Indeed, folk and roots music surged in popularity in 2008, as protest singers and topical songs aligned with the issues most pressing to people as they considered who would get to lead the U.S. out of economic recession, wars, environmental issues, and other woes. Sheryl Crow's largely topical Detours album shook things up at the beginning of the year. As the primaries progressed, numerous artists wrote songs in support of Barack Obama.
When the economy took a downturn, several artists started digging up songs from the Great Depression, and we took a look at recession songs.
