Hosted by Elizabeth Blair and Tom Cole from NPR's Arts Desk, American Anthem: The Special will highlight standout stories from NPR's ongoing periodic American Anthem series.
The hour will weave together the creation, popularization, and evolution of a selection of songs about our shared national identity as Americans. Songs like "Fight the Power", "This Land is Your Land", "Dixie", and "The Times They Are a Changin' were all written as a response to a moment or a movement and grew into an anthem.
We put those songs and others meant to serve as a uniting rallying cry, or way to push back against politics and division in conversation with each other in this special. They all speak to the changing ways in which we think and rethink what it means to be an American and each has evolved into an anthem of its own.
- "America" (Simon & Garfunkel)
- "This Land is Your Land"
- "New World Symphony"
- "America the Beautiful"(Ray Charles)
- "Star Spangled Banner"
- "Dixie"
- "Get Together" (The Youngbloods)
- "The Times They Are a-Changin" (Bob Dylan)
- "Fight the Power"
- "God Bless the USA"
- "Born in the USA" (Bruce Springsteen)
- "Fanfare for the Common Man"
