From the empathetic tip-of-the-hat salute to our troops in “American Soldier”, to the infamous threat of “a boot in your ass” to terrorism in “Courtesy Of The Red, White And Blue”, Toby Keith has never been shy about expressing his patriotism. In “Drunk Americans” Toby takes it a little closer to home.
The song, written by Brandy Clark, Bob DiPiero and Shane McAnally, focuses on the calling out of our differences and uses the setting of (where else?) a bar, to level the playing field. We see blue collar along side white, left vs. right, and even prom queen sharing a drink with stripper. All of this plays out for your viewing pleasure in the video for “Drunk Americans” released to CMT on Thanksgiving day. Appropriate, given the holiday and the fact that most Americans will be inebriated. If that release date was not by design then chalk one up for serendipity.
The video was directed by Michael Salomon and features animation by Ben Naff. The animation allows for unprecedented cameos from the likes of Willie Nelson to Jimmy Buffet. We see thin Elvis imbibing with fat Elvis, young and old Michael Jacksons sitting together and even Jesus commingling with Buddha.
The video is very amusing but Keith is no stranger to light hearted candor. What really grabs me is the message of the song. Sure, it is still a drinking tune in aspects, yet the lyric weaves in a moral which should be intrinsic to all of us. The only way to eradicate the me vs. other attitude still prevalent in the U.S. and around the world is to make it a part of pop culture.
The video originally aired on Vevo, but is now available on most media sites. The “Drunk Americans” single comes as a precursor to an album set for early 2015. The singer, songwriter, producer and actor can be followed at TobyKeith.com and @tobykeithmusic on Twitter.
As we somehow find ourselves plumb in the middle of the holiday season this song reminds us to put aside our social dissonances because after all, “we just came here to drink”.
