“Blasphemy” Claims Overshadow Great Robbie Fulks Performance
**Warning: Language
Country roots songwriter and performer Robbie Fulks is no stranger to mixing it up and waxing controversial if he feels so inclined. As one of the early members of the resurgent country movement in the 90’s, and one who brought his experience of trying to hack it as a professional songwriter in Nashville to the table, Robbie’s been known to to take certain things he finds offensive to task, and attempt to offend them back, most famously in the hilarious song “Fuck This Town.”
But it was a much more genteel Robbie Fulks who took the stage Saturday night (1-31) at the Fitzgerald Theater in in St. Paul Minnesota for a live broadcast of the well-loved Minnesota Public Radio program A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keillor. Far from your average potty mouth, Fulks is revered for his songwriting and playing that veers from bluegrass and traditional country stylings into folk music sentiments and themes. Robbie puts on a show these days that is something the whole family can enjoy. But when Fulks uttered “goddamn” incidentally in the lyrics of one of his songs, it stimulated a quite a row in the land of 10,000 lakes.
Minnesota Public Radio was forced to issue an apology, bleeped the word out of future broadcasts, and sent out a “language advisory” alert to 670 affiliates who may rebroadcast the show. Amidst complaints from some listeners, the Star Tribune in Minnesota labeled Fulks’ language “blasphemy,” and referred to what he said as only the word “that ends with the syllable ‘damn.'” This prompted Minnesota’s City Pages to chastise the Star Tribune’s oversensitivity with the tagline on their own story, “It was motherfucking blasphemy.”
The blasphemous term was uttered during Fulks’ song “Where I Fell” from his recent album Gone Away Backward at about the 50-minute mark of the show, and was nothing more than a lyrical element in a song being sung in the character of the story, not an off-color exclamation from Fulks.
And it’s the same sad crew at Delilah shouting over the redneck band
Game score, tea party, world war, I don’t give a good goddamn
Making the Minnesota controversy that much worse is it overshadowed an amazing live performance by Fulks on the venerable show. It’s definitely worth a listen.
February 2, 2015 @ 6:30 pm
well, that’s a goddamn shame!
February 2, 2015 @ 6:31 pm
Fuck that town, too.
February 2, 2015 @ 7:06 pm
i think he should of known better. that type of potty language may fly over at Wits, but APHC is good wholesome family entertainment. that being said, this shit got blown out of proportion.
February 2, 2015 @ 7:27 pm
At least he didn’t perform “Let’s Live Together” or worse “God Isn’t Real”. They wouldn’t go over well.
February 2, 2015 @ 8:07 pm
Robbie’s great. Is that Chris Scruggs playing bass?
February 2, 2015 @ 9:18 pm
Yes! I love spotting Chris Scruggs in random bands. Playing bass for Robbie Fulks? Why not.
February 3, 2015 @ 4:14 am
First time to Nashville I saw him walk into a bar on Broadway and sit in at peddle steel with the house band for a set. Didn’t know who he was then, but damn was he good!
February 3, 2015 @ 4:15 am
Pedal of course.
February 3, 2015 @ 8:36 pm
Not if you’re selling one. Thanks you. I’ll be here all week.
February 3, 2015 @ 6:08 am
Hopefully in another generation or two people will stop living their lives based on fairy tales and magic men in the sky.
February 3, 2015 @ 7:55 pm
Fat chance, unfortunately. At least in this country.
February 3, 2015 @ 6:16 am
‘Gone Away Backward’ was the best album of 2013 and it hasn’t been topped since. I just saw him at a small house concert in Baltimore with a crack band and he was even better live than on record. One of the best country songwriters right now. ‘Where I Fell’ is especially good, but the whole album is great. Real country music. Seriously compare GAB to Simpson’s ‘Metamodern’- GAB blows it the fuck away on every level. Not gimmicky enough for the masses though. ‘When You Get To The Bottom’ is another standout track. Can’t say enough good things about Fulks.
February 3, 2015 @ 7:34 am
Interesting that the Star Tribune labels the lyric a blasphemy as if it were a staement of fact. Who owns this paper? Pat Robertson?
February 3, 2015 @ 10:27 am
Glen Taylor. the owner of the Minnesota Timberwolves…
February 3, 2015 @ 8:48 am
Great press for Robbie though.
February 3, 2015 @ 9:34 am
HAHA…blasphemy…I didn’t even know that was still a “thing” in 2015.
February 3, 2015 @ 8:00 pm
ISIS & the GOP would like to have a word with you.
February 3, 2015 @ 9:42 am
Robbie’s playing a goddamn show tonight too.
http://robbiefulks.com/blog/posts/557-tonight-s-goddamn-show
February 3, 2015 @ 10:53 am
I dont like that kinda talk. wut hapened to sivility in America?
