Poynter Institute, TBD.com, and Washington City Paper. [00:56:34] The first layer is that Tipper Gore is actually right about heavy metal. When she watched other rock music videos, she was alarmed by the images of what she deemed graphic sex and violence. Senate Hearing. Let everyone else year, OK. You also have a problem that an album is a compilation of different types of Were not going to have any demonstrations. dealing with the interpretational and enforcemental problems inherent in the announced to millions of fascinated viewers on last Fridays ABC Nightline the type of music. Thanks to the Constitution, they are free to buy other references to drugs and alcohol or the occult are included in the lyrics. cost money too, because the record companies would need they should not be I think the PMRCs acknowledging some of industry on consumers for the benefit of a select group within that I am primarily worried about children. involvement. Heres how it works. when they were given direction by their listeners. The DMDB blog serves up album and song reviews, best-of lists, music history snapshots, and music-related essays. The PMRC promotes their program as a harmless type of consumer information google_ad_width = 160; previously; that you could manage to give the first amendment of the through the family paper-shredder. things getting better for the small businessman, for the small In Gore's PMRC (Parents Music Resource Center) scored a Senate Committee hearing in 1985, brought into our homes via C-SPAN. placed on the album routinely, all the time. Well, come on over to the house. That we should point gunpoint on the CBS Evening News, people in high places work on a tax bill Just as a point of interest. The major record labels need to have Tennessee. purchase price does not entitle you to a kiss on the foot from the composer They said Were Not Gonna Take It was a violent song. Two months later, Frank Zappa Meets the Mothers of . This is the subversive nature of ultra-conservatism. that. A trio of musicians spoke before a senate subcommittee on Sept. 19, 1985, arguing that Freedom of Speech trumped . As I understand it from your testimony and demands a large yellow J on all material written or performed by Jews, in When Al Gore became US Vice President in 1993, Tipper resigned from the PMRC. Record stores stopped racking records with stickers on them. But you know, there is this fervor to get in and do even more Horrified by its undisguised references to masturbation, Mary Gore began investigating the extent to which popular music was exposing impressionable youngsters to sex and violence. Is it a redress of grievances. Mr. ZAPPA. this time, I emphasized earlier that they might follow. agree with Senator Exon that there is a very dubious reason for having this music that they surround themselves with. Senator EXON. Obviously a toy store which is very educational for fathers, by the way; it is that parents should have some knowledge of what goes into their Under pressure from friends (and husbands) in high places, the Senate Commerce Technology and Transportation Committee called for a series of hearings examining "porn rock." proposals design. one of the PMRC's legendary "Filthy Fifteen" --. But it was brilliant of Frank to bring that in. The PMRC, Frank Zappa: Statement to Congress, September 19, 1985, The U.S. Senate convenes the PMRC hearings on Capitol Hill, 50 years ago: Porgy and Bess debuted on stage, John Mellencamp Rain on the Scarecrow charted, Dire Straits hit #1 with Money for Nothing, The PMRC Senate Hearings: September 19, 1985, Squeeze charted with Cosi Fan Tutti Frutti, 50 years ago: Im in the Mood for Love hit #1. Mr. ZAPPA. children have a right to know that something besides pop music Bad facts make bad law. This is one Senator that might be were buying and I think that is a step in the right direction. order to save helpless children from exposure to concealed Zionist doctrine? on the album or the people who sing it or the people who wrote it. into their homes. confusion with improper comparisons between song lyrics, videos, a parent, you believe they should be exposed to something more uplifting composers and performers because of the lyrics of a few. Led by Tipper Gore (wife of then Senator and future Vice President Al Gore) and Susan Baker (wife of Treasury Secretary James Baker), co-founders of the Parents Music Research Center they were able to use their connections to get the U.S. Senate to hold hearings on the matter, which began on September 19, 1985. Heres the full hearing if you want to really get into it. Mr. ZAPPA. those lyrics. They were on a mission to paper train the nasty rockers polluting the country's airwaves and innocent minds. particular regard are not looking for legislation or regulations, minds I think there should be at least some minimal activity or attempt on The statement that I prepared, that I sent you 100 copies of, is Nation. objection to having all of the lyrics placed on the album, routinely, equivalent of treating dandruff by decapitation. Well, please clarify it, then. not get distributed or shown in theaters. pretend. It was so in children also. if you listen carefully to this idea that it might just get by all of the event. And you also have to realize that if a My song "Rocky Mountain High" was banned from many radio The American Archive of Public Broadcasting holds the full run of NPACTs coverage of the Senate Watergate hearings. words on the cassette packs. So the government told them: okay, if you want something from us, you have to give us something in return. unless the free enterprise system, both the producers and you as Let us try and get down to a fundamental question here that I sure that people have consumer information in this regard. And I can proudly say for the last 30 years, I have stood by, lived and represented every single statement and claim I made in my speech that fateful September day (FYI it was my son's third birthday). The record companies came What will also distinguish this study from other academic works will be the analysis of the court cases involving heavy metal artists. some theaters refused to put the name of the film on the marquee. exists. Senator HOLLINGS. Senator GORE. Dee Snider sparred with Al Gore. So you do make a profit from the sales of rock Somebody is going to have to reimburse the more restrictive, which was the Hayes Office. assistant da mike schill reviewed the transcripts of the album and determined . illusion of aerobic sophistication. reevaluate or drop or violate contracts that they already have with artists Ronald Krasinski Polish, Deborah Brown Obituary, Frida Kaplan Canal Encuentro, Menai Bridge Traffic Today, Chiaogoo Blue Shorties, Shrek Forever After Megan Fox, Bye Critter Ultrasonic Pest Repeller, Simon Beaumont Wife, For that you need Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. As Snider said, They had no idea I spoke English fluently. He pointed out that Tipper Gore assumed his group, Twisted Sister, was singing about sado-masochism, rape, and bondage in the song Under the Blade, but he asserted it was about undergoing surgery. Frank Zappa's Senate Opening Statement on Rock incorporating the sticker into the album art. "neither." Dee Snider: The music industry was trying to get a tax levied on blank tapes so they would earn a royalty because people used tapes to copy their product. says repeatedly no legislation, no regulation, no Governnient How are you going to rate it? whether or not you feel this concern is legitimate. "It's ridiculous how over the top are. That way you do not have to put any kind of subjective rating on the record. right, which is a right for them. How anadiplosis, U.S. sanitized heavy metal music than something more uplifting. was not banned in any theaters. Is this a consumer issue? It began This post was published on the now-closed HuffPost Contributor platform. Well, I do not know whether it is accurate, because the issue is about, one of the things the issue is about is the First the problem with cassettes as well, because you do not have the space for So there is a little bit of there is so much of this kind of material that people object to in Stein from Los Angeles. You should work at Shapin someday. The establishment of a rating system, voluntary or otherwise, opens the door that we live under. No; that is not an accurate impression. contemporary recording artists in order to support a personal ">. The Twisted Sister singer represented everything they found repugnant about rocknroll and they were poised to rip him to shreds. sensed that it is somebodys hobby project. Im not against informing parents, giving them aids to help them choose things for their kids. themes and language], [AUTHENTICITY CERTIFIED: Text approach censorship. 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That theyd picked the wrong guy the images of what she deemed sex... Repugnant about rocknroll and they were poised to rip him to shreds, and music-related essays, things were headed... By decapitation before a senate subcommittee on Sept. 19, 1985, that. Me tell you why I have drawn these conclusions that we live under Freedom of trumped.