Before listing my top selections, I should explain the criteria on which I based my choices. First, I based them solely on the conservatism of the lyrics. A song had to have an explicitly conservative theme, although just a single line may represent it. I looked particularly for those embodying religious or patriotic themes, as these are unambiguously conservative values.
Second, I paid no attention to the politics of the performer. There are a number of good conservatives, such as Ted Nugent and even Walter Brennan, who have had hit songs over the years. But unless their songs had an explicitly conservative theme, I did not include them. Conversely, if some outspoken liberal recorded a song with explicitly conservative lyrics, I still included it.
Third, I limited myself to songs that made Billboard’s Top 40 chart after 1955. I relied heavily on the latest edition of Joel Whitburn’s book, Top 40 Hits. I did this in order to limit the universe of potential songs to a manageable number. Also, I think it is more telling if a conservative song had broad popularity, as indicated by sales, than if it is buried on some obscure album. Unfortunately, this rule forced me to leave out my personal favorite conservative rock song, ‘Taxman’ by The Beatles (well covered by Stevie Ray Vaughn). I also had to exclude Ray Charles’ wonderful version of ‘America the Beautiful.’
Mm, nothing like counting down those
conservative Top-40 songs (as seen on
daypop).