February 4, 2015 @ 8:15 am
And whatever happened to correct spelling?
February 4, 2015 @ 10:52 am
That boy’s just not right in the head. Ignore him.
February 4, 2015 @ 11:53 am
interesting that you define having a sense of humor “not right in the head.” I would define “not being right in the head” as being intolerant of the opinions/beliefs of others, like you are.
February 4, 2015 @ 10:29 pm
Sorry, I forgot to use the sarcasm font.
February 3, 2015 @ 11:02 am
Every town has a piece of shit city paper, with a bunch of crappy reviews of bad restaurants, written by filthy, tattooed hipsters and girls with heroin habits, bones through their noses and labia piercings. So obviously, the real point was lost on those poor saps at the Minnesota City Pages. Using curse words may be crude, but the real offense is taking the Lord’s name in vain.
February 3, 2015 @ 12:05 pm
Hmmm, the City Pages article I read started with…”It was motherfucking blasphemy During Saturday night’s live Prairie Home Companion show country singer Robbie Fulks sang the word “goddamn,” prompting MPR to apologize before the show’s Sunday replay, where it was bleeped. Then the Star Tribune t…”
Not defending City Pages which is kinda sorta well… worthless in most cases.
MPR is the problem here. MPR itself (and all “public” radio and television) seems to be the problem as those entities become more and more beholding to right wing investors. They are slowly becoming the victim to the addage that says “if you can’t beat ’em, own ’em”.
February 3, 2015 @ 6:23 pm
MPR itself (and all “public” radio and television) seems to be the problem as those entities become more and more beholding to right wing investors.
you and me are clearly not listening to the same Minnesota Public Radio. i had to stop listening to they’re news because of it’s obnoxious liberal slant.
February 4, 2015 @ 9:59 am
My obnoxious liberal bar is quite high. From where I sit the DFL is a buncha right leaning corporate flunkies.
February 4, 2015 @ 10:27 am
to be fair, i cant listen to obnoxious conservative slant either…
February 3, 2015 @ 8:05 pm
Jesus Fucking Christ, I can’t tell if you’re goddamn serious or not!
February 3, 2015 @ 12:25 pm
Sturgill Simpson covered his experience nicely on his Sept 14 Facebook post, writing”
“Been some folks coming to my page to chastise (judge) me for taking the Lord’s name in vain on Conan so figured I should address it.
Ironically, the song is actually a metaphor comparing the soothing yet completely addictive and damaging effects of hard narcotic opiates to the negative sociological impact of organized religion and blind faith when forced upon society and used as a political tool by self-righteous, thinly-veiled bigots to control and manipulate the masses and enhance the suffering of impoverished, lower class citizens. Also, since I’m self-funding/self-releasing my art instead of shooting for ACM awards and taking it up the ass from the music row man, I have the right to write and sing and say whatever I choose just as you have the right to not buy or listen to my music and stay away from my page if you don’t like it.
So with that said…
1. I sang it like I wrote it
2. Censorship is bullshit
3. This is America and people can say anything they want including “Goddamn” at the top of their lungs on national TV
February 3, 2015 @ 12:49 pm
“This is America and people can say anything they want including “Goddamn” at the top of their lungs on national TV”
That is not even close to true.
February 3, 2015 @ 1:42 pm
Yes, it is true. The FCC regulations are flatly unconstitutional.
February 3, 2015 @ 2:45 pm
I disagree with Robbie’s third point: Just because we have the right to say whatever we want doesn’t mean we should always do so. A person should respect his/her audience and use sitution-appropriate language. In this case, a public performance, which families and children may be listening to (any kid who can sit through APAH withouth throwing a tantrum or falling asleep deserves a medal, by the way) requires clean language.
I listen to more than my fair share of music that has off-color language, cursing, and other things that would get an insane reaction if publically broadcasted. But, I don’t play that stuff around people who it would make uncomfortable. The people I’m with or around have as much a right to not hear swearing as I do to listen to that music.
February 3, 2015 @ 3:09 pm
That is Sturgill Simpson’s point, not Robbie Fulks. It was in response to someone complaining on his Facebook page after his perforrmance of Living The Dream on Conan on TBS. Of course, that song has Goddamn in the lyrics as well. I would think that the performance came on around midnight and so the kiddies should have been in bed. I think the complainer might have been showing off her piety for the benefit of her fellow Christian Facebook friends.
February 3, 2015 @ 3:31 pm
Ahh, sorry about that. Still, I stand by my comment. It looks like a lot of people here see ‘goddamn’ as just a more colorful form of ‘damn.’ Personally, I use ‘damn’ in light situations, and ‘goddamn’ when I actually have cause to swear. I work with a lot of people who get really offended at a ‘goddamn,’ more so than a ‘fuck’ or ‘shit’ or any creative combinations containing those words.
