Anyone who tries to claim "Blue Tail Fly" is subversive or progressive is missing the point. The subject of the song is a slave who becomes lazy after his master dies, allowing gimcrack (poor quality) corn to grow and not caring. This plays into all sorts of 'Sambo' stereotypes of lazy slaves. The slave never expresses a desire to see his master die-- he is just too incompetent to protect him from a little fly. This song, fun as it may be, has no progressive political quality to it.