It’s time to drop the needle on another edition of the All Things Considered Turntable! This week, we’re joined by GBH’s Dave Goodman, newsroom production engineer and podcast producer. He’s usually the one recording the All Things Considered Turntable, but today, we’ve convinced him to join host Arun Rath on the other side of the glass to share his playlist picks — three parody songs. What follows is a lightly edited transcript of their conversation.
Arun Rath: I’m super excited about this because I grew up listening to Dr. Demento. I’m, first off, excited to have you on to talk about music, but parody songs!
Dave Goodman: Well, we share the demented.
Rath: Brilliant. So, what’s number one on the demented list?
Goodman: If you don’t mind, I’m going to go into a little background. First of all, it’s important to know that there is some overlap between parody and protest music, but the two are somewhat distinct because protest [music] is generally meant to be serious, and parody [music], well, mostly funny.
For me, finding great parody music is somewhat of a passion; you probably share that with me. I volunteer at the MIT College Community Station WMBR and produce a show called “Sound and Fury.” We primarily feature a hybrid mix of interviews, news clips and instrumental music, but I’m always on the hunt for relevant parody songs to play.
The history of parody music — essentially, mocking the politicians and cultural practices of the day — goes way back in European and American history. In 1787, for instance, Mozart composed a piece called “Ein Musikalischer Spaß” — or, “A Musical Joke” — poking fun at the conventions of classical music.
And, of course, listeners who were around in 1979, when Iran took American hostages, may remember Vince Vance and the Valiants, who remade an old Beach Boys song called “Barbara Ann” into “Bomb Iran.” But, under the current circumstances, I’m not choosing that one.
Rath: Understandable.
Goodman: Instead, let’s listen to a bit of Randy Rainbow, who fashioned a contemporary career out of lampooning Donald Trump.
Goodman: That’s a parody of “Wishin’ and Hopin’” by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. As Randy Rainbow explains in his autobiography, “Playing with Myself,” he grew up adoring show tunes and cheesy popular music. And, of course, he has a strong opinion about the direction this country is going.
For the most part, parody songs target kings, presidents and dictators. For example, there are probably a hundred songs devoted to mocking Hitler, but Trump may be on his way to catching up, Arun.
Rath: I remember Randy Rainbow in the first Trump term, and he’s still going strong.
Goodman: He is.
Rath: So, what do you have for song number two?
Goodman: There’s a musical family living in Faversham in Kent, England, headed by Ben and Danielle Marsh, along with their four teenagers. I’ve been listening to their songs since 2020, when they started turning their COVID-related cabin fever into musical commentaries. A London correspondent for the New York Times dubbed them the “Von-Trapped Family.”
Since that global crisis has subsided, they’ve turned their attention to American political leaders, such as Vice President JD Vance, and, of course, our president. Here’s their take on Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton’s famous duet, “Islands in the Stream.”
Rath: It’s not showing bias if I laugh, because it’s just funny, right?
Goodman: Exactly.
Rath: What I love about this, Dave, is that I think the best parody songs [are] doing the song really well. The music’s good. They’re nailing the music.
Goodman: In both these cases, yeah — the musicianship is really excellent. And it’s not AI. I mean, these folks are really playing instruments and all that.
Rath: Brilliant. We have time for one more. What’s song number three on the playlist?
Goodman: Well, we’ll get to that in a moment. I just want to point out that there are so many parodies online, and we’re just skimming the surface. I should mention these songs are not all anti-MAGA; the right wing has its share, too. I just think lambasting and lampooning the current administration is increasingly important.
Finally, as you do, I associate this type of music with Dr. Demento. He’s recently retired, and he’s the godfather of parody music. And, of course, he was instrumental in launching Weird Al Yankovic’s career. Let’s listen to a bit of the demented one himself, singing “Get Demented.”
Rath: Dave, I managed to miss this one. This is awesome!
Goodman: He released this at the end of last year. I found it on Spotify, and it’s probably a poke at our lack of enthusiasm for solving global warming and other crises. But in the end, the doctor says we might as well just get demented.
Rath: Sounds about right.
