2 + 2 = ? chords by The Bob Seger System

"2 + 2 = ?" is a single from The Bob Seger System, released in January 1968, on Capitol Records. Written by Seger, it is an anti-Vietnam War song. Framed around a central, Animals-esque hard riff driven by bass guitar, bass drum, and a fuzz guitar line, "2 + 2 = ?" is an explicit protest against the United States' role in the Vietnam War and the drafting of young men to serve in it who will end up "buried in the mud, off in foreign jungle land." It also captures the general generational divide of the time: And you stand and call me 'upstart' ... Ask, what answer can I find? I ain't saying I'm a genius; Two plus two is on my mind – Two plus two is on my mind. Allmusic writes that "2 + 2" is "a frightening, visceral song that stands among the best anti-Vietnam protests." The recorded song had a dead stop, or sudden cut to silence, placed near the end. However, on the 45 version, there is a guitar chord added, not because the song needed it, according to segerfile.com, but because "radio stations fear dead air." Also according to segerfile, it isn't quite dead, because if you listen closely, someone comes in to break the silence a bit early. It was Seger's first release with Capitol and under the Bob Seger System name. But as with much of Seger's early efforts up to that point, the single was a hit in his native Detroit but went unnoticed almost everywhere else in the US. However, in Canada, it was actually a minor chart hit, peaking at #79. The song was subsequently included on Seger's April 1969 album Ramblin' Gamblin' Man. There, any concessions for radio were removed. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.