1978 , Élan - Firefall ,
Songwriter ： Larry Burnett
Lead Vocal- Larry Burnett ,
guitar- Jock Bartley, Larry Burnett ,
bass- Mark Andes ,
keyboard- David Muse ,
drums- Michael Clarke ,🥁
Firefall are often associated with the warm melodies, rich harmonies, and easygoing sound of American country rock. But “Sharpshootin' At The Senator,” the closing track of their 1978 album Élan, presents a very different side of the band.
Rather than ending the album on a gentle or reflective note, the song leaves the listener with a burst of hard-rock energy and an unsettling subject. It is one of the more unusual moments in Firefall's catalog, revealing a harder edge beneath the band's familiar melodic sound. 🎸
🎵 Firefall and the Album Élan
Formed in Colorado, Firefall became part of the country-rock movement that took shape in the United States during the 1970s. Their music brought together the warmth of acoustic guitars, accessible melodies, vocal harmonies, and the drive of rock.
The band was capable of moving comfortably between laid-back country-rock arrangements and more forceful electric performances. Their third album, Élan, released in 1978, offers a good example of that range.
The album closes with “Sharpshootin' At The Senator,” a song written and sung by founding member Larry Burnett. The lineup features Jock Bartley and Larry Burnett on guitars, Mark Andes on bass, Michael Clarke on drums, and David Muse on keyboards.
The arrangement has a noticeably harder rock feel than many of Firefall's better-known songs. It gives the album a striking final chapter, one that leaves a much more intense impression than a conventional country-rock closer. 🎹
🎤 Larry Burnett's Unusual Subject
The subject of the song is a person who considers assassinating a political figure.
The title itself makes the theme unmistakable. “Sharpshootin' At The Senator” is not a conventional love song or a lighthearted piece of country-rock storytelling. It deals with a deeply disturbing state of mind.
In an interview, Larry Burnett explained that he was trying to imagine and observe the thinking of someone who would become willing to assassinate a politician. He had not personally witnessed such a person; the song grew out of his attempt to imagine how someone could reach that point.
Burnett described a person who becomes deeply unhappy with life and begins blaming outside forces for personal problems. In this imagined mindset, the government becomes a convenient target. The individual convinces himself that his family's difficulties and his own frustrations are the result of a politician's failure to represent him.
That is the psychological starting point of the song.
What makes the subject particularly unsettling is the way personal disappointment turns into an extreme form of blame. Instead of examining the circumstances of his own life, the imagined character places responsibility entirely on someone else.
The song does not need to endorse that thinking to make it compelling. Its subject is the danger of a mind consumed by resentment and political frustration. ⚖️
📰 Distrust, Frustration, and the Lyrics
The lyrics refer to people listening to the government, questioning what they hear, and discussing political issues while trying to protect the things they value.
There is a sense of public distrust running through the song. People are looking at the government with suspicion, examining evidence, and talking about the direction of society.
But the focus gradually becomes more disturbing than ordinary political disagreement.
The imagined individual turns his frustration into an obsession with a particular political figure. The repeated chorus reinforces the central idea, creating a sense of fixation. A thought that might once have been only an expression of anger becomes something increasingly rigid and dangerous.
The song also suggests how easily people can be influenced by the opinions and frustrations circulating around them. Rather than forming their own balanced understanding, they may absorb the anger of others and allow it to shape their own thinking.
It is worth remembering that Burnett described the song as an imaginative exploration, not a report about a specific person or event. Its power comes from the psychological situation he created, rather than from any one political reference.
🔥 A Hard-Rocking Album Closer
Musically, “Sharpshootin' At The Senator” stands apart from the softer side of Firefall.
Jock Bartley and Larry Burnett's guitars provide much of the song's drive, while Mark Andes on bass and Michael Clarke on drums give it a firm, energetic foundation. David Muse's keyboards add another layer to the arrangement.
Larry Burnett's lead vocal suits the material particularly well. Rather than leaning into the smooth, relaxed delivery often associated with country rock, he gives the performance a more urgent and forceful character.
Burnett later recalled that the band enjoyed playing the song live. Audiences responded enthusiastically, and the musicians themselves loved performing it. He described it as an intense piece with a strong hard-rock feel.
That contrast is interesting: the subject is dark and unsettling, but the performance has the excitement and immediacy of a band enjoying the power of a full-blooded rock song.
As the final track on Élan, it also changes the way the album ends. Instead of fading away into a peaceful country-rock atmosphere, Firefall leave the listener with a sharp burst of energy. 🎸
📀 The Story Behind Its Delayed Release
The history of “Sharpshootin' At The Senator” is almost as unusual as the song itself.
Larry Burnett originally wrote it for Firefall's third album, Élan, in 1978. However, Atlantic Records did not include it on the original release. For years, the song remained unreleased.
Burnett initially assumed that the record company had rejected it because of its sensitive subject matter. A song about the imagined assassination of a senator was clearly not an easy fit for a commercial album.
But he later learned that the story behind the decision was rather different.
After hearing the song, Burnett's mother was deeply upset by its content. Concerned about how it might be received and how it could reflect on her son, she wrote directly to Atlantic Records chairman Ahmet Ertegun, asking him not to release it.
Ertegun agreed to her request.
Burnett did not learn about his mother's letter until years later. The song finally became available in 1995, when it was included as a bonus track on the CD edition of Élan. 📀
It is an extraordinary story: a song written for an album in 1978, held back for years, and eventually released with a family story behind its absence that the songwriter himself had not initially known.
🌄 Another Side of Firefall
“Sharpshootin' At The Senator” may not be the first song that comes to mind when thinking of Firefall. The band's reputation is more closely associated with melodic country rock, warm harmonies, and relaxed musical storytelling.
Yet this track reveals another dimension of their sound.
Larry Burnett took a difficult subject — the mindset of someone whose personal frustrations turn into extreme political resentment — and placed it inside a powerful rock arrangement. The result is a song that is both musically energetic and thematically unsettling.
That combination is what makes it stand out.
As the closing track of Élan, it offers a reminder that Firefall were capable of more than the easygoing country-rock sound for which they are best remembered. Beneath the melodies and harmonies was a band willing to explore a harder, more confrontational musical territory.
“Sharpshootin' At The Senator” is an unusual and memorable final track, revealing a darker, harder-rocking side of Firefall. 🎶
https://toshiyu03.blog/let-me-have-my-say-%f0%9f%8e%b5-the-music-memories-corner/
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