Love Me, I 'm a Liberal - wikipedia Love Me, I 'm a Liberal `` Love Me, I 'm a Liberal '' Song by Phil Ochs from the album Phil Ochs in Concert Published 1965 Released 1966 Genre Topical song, folk Length 4 : 33 Label Elektra Songwriter ( s ) Phil Ochs Producer ( s ) Jac Holzman and Mark Abramson `` Love Me, I 'm a Liberal '' is a satirical song by Phil Ochs, a U.S. protest singer. Originally released on his 1966 live album, Phil Ochs in Concert, `` Love Me, I 'm a Liberal '' was soon one of Ochs 's most popular concert staples. The song mocks the differences between what liberals say and what they do. Introducing the song on the live album, Ochs said : In every American community there are varying shades of political opinion. One of the shadiest of these is the liberals. An outspoken group on many subjects, ten degrees to the left of center in good times, ten degrees to the right of center if it affects them personally. Here, then, is a lesson in safe logic. `` Love Me, I 'm a Liberal '' is sung from the perspective of a liberal. In the first verse, the singer laments the assassinations of Medgar Evers and President John F. Kennedy, but says Malcolm X got what he deserved. Each verse ends with the refrain, `` So love me, love me, love me, I 'm a liberal. '' In the song 's other verses, the singer says he supports the Civil Rights Movement and `` love ( s ) Puerto Ricans and Negros as long as they do n't move next door '', but adds that if somebody suggests busing the singer 's children to integrate their schools, he `` hope ( s ) the cops take down ( their ) name ''. In the final verse, the narrator reveals that he used to be like the listener : Sure, once I was young and impulsive ; I wore every conceivable pin, Even went to Socialist meetings, learned all the old Union hymns. Ah, but I 've grown older and wiser, and that 's why I 'm turning you in. So love me, love me, love me, I 'm a liberal. According to Ochs ' biographer Michael Schumacher, `` Love Me, I 'm a Liberal '' would evoke `` a strange mixture of laughter, from nervous tittering from those who recognized themselves in Phil 's indictment, to open roars of approval from the radical factions in the audience. '' Eric Alterman describes `` Love Me, I 'm a Liberal '' as `` a scorching indictment of liberal cowardice by a bitter adversary, not the good - natured ribbing one might expect from an affectionate ally ''. In 2018, Billy Bragg wrote of `` Love Me, I 'm a Liberal '' : `` As with all such finely honed topical songs, the cultural references have dated somewhat. However, Ochs 's description of a liberal as someone whose politics are ' 10 degrees to the left of centre in good times, 10 degrees to the right of centre if it affects them personally ' still resonates today. '' Cover versions Several cover versions of `` Love Me, I 'm a Liberal '' have been recorded, almost always with updated lyrics. Performers include Jello Biafra and Mojo Nixon, Kevin Devine, Gerd Schinkel, Evan Greer, John Yannis, Nacho Vegas ( es ), Oscar Brand, and Chris T-T. References Jump up ^ Schumacher, Michael ( 1996 ). There But for Fortune : The Life of Phil Ochs. New York : Hyperion. p. 116. ISBN 978 - 0 - 7868 - 6084 - 5. Jump up ^ Kurlansky, Mark ( 2004 ). 