The gun control debate that is currently going on in America is an anathema to non-Americans like me. It appears that the people advocating 'no' or 'reduced' gun control are the people who should not be allowed to own guns.

I set myself a challenge of finding out three songs in my playlist that highlighted the consequences of immature and angry people with access to a weapon.

The song: Gangsta's Paradise
The player: Coolio

This song was part of the soundtrack to the movie 'Dangerous Minds'. It heavily samples Stevie Wonders' 'Pastime Paradise', which also deals with (in my opinion) materialism as a façade.

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The song: Hey Joe
The players: The Jimi Hendrix Experience

This is a song that was covered by many artists. My favourite is the one by Jimi Hendrix, which first appeared on 'Are You Experienced?'. Perhaps Joe should have stopped and talked.

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The song: Folsom Prison Blues
The player: Johnny Cash

I became a fan of Johnny Cash when I got my hands on his album 'Live at Folsom Prison'. While I didn't know much about him at the time, I could appreciate the relationship he was able to make with the inmates. One of the songs on the album was 'Folsom Prison Blues', containing the chilling line 'I shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die'.

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We should do more to educate individuals and communities to think about the consequences of their actions. Had Joe (in 'Hey') or the protaganist in Folsom prison thought a bit more about the consequences, they may have had second thoughts about firing thier gun.

Vale

This week Ritiche Havens and Chrissie Amphlett passed away. They both had a big influence on modern music in different ways.

Ritchie Havens

This is a song from his set at Woodstock. Apparently, he played for nearly three hours waiting for the first act to arrive.

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Chrissie Amphlett

I was introduced to the Divinyls a few short months after I first arrived in Australia. My mother was among many people who didn't know what to make of their single 'I Touch Myself'.

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