James Brown was proud to be an American. Courtesy: Heinrich Klaffs/Wikicommons.

One of the more annoying aspects of the United States in the 21st century is that the political right, by which I mean the people who have been drifting farther to the right until they’ve made Francisco Franco look like Eugene Debs, is that they keep claiming entire concepts as inherently theirs.

For example, the entire concept of families. Everyone has one regardless of political affiliation, right? You’re born to one or more parents, your parent(s) have parents and possibly siblings; it’s a pretty universal thing. Focus on the Family, for example, exists primarily to hate anyone who’s not heterosexual and cisgendered and try to exclude them from public life. Moms for Liberty was named by the Southern Poverty Law Center as a far-right extremist group. If there’s a familial relationship in the name, you can be pretty well assured they exist to take away someone’s rights.

For the purposes of this column, though, I’m talking about the fact that the right has claimed the entire concept of patriotism. The American flag, the National Anthem and any show of pride in country has gradually become right-wing symbolism. It’s really very absurd if you think about it. No one group of Americans owns what it is to be an American regardless of political affiliation, race, gender or belief. Despite what Hulk Hogan in the ’80s would have you believe, there’s no such thing as a “Real American” beyond someone who lives in the United States of America.

To that end, since it’s the 4th of July in a few days, here are five songs that are patriotic without being pro-war, white supremacist, jingoistic anthems of exclusion.

James Brown — “Living in America”

This isn’t liberal, but it’s also not conservative. It’s thoroughly James Brown. That transcends politics. I realized I hadn’t really listened to the lyrics and it’s oddly heavy on transportation, which just goes to reinforce its neutrality. I’ve just now decided it’s the American version of Gordon Lightfoot’s “Canadian Railroad Trilogy.” While the Canadian version is a beautiful acoustic ballad celebrating progress as well as the natives and workers who sacrificed to get there, the American version is a catchy, cacophonous, bombastic experience that doesn’t really mean anything when you think too hard about it. I love them both very much.

Steve Miller Band — “Living in the USA”

Apparently, Steve Miller wrote this as a political statement to be played at the 1968 Democratic National Convention. He said it had come out of a combination of his time in the civil rights movement and protesting the Vietnam war, as well as the psychedelic scene in the Bay Area.

If that’s true, he was really into the psychedelic scene at the time because I don’t see any political statements in this song. I have absolutely no idea what any of it means. I guess there’s something in there about everyone wanting to be free, and a verse about people of all races needing help that didn’t age super well? It’s beyond me. But hey, he says it’s political, and it’s not fascist, so I’ll take it.

Simon and Garfunkel — “America”

This one is about a trip Paul Simon took with his then-girlfriend to hitchhike around the United States to, as the song says, look for America. It never really says whether they found it, so calling it a patriotic song is a bit of a stretch on my part. But I can explain.

You see, I love Simon and Garfunkel. Combined, they’re one of the best musical acts of all time. Paul Simon alone is accomplished. He did some great work. But like Paul McCartney, his solo efforts weren’t ever quite as good as they were with a moderating influence keeping him from his worst tendencies.

Anyway, I wanted to listen to a Simon and Garfunkel song so here we are. Deal with it.

Neil Diamond — “America”

I’m biased in favor of this song because I absolutely loved it as a little kid. I do not know why, as I don’t actually remember this. I was told second-hand. But it’s a good song so I don’t blame me. I’ve always had excellent taste in music, what can I say.

More importantly, it’s a patriotic song from the perspective of immigrants! From back when the United States at least outwardly claimed to welcome immigrants who weren’t already rich! Can you imagine a song like this today? The frothing backlash it would generate from whoever took over for Tucker Carlson would be a lot.

As a side note, this is from the 1980 movie “The Jazz Singer,” starring, obviously, Neil Diamond as a Jewish man who defies his father’s wishes to be a jazz singer. It’s the third remake, after a 1952 movie and a 1959 TV miniseries of the original film from 1927. They all have the same plot, but here’s the thing—the 1927 version stars Al Jolson and in the movie he sings jazz in blackface. But all the other versions dropped that part, so… that’s progress?

Loretta Lynn — “Dear Uncle Sam”

I’m finishing up with Loretta Lynn to make a point: Country songs weren’t always the violent, bootlicking nonsense it’s dominated by these days. Back in 1966, country legend Lynn sang this tragic song about a woman whose husband signs up to fight in, presumably, Vietnam. She loves her country, but she loves her man, and she has to reconcile those things when he dies in the line of duty.

If a country artist released a song like this now, they’d be blacklisted and their albums would be burned like the then-Dixie-Chicks in 2003. In fact, if you know a diehard country fan, the type who worships Loretta and her peers, play this for them. I’m curious how they’d react.

Follow publisher Daniel J. Willis and tweet column ideas to him at Twitter.com/BayAreaData.