Toby Keith’s elegiac new ‘Happy Birthday America (whatever’s left of you)’ 4th of July single will bring a tear to every patriot’s eye

Country music superstar Toby Keith has released a July 4 single, lamenting the state of U.S.

Keith, 62, premiered ‘Happy Birthday America (whatever’s left of it) on Fox News on Friday morning.

The Oklahoma-born singer, known for his patriotic, upbeat songs, strikes a markedly different tone as he mourns ‘all the broken-down cities, by the left’s design’ and asks why the nation is so miserable.

‘Seems like everybody’s pissin’ on the red, white and blue,’ he sings.

Toby Keith, 59, has released a new song to mark Independence Day, expressing sadness at the state of modern America

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Keith’s song is a lament for a lost country, whose political leaders have failed

On Friday morning Keith performed the song on Fox News and told how he was inspired by the concerns of people he spoke to ‘in the heartland’

Keith, who played at Donald Trump’s inauguration, sang of his sadness at the political panorama.

The full lyrics to ‘Happy Birthday America (whatever’s left of you)’

Happy birthday America

It’s the Fourth of July

I get to wake up in your freedom

But sometimes I wonder why

Seems like everybody’s pissin’

On the red, white and blue

Happy birthday America

Whatever’s left of you

 

You were the darlin’ when you saved the world

WW I and II

France would just be part of Germany now

If it hadn’t been for you

Now your children wanna turn you in

To something other than yourself

They burn your flag in their city streets

More than anybody else

 

Who they gonna count on

When you’re not there to take their call?

Will the world keep right on spinnin’

Without the greatest of them all?

Without the helping hand of God

Your days are numbered, my old friend

We’re sure gonna miss you, girl

You were the best that’s ever been

 

All the broken-down cities

By the left’s design

And the right can’t seem to get it right

Most of the time

Every time I go to town and vote

I just come home with the blues

The lesser of two evils

All we ever get to choose

‘Every time I go to town and vote, I just come home with the blues,’ he sang.

‘The lesser of two evils, all we ever get to choose.’

In addition to playing Trump’s inauguration, Keith has also played events for President George Bush and Barack Obama, saying his decision to perform at each was about America, not party lines.

While never having endorsed Trump, Keith did previously call the president – and his then-opponent Hilary Clinton – ‘media whores’ during an interview in September 2016.

‘This is by far the best country you could ever live in, and we picked these two candidates to be media whores and go out there and take care of the world, huh?’ he said during an interview at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas. He went on to call the election a ‘dumpster fire’.

The singer, who has made more than $500 million throughout his career, sings in his new song that the world has taken America for granted.

‘You were the darlin’ when you saved the world, WW One and Two.

‘France would just be part of Germany now, if it hadn’t been for you,’ he sings.

Keith, who has previously sang to honor the troops, continued: ‘Who they gonna count on when you’re not there to take their call?

‘Will the world keep right on spinnin’ without the greatest of them all?’

Keith warns: ‘Without the helping hand of God your days are numbered, my old friend.

‘We’re sure gonna miss you, girl, you were the best that’s ever been.’

He told Fox that he wrote the song on a boat, in July 2020, while watching the fireworks.

‘It had been a screwed up 18 months,’ Keith said.

‘I was seeing both sides having concern over the end of democracy. We’ve fought and divided almost to the point it’s only about power and winning.

‘Charlie Daniels had a song saying ‘God save us all from religion.’

‘And I’m thinking, God save us all from politicians.’

Keith said that he felt many people in the country were suffering and upset.

‘I live in the heartland and it just feels like everybody you talk to has the same worries,’ he said.

‘It just feels like the politicians aren’t getting the job done on either side and it just feels like the democracy is in danger.’

Keith has previously revealed he was raised a Democrat in Oklahoma and was registered with the party until 2008, when he became an independent.

‘I was a Democrat my whole life. They kind of disowned me when I started supporting the troops, then I went and registered independent,’ he told the Chicago Tribune.

‘I’ve never been a registered Republican. It just keeps people off balance. They don’t know what to think.’

Ahead of this year’s election, Keith was vocal on social media in urging American’s to ‘get out and vote’, regardless of their political affiliations or opinions.

‘I just think everybody should have an opinion and everybody should vote,’ a tweet read. ‘That’s what we’re build on.’

In his earlier years, Keith was vocal politically, during George W. Bush’s terms as Commander-in-Chief.

In 2003 he engaged in a public feud with the Chicks – formerly known as the Dixie Chicks – after the group’s lead singer criticized Bush shortly before the Iraq war.

Keith is on the road this summer with his Country Comes to Town Tour.

He also has a new radio single, ‘Old School.’

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