The LuLac Edition #413, Feb. 5th, 2008

PHOTO INDEX: PRESIDENT JOHN KENNEDY WHO SMOKED CIGARS IN PRIVATE AND SINGER JOHN MELLENCAMP WHO APPARENTLY SMOKED ANYTHING ANYWHERE UNTIL HIS HEART PROBLEMS TOLD HIM TO STOP.

STOP THE MUSIC!!

Whether he was lobbying for a John Mellencamp endorsement for his presidential bid or simply looking for a rousing, all-American song to rally his supporters, we will never know. Because, according to Rolling Stone, the popular heartland rocker has quietly asked Republican Sen. John McCain to stop playing "Our Country," "Pink Houses" or any other Mellencamp tune at his political events.Mellencamp, a balladeer of middle class sufferance, is a Democrat and, until recently, a supporter of John Edwards' 2008 presidential campaign. In fact, Mellencamp even interrupted a performance of his song "Small Town" at an Iowa concert so that the former North Carolina Senator could let it be known to the crowd that he too came from a small town. The crowd had a mixed response, as you can imagine.But this leaves McCain in a real bind. With his campaign gathering support and delegates, now comes the time for his staff to nail down a campaign song. And, during this stormy political season, Toby Keith is just not going to cut it. Though a Republican, McCain is still a folksy man-of-the-people, a war hero, a gritty underdog who all-out demands a good American-penned tune. But with patriotic artists like Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi and John Mellencamp off-limits to conservatives, where does he turn?

He might want to turn to traditional Broadway standards like Hubert Humphrey did in 1968 using "Will Everyone Here Kindly Step To the Rear?" by jazz singer Marilyn Maye. Or he might want to follow the FDR lead of "Happy Days Are Here Again". Then again, he just might want to play it straight and avoid the rebuff Ronald Reagan's effort got in 1984 from both Mellencamp and Springstein. During that year, Walter Mondale used CSN&Y's "Teach Your Children" and he lost 49 states. Using a popular song sometimes works, but you have to be careful of the lyrics. , Hillary Clinton plays Bachman-Turner Overdrive's "Takin' Care of Business" to rouse her supporters. Which is great until you get hear: "People see you having fun/Just a-lying in the sun/Tell them that you like it this way/It's the work that we avoid/And we're all self-employed/We love to work at nothing all day." Can you imagine Rush Limbaugh using the welfare state line on that song? Maybe the candidates are better off hiring agencies to do their own songs. Here's JFK's ad agency inspired song from 1960, primitive but his own:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nplm1G7t5UE&eurl=http://www.findinternettv.com/Video,item,1117277900.aspx.

And here's the infamous Mellencamp song "Pink Houses".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6q17h75pMQ4.

Then again, after the Super Tuesday results are in, there might be a candidate using Queen's "We Are the Champions", another using "Down In the Boondocks" and if it's a standoff, they might use Ringo's "It Don't Come Easy".