1968 : The Year that Rocked the World. New York : Ballantine. p. 166. ISBN 978 - 0 - 345 - 45582 - 6. Jump up ^ Mershon, Phil ( September 2001 ). `` Phil Ochs ''. Perfect Sound Forever. Retrieved October 8, 2011. ^ Jump up to : Ochs, Phil ( 1978 ). The Complete Phil Ochs. Hollywood, Calif. : Almo Publications. pp. 84 -- 85. ISBN 978 - 0 - 89705 - 010 - 4. Jump up ^ Marqusee, Mike ( 2005 ) ( 2003 ). Wicked Messenger : Bob Dylan and the 1960s. New York : Seven Stories Press. p. 110. ISBN 978 - 1 - 58322 - 686 - 5. ^ Jump up to : Rossinow, Doug ( 2008 ). Visions of Progress : The Left - Liberal Tradition in America. Philadelphia : University of Pennsylvania Press. p. 246. ISBN 978 - 0 - 8122 - 4049 - 8. Jump up ^ Schumacher, p. 100. Jump up ^ Alterman, Eric ( 2008 ). Why We 're Liberals : A Political Handbook for Post-Bush America. New York : Viking. p. 41. ISBN 978 - 1 - 101 - 20290 - 6. Jump up ^ Bragg, Billy ( February 2018 ). `` Free Radicals : 5 Crucial Phil Ochs Cuts ''. Mojo. p. 60. Jump up ^ Cohen, David ( 1999 ). Phil Ochs : A Bio-Bibliography. Westport, Conn. : Greenwood Press. p. 274. ISBN 978 - 0 - 313 - 31029 - 4. Jump up ^ Gaston, Peter ( September 18, 2008 ). `` Exclusive : Download Two Kevin Devine Songs ''. Spin. Retrieved October 8, 2011. Jump up ^ Cohen, p. 288. Jump up ^ Greer, Evan. `` Love Me, I 'm a Liberal ( 2003 ) ''. Riot - Folk. Archived from the original on March 8, 2012. Retrieved March 18, 2015. Jump up ^ Cohen, p. 293. Jump up ^ Herrero, Javier ( December 17, 2015 ). `` Nacho Vegas reivindica el populismo en la música en su nuevo disco ''. EFE. Retrieved June 3, 2016. Jump up ^ `` Chris T-T New Album ' 9 Green Songs ' Out 3 June 2016 ''. Xtra Mile Recordings. April 6, 2016. Retrieved June 3, 2016. External links Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics Phil Ochs Discography Studio albums All the News That 's Fit to Sing I Ai n't Marching Anymore Pleasures of the Harbor Tape from California Rehearsals for Retirement Greatest Hits Live albums Phil Ochs in Concert Gunfight at Carnegie Hall There and Now : Live in Vancouver 1968 Live at Newport Amchitka, The 1970 Concert That Launched Greenpeace Posthumous releases Sings for Broadside A Toast to Those Who Are Gone The Broadside Tapes 1 The Early Years On My Way Posthumous compilations Chords of Fame The War Is Over : The Best of Phil Ochs There but for Fortune Farewells & Fantasies American Troubadour 20th Century Masters -- The Millennium Collection : The Best of Phil Ochs Cross My Heart : An Introduction to Phil Ochs Other albums The Campers : Camp Favorites Interviews with Phil Ochs Singles `` I Ai n't Marching Anymore '' `` Cross My Heart '' `` Outside of a Small Circle of Friends '' `` The War Is Over '' `` My Life '' `` One Way Ticket Home '' `` Kansas City Bomber '' `` Bwatue '' `` Power and the Glory '' Other songs `` Crucifixion '' `` Draft Dodger Rag '' `` Here 's to the State of Mississippi '' `` Love Me, I 'm a Liberal '' `` There but for Fortune '' List of songs recorded by Phil Ochs Documentaries Chords of Fame ( 1984 ) Phil Ochs : There but for Fortune ( 2011 ) Tributes Get Your Phil Learn : The Songs of Phil Ochs Poison Ochs : A Tribute to Phil Ochs This Is Absolutely Real : Visions and Versions of Phil Ochs What 's That I Hear ? : The Songs of Phil Ochs List of cover versions Related Archives Jim Glover Michael Ochs ( brother ) Robyn Ochs ( niece ) Sonny Ochs ( sister ) Pigasus Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Love_Me,_I%27m_a_Liberal&oldid=834356033 '' Categories : 1965 songs Phil Ochs songs Political songs Songs written by Phil Ochs Satirical songs Hidden categories : Articles with hAudio microformats Interlanguage link template link number Talk About Wikipedia Français Edit links This page was last edited on 5 April 2018, at 08 : 39. 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Question: love me i'm a liberal song meaning
Answer: mocks the differences between what liberals say and what they do