Dean Martin is known for his fantastic singing and his humor more than for his social commentary. But in 1969, with so much going on the U.S., he released an album with some social commentary, including the wonderful “Do You Believe This Town.”
“Do You Believe This Town” appeared on Dean Martin’s 1969 album, I Take a Lot of Pride In What I Am, featuring a title track written by Merle Haggard. At the time, Martin’s career was doing well, resurrected since he signed with Reprise in 1962, including the 1964 hit, “Everybody Loves Somebody.”
The I Take a Lot of Pride in What I Am album featured social commentary cuts, including “Do You Believe This Town,” written by Joe Nixon and Charlie Williams. The song apparently foregoes a question mark in its title but is about small-town hypocrisy. Nixon and Williams wrote “Do You Believe This Town” not long before the release of another song about hypocrisy, Jennie C. Reilly’s “Harper Valley PTA.” Yet, “Do You Believe This Town” also references the PTA in its opening lines.
The woman next door has gone to the PTA,
And stopped to see her best friend’s husband on the way;
The folks down the street have a different thing,
So everyone is putting them down;
Do you believe this town?
In the video below, Martin performs the song on his television show. But his joking around as he sings it seems to contrast with the more serious nature of the song. The contrast is especially stark as he jokes around during the lines that appear to be about racial strife.
Do you believe they burned a house down yesterday?
You won’t believe the reason that they gave;
If the folks who lived there had a known their place,
They could still be hanging around;
Do you believe this town?
I first discovered “Do You Believe This Town” on the wonderful collection Bob Stanley & Pete Wiggs present State of the Union: the American Dream in Crisis 1967-1973. The album features songs from the era, generally by well-known artists, whose work on the featured songs illustrated a different direction, echoing a dark time in the United States.
The music for “Do You Believe This Town” suits Martin well. It has a nice swing so that one may not initially connect to the fact that the song has a message. Although the record is not one of Martin’s best-known recordings, it illustrates what his great timing and voice can do with a song. I assume most fans did not go to a Dean Martin performance for social commentary, but hearing this record makes me wish he had tackled more such songs.
Interesting, Roy Clark, another artist not known for social commentary, recorded “Do You Believe This Town” before Martin did, releasing the song on his album Do You Believe This Roy Clark in 1968. He even performed it on Hee Haw, although his performance took a more serious approach than Martin’s approach above. It was strange times in America.
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