Gov Did Nothin'

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

“Gov Did Nothin'”
Song by the John Butler Trio
Album	Grand National
Released	March 24, 2006
Genre	Alternative Rock, Roots, Funk
Length	8:04
Label	Jarrah Records
Writer	John Butler
Composer	John Butler
Producer	Mario Caldato Jr, John Butler
Grand National track listing
Used To Get High (6) “Gov Did Nothin'” (7) Groovin' Slowly (8)

Gov Did Nothin' is a protest song by the John Butler Trio, off the 2007 album Grand National. Written while the Trio were touring in the United States, it tells of how President George W. Bush and his government did nothing about the Hurricane Katrina disaster of 2005.

Gov Did Nothin' is possibly the most ambitious work by the Trio, containing whole horn sections and other instruments never before seen in their music. The horn section is comprised of 4 instruments, a trumpet, trombone, tuba, and clarinet. It was also played extensively during the Trio's Australian Sunrise Over Sea tour of 2005-06, alongside a cover of Get Up, Stand Up.

Gov Did Nothin' has sparked considerable amounts of controversy. Butler explicitly claims "Do you really thing that the Gov would do nothin' if all those people were white?", taking a stab at the alleged racism of the American government. He also claims that Bush is "chasing his tail just to find Bin Laden" and not spending enough resources on anything else.

[edit] Trivia

• The vocals sung during the horn section of the song sound very similar to Clare Torry's vocal solo during the Pink Floyd song The Great Gig in the Sky.