During her over two decade recording career, jazz vocalist Madeline Peyroux has established herself as a skillful interpreter of other people’s material. Her rendition of Leonard Cohen’s “Anthem” is a prime example of that ability. “Anthem” is the title track of her recently released album, and is one of two covers to appear on the album (the other is Paul Eluard’s […]
Learn more →Marty Balin, best known as co-founder and co-lead singer of Jefferson Airplane and Jefferson Starship, died on September 27, 2018 at the age of 76. Jefferson Airplane was an influential psychedelic rock band who recorded several tunes which came to be associated with the protest movement of the 1960s. Their 1969 album Volunteer consisted almost exclusively of what could be […]
Learn more →I’m not going to lie, when I first decided to create a website featuring protest music I never imagined that I would be featuring Barbra Streisand. It’s a combination of her musically not being my cup of tea and the fact that her music isn’t generally considered political. In today’s divisive political climate even musicians who were once considered apolitical […]
Learn more →80 Years of Protest Songs Part 1: 1939-1958 80 Years of Protest Songs Part 2: 1959-1978 80 Years of Protest Songs Part 3: 1979-1998 80 Years of Protest Songs Part 4: 1999-2018 Below is a Spotify Playlist for the 80 Years of Protest Music project. I selected one song for each year, between 1939-2018. Three of the songs weren’t on […]
Learn more →“At the end of the day, if you’re not writing songs to affect other people’s lives, you’re in it for the wrong reasons.” The following statement was made by BJ Barham, lead singer and chief songwriter of veteran alt-country band, American Aquarium. The band recently released their seventh full-length album, Things Change. It is the poignant mix of the personal and […]
Learn more →Shad is a veteran Kenyan born Canadian rapper who is known for his positive message. On October 26, 2018 he his scheduled to release his anticipated sixth album, A Short Story About a War. He has recently released music videos for the album’s first two singles, “The Fool Pt 1 (Get It, Got It Good)” and “The Fool Pt 3 (Frame […]
Learn more →The Rotten Hill Gang is an UK rap rock group which contains a number of eclectic musical elements. They feature a number of veteran musicians who were previously in acts such Big Audio Dynamite II (with Mick Jones of The Clash) and Transvision Vamp. They recently released the socially conscious album, Teach Peace. The opening track off of the album, “The […]
Learn more →80 Years of Protest Songs Part 1: 1939-1958 80 Years of Protest Songs Part 2: 1959-1978 80 Years of Protest Songs Part 3: 1979-1998 The aftermath of 9/11 ushered in a new chapter for protest music. The Iraq war and George W. Bush became the Vietnam & the Nixon for the 2000s. The 2010s brought in a renewed emphasis in […]
Learn more →80 Years of Protest Songs Part 1: 1939-1958 80 Years of Protest Songs Part 2: 1959-1978 80 Years of Protest Songs Part 4: 1999-2018 The 1980s had the reputation of being shallow and self-absorbed, while the music of the 90s was known more for personal angst than for political discontent. Despite this there was still a wealth of songs shedding […]
Learn more →80 Years of Protest Songs Part 1: 1939-1958 80 Years of Protest Songs Part 3: 1979-1998 80 Years of Protest Songs Part 4: 1999-2018 The 1960s ushered in what is often considered the golden age of protest tunes. Civil rights and the Vietnam War were hot button topics. Many of these issues spilled over into the 70s. Along with folk […]
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