With '' Election Special '' , Cooder wanted to write an album with direct lyrics and encourage urgency in listeners during the US presidential election of 2012 . He felt that the election season was " the time of decision in this country ... the most critical time in the history of the country " . When asked about concerns over " preaching to the choir " , Cooder said in an interview for the '' Los Angeles Times '' , " I thought I should have a record that says , ' This here record is for you during election time . ' Rather than be vague and poetic , let 's just call this what it is . That way I may get people 's attention . That 's the idea . " Cooder drew on music he grew up listening to such as Depression-era songs and sought to appropriate contemporary subject matter to them . When writing the album , he also touched on the Occupy movement , which he felt optimistic about , saying that " There 's a sign of something . Those people are having conversations , and the conversations become issues and the issues become talked about . Pretty soon , the rest of the world picks up on it , even the politicians . " Cooder 's displeasure with the Republican Party and its financial supporters , particularly the Koch Brothers , also inspired his songwriting . He found the party to be " insanely dangerous " to Barack Obama 's presidency and the US , and said of them in an interview for '' The Guardian '' , " in case anybody thinks Michele Bachmann or Sarah Palin are clowns because they misspeak or do n't know their history or they say silly things : that 's just an act , and it 's a useful act . Everything is a distraction from the core truths which are , first of all , that corporations have taken over the country . " He viewed that his songs for the album provide a more convenient alternative for citizens who do not research politicians , saying that " I do n't write books and give speeches but with a four-minute song you can use allegory and other means to suggest a different point of view . It 's like looking around the corner , and that 's what songs are good at sometimes . They hit you with a new thought – assuming that people will listen . " Cooder recorded most of '' Election Special '' at Drive-By Studios , the living room of engineer Martin Pradler 's house in North Hollywood . Sessions also took place at Wireland Studios in Chatsworth , California . Pradler later mixed and mastered the album at both recording locations . The album was produced entirely by Cooder . He performed most of the album himself , playing bass , guitar , and mandolin . His son Joachim contributed on drums , and session musician Arnold McCuller sung harmony vocals on the song " Take Your Hands off It " . At Drive-By Studios , Cooder recorded songs in a series of unrehearsed , single-take performances , which he felt helped him channel the songs ' respective characters more efficiently . He later said of his approach to developing the songs , " The way I think these songs can work is if you do n't ponder over it too hard , because the tunes wan na have a spontaneous-combustion effect . What I want to do is get a certain attitude in the voice , and I can only do that once . By take two , I 'm startin ' to think about it . By take three , I 'm startin ' to map it out – it 's gone . It 's spoiled , y ' see ? So I need to get through this fast . " He first recorded the song " The Wall Street Part of Town " in November 2011 . On June 7 , 2012 , the album 's release was announced for a date in August , intended to be a week before the 2012 Republican National Convention
2012 Republican National Convention
2012 Republican National Convention
Election Special