What's That Sound? Oh It's a Quiet Rebellion.

In response to: For what it's worth by buffalo Springfield

“There's something happening here

What it is ain't exactly clear

There's a man with a gun over there

Telling me I got to beware”

This song seems to be talking about how when the war started people kind of gazed over it and then when people became aware protest broke out from the young people who were getting enlisted in the war. But then they butted heads with people who were supporters or sympathizers of the soldiers/war. It talks about paranoia and the riots between the two and how if you “step out of line, the man come and take you away”.

“I think it's time we stop, children, what's that sound

Everybody look what's going down”. This is the artist kind of pointing out  that they’re enlisting people who are more than not, children. Children who need to know what's going on.

“There's battle lines being drawn

Nobody's right if everybody's wrong

Young people speaking their minds

Getting so much resistance from behind”

This stanza of the song is talking about it from the young people's point of view, the protesters, the ones seeing that the war isn't the answer and nobody's doing right if all everybody is doing is wrong. And the resistance from behind is the backlash to get you for protesting against something that has always been the norm.

“ it's time we stop, hey, what's that sound Everybody look what's going down” by saying it's time we stop, everybody look, it's saying stop what you're doing and look what's happening. Look at what's going on around you, the lives people are living. “What's that sound”could be interpreted a few ways, maybe it's the sounds of the protesters or the sounds of the rallies  in the streets, maybe it's the sounds of the war.

“What a field day for the heat

A thousand people in the street

Singing songs and carrying signs

Mostly say, hooray for our side”

The lines of thousand people in the street singing songs and carrying signs mostly saying hooray for our side, are talking about the people who are for the war movement. The ones rallying in favor of the soldiers, the ones opposite of the protesters from the last stanza.

“It's time we stop, hey, what's that sound Everybody look what's going down” this part repeats throughout the song, maybe it's to fit the structure of the song, or maybe it's to draw attention to the statement, to your attention to the fact that people need to wake up and look around and see what's happening.

“Paranoia strikes deep

Into your life it will creep

It starts when you're always afraid

You step out of line, the man come take you away”

This talks about the paranoia that people experienced from always being afraid, afraid that if they speak out or “step out of line” they'll be taken away.

“We better stop, hey, what's that sound

Everybody look what's going down

Stop, hey, what's that sound

Everybody look what's going down

Stop, now, what's that sound

Everybody look what's going down

Stop, children, what's that sound

Everybody look what's going down”