Singer-songwriter Dan Bern. (Photo by Todd Adamson.)As Dan Bern explains it, when someone has a story to tell in Nashville, they write a nice little song that manages to tie everything together in two and a half minutes with a melody to boot. But in L.A., where Bern hangs his hat these days, when someone has a story, they write a movie. Movies cost a lot of dough, though — something most singer-songwriters don’t have lying around.
Instead, Bern penned the irreverent epic, “Osama in Obamaland,” which tells the story of bin Laden getting arrested, escaping prison mid-trial and fleeing to the Bush family ranch, eventually learning to blend into American society.
In Bern’s mind, it’s a fully fleshed out movie. Of the dozens of singer-songwriters playing D.C. in any given week, few can pull of a feat quite like this. Indeed, it’s hard to imagine even a Hollywood movie matching the song’s twisted humor, subtle poking, and rich irony. It’s a song that deserves to be heard, a song whose humor on record or lyric sheet simply can’t replicate the drama of the hilarious narrative unfolding before your eyes (and ears).
Luckily, the song had a bigger than usual audience on Thursday night at the Birchmere, which was nearly full for a double bill with Todd Snider. The majority of audience members no doubt woke up the next morning and started singing the refrain while they read the morning paper — though I do wonder how White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel, in attendance and glued to his Blackberry at every spare moment, felt about it.
