Shona Laing was inspired to write this song after watching Edward Kennedy on television. It was first released as a single in 1985 under the title “Not A Kennedy“, but received very little airplay. It was remixed and released again in 1987, this time peaking at number two on the NZ charts.
Shona Laing first came to prominence in 1973 when, at the age of sixteen, she won TVNZ’s talent show New Faces with her own composition “1905“.
I found this song hauntingly beautiful the first time I heard it, and still do – it remains in my head for days after each time I hear it. Enjoy!
(I'm Glad) I'm Not A Kennedy Living on through politics Body-guarded, heart in bits A blue-eyed honesty Indigo injury The family tree is felled Bereavement worn so well Giving up on certainty Wilderness society Wearing the fame like a loaded gun Tied up with a rosary Ooh, I'm glad I'm not a Kennedy Imagine being a Kennedy Rule without remedy To watch your family die The world loves a sacrifice Prophets longing for the three Honoring the tragedy They hunger for the crime The privilege to take a life Wearing the fame like a loaded gun Tied up with a rosary Ooh, I'm glad I'm not a Kennedy Glad I'm not a Kennedy [JFK] And is not peace basically A matter of human rights? The right to live out our lives Without fear of devastation? The right to breathe air As nature provided it? The right of future generations To a healthy existence? Let us, if we can step back from The shadows of war and seek out The way of peace I love the look in your eyes I can see your soul sometimes, and we laugh When we try too hard we stop and start Oh, imagine being a Kennedy I'm glad I'm not a Kennedy Wearing the fame like a loaded gun Tied up with a rosary I'm glad I'm not a Kennedy Imagine being a Kennedy Ooh, I'm glad I'm not a Kennedy [JFK] The cost of freedom is always high Yet one path we shall never choose That is the path of surrender or submission When a man's way please the lord The scriptures tell us "He maketh even his enemies To be at peace with him" We will not prematurely or unnecessarily Risk the course of worldwide nuclear war In which even the fruits of victory Would be ashes in our mouths Ashes in our mouths Ashes in our mouths Ashes in our mouths
Another Spectrum 
26 Sep, 2022 at 10:01 am
I like that song. Once my wife and I were going to the grocery and Ted Kennedy pulled into the lot, hopped out of his car, hopped in another car with a young lady and drove away. Hmmm.
26 Sep, 2022 at 11:15 am
I’m no going to speculate what his action might have been other than him hopping into anther car with another person. The Kennedy clan are no different from other groups, and even the noblest of them have their flaws. However the public seem to expect them to be above the morals of ordinary people – perhaps as is expected of royalty.
26 Sep, 2022 at 11:19 am
I guess that’s another reason not to want be a Kennedy. People like me are judging their every move.
26 Sep, 2022 at 11:53 am
I most certainly would not want to be a Kennedy and that is but one of the reasons 😊
It seems its one of the reasons why Shona Laing was motivated to write the song in the first place. After watching a TV article that featured Edward Kennedy, she made the comment “I’m glad I’m not a Kennedy” to her partner, and as they say, the rest is history.
27 Sep, 2022 at 4:14 pm
After all these years, with another anniversary of JFK’s death approaching, and listening to this song for the first time, it was haunting.