I doubt a regular ‘damn’ would garner such reaction from the audience, MPR, and the papers; ‘goddamn,’ on the other hand, is a serious word to lots of people and I’m not surprised at the reaction.
February 4, 2015 @ 7:40 am
I wonder if he and possibly Keillor just didn’t see this coming. I wouldn’t be surprised if Keillor was familiar with the song and the album. From what I know, he does seem to be a proponet of quality American roots music.
February 5, 2015 @ 3:42 pm
Comments like that, along with being a copycat fraud imatator, are why Sturgill is a piece of white trash garbage. Just like every other irreverent God-hater who has commented on this page.
It’s a shame. Mainstream Country has been taken over by frat-boys, and traditional Country has been taken over by communist, atheist, hipsters.
Jeez, I hate the world these days.
February 5, 2015 @ 4:04 pm
There is no need to attack Sturgill in such an ad hominem manner. He did not single out any specific people in his comment. Nor was he criticizing organized religion in general, just the negative impact it has when “forced upon society and used as a political tool”. As Americans, we should be able to agree that forcing religion upon people using state power is a violation of fundamental rights. I would also agree that the use of religion as a political tool is a pernicious example of the identity politics that are corroding the fabric of our civil society.
February 3, 2015 @ 2:48 pm
That’s some funny shit. Really? Blasphemy? What part of Saudi Arabia did this happen in?
They should issue a fatwa or a shit fit or whatever the hell they do.
February 3, 2015 @ 4:44 pm
Well….., I listen to and play for others Shooter Jennings songs, including ‘Gunslinger’ but I would never play that song for kids, truly religious types, or my mother. I listen to Sirius Radio Outlaw Country but I never leave the radio on that station for fear Mojo Nixon (who I always turn off) will be screaming ‘fuck’ like a moron when I start up the truck with anyone riding shotgun. I don’t listen to APHC but, if I did, I wouldn’t expect to hear blasphemy from anyone on the program. Just for Sam:
…Wikipedia
“Blasphemy is the act of insulting or showing contempt or lack of reverence for God…”. You don’t have to be in Saudi Arabia for that.
That said, last time I was in church the minister preached a children’s sermon that included the wrap-up sentence, ” ….So, baptism is God’s way of killing you, then he gives you a new life, and that’s what makes God your real dad…” consequently I haven’t been to church for awhile…..
I guess my point is you can’t please all the people all the time, but you should be aware of the sensibilities of your listeners. He should have stuck to damn or used some compound word that included -shit. People would have just giggled at that.
But, damn!!..I like his music!
February 3, 2015 @ 7:08 pm
People don’t like having their imaginary friends insulted.
February 3, 2015 @ 7:33 pm
I’m stand with RD on this one, it was not appropriate language on this type of show. I guess I am one of those right wing idiots that gets offended when somebody says the GD about my lord and savior. I am also, a Sturgill Simpson fan and have a Robbie Fulks CD in my house and love the fact that they are still trying to preserve real country music they way its supposed to be played. I don’t think it would have been that hard for Robbie to change the verse to damn while playing on a show that is supposed to be family oriented. I don’t think that would be hard to understand considering who the target audience is at the time. Also, there is no right wing influences on public radio especially not in Florida where I am from.
Todd Villars
February 3, 2015 @ 8:38 pm
Howl-la-looya LIKES are back! 😀
February 4, 2015 @ 12:27 am
Well, goddamn!
February 4, 2015 @ 8:21 am
Wonder how many times a day “Life in the Fast Lane” is played in the Twin Cities area without even a whiff of a complaint. SMH.
February 4, 2015 @ 10:02 am
14 times. Weird that I would just know that.
February 4, 2015 @ 10:54 am
Even once a day is too often.
February 4, 2015 @ 8:21 am
I directed a play in a local theater production – a comedy about three people plotting three different murders. No one complained about the adultery or attempted homicides. But they did whine about one character uttering “goddam” once. Religious compasses are quite elastic and often point in the wrong direction.
February 4, 2015 @ 10:21 am
Well next time I see Sturgill or Robbie I’ll be sure to buy them a drink and make sure they know how much us heathens appreciate their candid narrative.
February 7, 2015 @ 9:04 am
“Where I Fell” is an awesome song on an amazing album. The use of the dreaded “GD” is not a crass gimmick here. The word fits perfectly in this song at that particular moment. Sums up the frustration/boredom/angst of small town life like no other word really can, spoken from the point of view of the protagonist. I understand that this phrase can be offensive to some, but in Robbie’s defense, to quote another esteemed lyricist…”I’m a m–f–in wordsmith, b$@&!” (Sweet GA Brown).
February 8, 2015 @ 12:17 am
Fuck Minnesota. Robbie is a musical genius and a national treasure.