Get Religion notes a story by Jeffery Weiss in the Dallas Morning News about the folk song everyone loves to make fun of: Kumbaya.
What do a recent Republican political ad, bubble gum commercial and British newspaper spoof of a soccer rivalry have in common?
All make fun of a well-known religious song. The GOP ad is typical: An impersonator of former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright sings "Kumbaya" with terrorists. Why is "Kumbaya" the designated silly-song to represent phony or ineffectual friendliness?
If you attended Mass during the 1970s, or went to summer camp, no doubt you are familiar with the three-chord melody and endlessly repeating lyrics. A later blog entry by Weiss digs up numerous cultural references to Kumbaya, including a rendition by Garrison Keillor on Prairie Home Companion, and another by opera singer Jose Carreras with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra.
