"What Have They Done to the Rain" is a

protest song A protest song is a song that is associated with a movement for social change and hence part of the broader category of ''topical'' songs (or songs connected to current events). It may be folk, classical, or commercial in genre. Among social mov ...

against above-ground

nuclear testing Nuclear weapons tests are experiments carried out to determine nuclear weapons' effectiveness, yield, and explosive capability. Testing nuclear weapons offers practical information about how the weapons function, how detonations are affected by ...

written by

Malvina Reynolds Malvina Reynolds (August 23, 1900 – March 17, 1978) was an American folk/blues singer-songwriter and political activist, best known for her songwriting, particularly the songs "Little Boxes", "What Have They Done to the Rain" and "Morningtown ...

. The song has been sung by many singers such as

Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing more ...

, and a version by the English band

The Searchers ''The Searchers'' is a 1956 American Technicolor VistaVision epic Western film directed by John Ford and written by Frank S. Nugent, based on the 1954 novel by Alan Le May. It is set during the Texas-Native American wars, and stars John Wa ...

was released as a single, which charted in the US and UK.

Background

In the late 1950s, concerns began to be raised over above-ground

, which produced

nuclear fallout Nuclear fallout is the residual radioactive material propelled into the upper atmosphere following a nuclear blast, so called because it "falls out" of the sky after the explosion and the shock wave has passed. It commonly refers to the radioac ...

that came down to earth in the rain. Such nuclear fallout contained radioactive

Strontium-90 Strontium-90 () is a radioactive isotope of strontium produced by nuclear fission, with a half-life of 28.8 years. It undergoes β− decay into yttrium-90, with a decay energy of 0.546 MeV. Strontium-90 has applications in medicine and i ...

that can enter the food chain through the grass eaten by cows and finally into human as food. Marches against nuclear testing were organized by Women for Peace and

Women Strike for Peace Women Strike for Peace (WSP, also known as Women for Peace) was a women's peace activist group in the United States. In 1961, nearing the height of the Cold War, around 50,000 women marched in 60 cities around the United States to demonstrate aga ...

in the 1960s, and

was among those active in the campaign. Reynolds composed the song in 1962, first entitled "Rain Song", as part of the campaign and Reynolds performed the song in marches. The lyrics talk of grass and a little boy in the rain, both of whom disappear after years of such rain. Although the song is about radioactive fallout, later the song also became identified with

acid rain Acid rain is rain or any other form of precipitation that is unusually acidic, meaning that it has elevated levels of hydrogen ions (low pH). Most water, including drinking water, has a neutral pH that exists between 6.5 and 8.5, but acid ...

. Reynolds recorded the song, which was later included in a

Smithsonian Folkways Smithsonian Folkways is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution. It is a part of the Smithsonian's Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, located at Capital Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. The label was fou ...

compilation album, ''The Best Of Broadside 1962-1988''. Joan Baez recorded the song live for her album ''

Joan Baez in Concert ''Joan Baez in Concert'' (later reissued as ''Joan Baez in Concert, Part 1'') is a live album taken from Joan Baez's 1962 concert tours. It peaked at #10 on the ''Billboard'' Pop Albums chart. History It was Baez's version of " Babe, I'm Gonna L ...

'' in 1962. Baez introduced the song as "the gentlest protest song I know. It doesn't protest gently, but it sounds gentle."

The Searchers version

The most commercially successful version of the song was recorded by

. The song, released in 1964, was one of the earliest releases in mainstream pop that addressed issues of societal concern on the environment. It reached number 13 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in 1965. It also reached number 29 on the U.S. Billboard chart, and number two in Canada.

Charts

Other versions

It has been recorded by many other artists including

Esther & Abi Ofarim Esther & Abi Ofarim were an Israeli musical duo active during the 1960s, consisting of husband and wife Abi Ofarim and Esther Ofarim. They enjoyed particular success in Germany. They had hits in Europe with their songs "One More Dance," "Morning ...

on their album ''

That's Our Song That's Our Song is an album released by Israeli folk duo Esther & Abi Ofarim. It was released in Europe on Philips Records in 1965. The album was released as ''Neue Songs Der Welt (New Songs of the World)'' in Germany. Recording and release ...

'' (1965), who also recorded a version in French, "Tout est étrange sous la pluie", the same year,

The Seekers The Seekers were an Australian folk-influenced pop quartet, originally formed in Melbourne in 1962. They were the first Australian pop music group to achieve major chart and sales success in the United Kingdom and the United States. They were ...

Marianne Faithfull Marianne Evelyn Gabriel Faithfull (born 29 December 1946) is an English singer and actress. She achieved popularity in the 1960s with the release of her hit single " As Tears Go By" and became one of the lead female artists during the British I ...

, and

Melanie Melanie is a feminine given name derived from the Greek μελανία (melania), "blackness" and that from μέλας (melas), meaning "dark".Lili Taylor Lili Anne Taylor (born February 20, 1967) is an American actress. She came to prominence with supporting parts in the films '' Mystic Pizza'' (1988) and '' Say Anything...'' (1989), before establishing herself as one of the key figures of 1990s ...

Nancy Savoca Nancy Laura Savoca (born July 23, 1959) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Early life and education Nancy Laura Savoca was born in 1959 in the Bronx, New York, to Argentine and Sicilian immigrants Maria Elvira and Carlos S ...

's film ''

Dogfight A dogfight, or dog fight, is an aerial battle between fighter aircraft conducted at close range. Dogfighting first occurred in Mexico in 1913, shortly after the invention of the airplane. Until at least 1992, it was a component in every majo ...

''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:What Have They Done To The Rain 1964 singles Folk rock songs The Searchers (band) songs Joan Baez songs Songs written by Malvina Reynolds Pye Records singles 1962 songs Esther & Abi Ofarim songs Environmental songs