Song Sellout: Free, Love

More memories gone to hell: As I watch Pulp Fiction and Butch wakes from a nightmare -- as he should from his memories of killing a man the night before -- a commercial for Chase credit cards groves to "I'm Free" by the Stones and one for Macy's bops to the Beatles' "[With Love] From Me To You."

A notable piece on song sellouts is "Riders on the Storm" by John Densmore. I could hardly believe it when Janis Joplin's "Mercedes Benz" was commercialized by Mercedes-Benz several years ago. Even as a child I was worried that "Who Will Buy" from Oliver would end up being commercialized, especially by some pharmaceutical -- perhaps the one that makes propranolol.

But maybe it's all for the best. If you don't want songs that are meaningful to you to be commercialized, write your own.

[originally published at husseini.org on Nov. 26, 2006]