Review of Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing (2006) by Barnaby G — 05 Feb 2008

I knew that the chicks were villified for speaking out against the Iraq war, but I presumed it was calculated and that they were politically savvy. Not so, as it turned out, it was merely a throwaway comment from the lead singer which she wouldn't have said if she'd realised the consequences.

Saying that, this was a good indication of how fucking nuts mainstream America is. They even got death threats. Beyond the PR damage limitation exercises and the corporate proclamations of their oily manager, this was quite an interesting journey.

Unfortunately, I don't like their middle-of-the-road music at all, although some of the lyrics are quite good. It was a good finale when they returned to London. I would have called this Don't shut up and don't sing.