Songs that predicted the future, either intentional or not

Electrelane with "I Want To Be The President" from 2002 ...



they're building walls tonight
they're building walls tonight
ain't it cold,
ain't it cold,
ain't it cold,
where you empty your soul?
there'll be a war tonight
there'll be a war tonight.

 

For sure

 

The Times They Are A Changin'

 

Billy Joel's "Miami 2017" (which originally came out in 1976) was an eerie premonition of 9/11:

 

Hawkwind's "Hassan I Sabbah".

Spoiler

Hashish hashin, hashish hashin
Hashish hashin, hashish hashin
Hashish hashin, hashish hashin
Hashishin

Black September, Black September
Black September, Black September
Black September, Black September
Black September

Death unto all infidels in oil
Guide us o thou genie of the smoke
Lead us to a thousand and one nights
In the perfumed gardens of delights

Petro dollar, petro dollar
Petro dollar, petro dollar
Petrol d'Allah, petrol d'Allah
Petrol d'Allah

Hashish hashin, hashish hashin
Hashish hashin, hashish hashin
Hashish hashin, hashish hashin
Hashishin

Death unto all infidels in oil
Guide us o thou genie of the smoke
Lead us to a thousand and one nights
In the perfumed garden of
In the perfumed garden of
In the perfumed garden of delights

It is written
It is written
It is written
It is written
It is written

In the soul of the desert
It is written
In signs in the stars
It is written
In the sands of the hour-glass
It is written
It is written
In the eye of the falcon
It is written
In the shade of the scorpion
It is written
In the wealth of the sun
It is written
It is written
Man's truth is a mirage
It is written
That death's an oasis
It is written
For all unbelievers
It is written
It is written
It is written
It is written
It is written
It is written
It is written
It is written
It is written
It is written

Hashish hashin, hashish hashin
Hashish hashin, hashish hashin
Hashish hashin, hashish hashin
Hashishin

Death unto all infidels in oil
Guide us o thou genie of the smoke
Lead us to a thousand and one nights
In the perfumed garden of
In the perfumed garden of
In the perfumed garden of delights

 

Sammy Hagar “I Can’t Drive 55”
I think just about every state in the union has raised their speed limit above 55.

 

What a great question.

The answer here is very, very easy. Donald Fagen, I.G.Y - from The Nightfly. Nearly 20 years ago.

Read the lyrics closely and then read the lyrics again very closely.

"The Fix" was always in.

And yes, "We'll be clean when their work is done. We'll be eternally free, yes, and eternally young."

Donald Fagen - I.G.Y. Lyrics | AZLyrics.com :

I.G.Y."

Standing tough under stars and stripes, we can tell
This dream's in sight
You've got to admit it
At this point in time that it's clear
The future looks bright

On that train, all graphite and glitter
Undersea by rail
Ninety minutes from New York to Paris
Well, by '76 we'll be A-OK

What a beautiful world this will be
What a glorious time to be free
What a beautiful world this will be
What a glorious time to be free

Get your ticket to that wheel in space while there's time
The fix is in
You'll be a witness to that game of chance in the sky
You know we've got to win

Here at home we'll play in the city
Powered by the sun
Perfect weather for a streamlined world
There'll be spandex jackets, one for everyone

What a beautiful world this will be
What a glorious time to be free
What a beautiful world this will be
What a glorious time to be free

On that train, all graphite and glitter
Undersea by rail
Ninety minutes from New York to Paris
(More leisure for artists everywhere)

A just machine to make big decisions
Programmed by fellas with compassion and vision
We'll be clean when their work is done
We'll be eternally free, yes, and eternally young

What a beautiful world this will be
What a glorious time to be free
What a beautiful world this will be
What a glorious time to be free

What a beautiful world this will be
What a glorious time to be free
What a beautiful world this will be
What a glorious time to be free

 

There's also Tiny Tim's "The Other Side" from 1968.

One nigh is brown
The other is brown
I am a fish
I swim around
You say I'm lost
I disagree
The map has changed
And with it, me

Gliding through the seaweed
What strange things I see below
Cars are waiting
Windshields wiping
Nowhere left to go!

Oh…

The ice caps are melting
Oh, ho, ho ho
All the world is drowning
Ho, ho ho, ho ho
The ice caps are melting
The tide is rushing in
All the world is drowning
To wash away the sin

The seagull flies
In search of land
The children hide
Beneath the sand
As golden toys
Come floating down
I play the fish
I swim around

Gliding through the seaweed
What strange things I see below
Cars are waiting
Windshields wiping
Nowhere left to go!

Oh…

The ice caps are melting
Oh, ho, ho ho
All the world is drowning
Ho, ho ho, ho ho
The ice caps are melting
The tide is rushing in
All the world is drowning
To wash away the sin

 

Captain Beefheart’s “Blabber ‘n Smoke” (from 1971) presages our current inaction in the face of catastrophic climate change -- lot’s of ‘blabber’ in the form of UN pronouncements and annual COP summits that have solved nothing; and plenty ‘smoke’ from the massive amounts fossil fuels we continue to burn each and every day.

All you ever do is blabber 'n smoke
There's ah big pain in your window
'N all your waters turn t' rope
It gonna hang you all
Dangle you all
Dang you all
If you don't hurry there will be no hope
Why don't you quit actin' like ah dope
All you ever do is blabber 'n smoke
It don't matter where you got your start
Which side of your head you wear your heart
Clean up the air
'N treat the animals fair
I can't help but think you treat love like ah joke
Time's runnin' out
'N all you ever do is blabber 'n smoke
Blabber 'n smoke
Blabber 'n smoke