The word “revolution” tends to conjure images of protests, rage, bloodshed, reshaped borders or toppled despots.
But a look at the history of revolutions sometimes reveals a “mellower” aftermath: songs birthed in turmoil, which have stood the test of time.
Across centuries and continents, political and social upheaval have seen songs being composed either during an uprising or repurposed from folk traditions into tunes of resistance.
And even what some may think are merry ditties — like “Yankee Doodle” or the Spanish “La Cucaracha” — have backstories that pack a punch.
Inspiration for The Beatles
Perhaps “La Marseillaise” — the stirring intro of which ‘ used for their 1967 peace anthem “All you need is love” — is one of the most recognizable revolution songs.
In April 1792, as revolutionary braced for war against Austria, Strasbourg’s mayor, P.F. von Dietrich, lamented the lack of a stirring anthem to rally the troops.
Captain Claude-Joseph Rouget de Lisle, an amateur musician in the garrison, stepped up to the task, and reportedly — with the aid of champagne — wrote overnight the “War Song of the Army of the Rhine.” The piece was quickly adopted by volunteer army units from Marseille, which explains its current name.
Its vivid imagery of blood and sacrifice was matched by a defiant call to unity: “To arms, citizens!”
“La Marseillaise” was decreed France’s national anthem in 1795. The anthem itself was shelved during the monarchy’s brief restoration, then reinstated in 1879. Interestingly though, its composer was a royalist, not a republican. De Lisle narrowly escaped the guillotine during the French Revolution and died peacefully in 1836.
When carnations trumped bullets
In the late hours of April 24, 1974, when they were aired on Portuguese radio, two songs served as coded signals for a military coup that would end nearly five decades of dictatorship
The first was ‘s Eurovision entry that year, Paulo de Carvalho’s “E Depois do Adeus” (“And After the Farewell”), which aired at 10:55 p.m., alerting rebel units to prepare for action.
Just after midnight, “Grândola, Vila Morena” by José Afonso — a banned protest song with lyrics espousing equality and fraternity — was played on Rádio Renascença, confirming the operation was underway.
Both were chosen by the Armed Forces Movement (MFA) to discreetly coordinate action against the Estado Novo regime, founded by António de Oliveira Salazar in 1933 and continued under Marcelo Caetano.
And thus unfolded the : As MFA troops entered Lisbon, civilians placed carnations in their rifles — giving the largely bloodless coup its sobriquet. By morning of April 25, 1974, the regime had collapsed, ending decades of censorship, colonial wars, and political repression and Portugal began its transition to democracy.
Memorializing through melody
The Argentine first trained as a doctor before becoming one of the most iconic figures of 20th-century revolution.
After witnessing poverty and injustice across Latin America, he joined ‘s guerrilla movement and played a key role in the Cuban Revolution’s success in 1959. Guevara was made a minister in ‘s new government, but he eventually left the island in 1965 to support revolutionary struggles abroad that inspired Cuban songwriter Carlos Puebla to compose “Hasta Siempre, Comandante” as a farewell tribute.
The song’s lyrics, praising Guevara’s courage and ideals, soon became a pan-Latin American anthem. After his capture and execution in Bolivia, the song became a posthumous symbol of defiance, being reinterpreted across cultures and genres — from folk to punk to hip-hop.
Of backfired insults and bugs
Finally, not every revolutionary song was born in the heat of the moment. Some were old tunes repurposed by people to serve new causes.
The melody of the renowned nursery rhyme “Yankee Doodle” was already circulating by the 1750s, but it gained sharper political edge in 1755 when British army surgeon, Richard Shuckburgh, reportedly penned lyrics to the tune: his verses painted American fighters as uncouth and cowardly, using the term “doodle” to suggest a yokel and “dandy” implying vanity. British troops sang it during the French and Indian War to ridicule their colonial allies. The origins of the word “Yankee” remain moot.
But during the American Revolution, the song was defiantly reclaimed by the American Continental Army and transformed into a patriotic anthem. Thus, “Yankee Doodle” became one of the earliest musical symbols of American identity, with the state of Connecticut adopting it as its anthem in 1978.
“La Cucaracha” started off as a traditional Spanish-language song with unclear origins. It gained bite during the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920). The playful tune about a cockroach unable to walk without marijuana was originally satirical, offering Mexicans an outlet to vent their frustrations during the revolution.
The titular character’s true identity is however moot. Some link the cockroach to then President Victoriano Huerta, with the song taking sly digs at his alleged corruption and substance use. Others say it refers to “soldaderas” — the women who followed and supported revolutionary troops.
The song’s street cred was further cemented in George Orwell’s 1945 book The animals’ anthem titled “Beasts of England” is described as “a stirring tune, something between ‘Clementine’ and ‘La Cucaracha.’”
While this is hardly an exhaustive list, some revolutionary songs have outlasted the regimes they challenged. These melodies show that revolutions aren’t only marked by ruptures and change. Sometimes, they’re remembered in the songs that have endured.
Edited by: Elizabeth Grenier
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