GoodTimeTonight is a blog about Fiddles and Banjos and Guitars and Folk and Roots music and Country and the Blues and Americana and Chicago and the midwest and America.
Eli Smith over at the Down Home Radio Show blog posted a great article on Music for Democracy. It is focused most broadly, touching on many corners of influential and protest music. Eli sums up the what and why on political music, why it has the power to resonate, even long after the movements themselves have died down.
Music is often the best remembered and loved part of social/political struggles through out history, but the most important element of political music is the music, which is why we care in the first place.
admin | Uncategorized | Tuesday, September 30th, 2008
Pete Seeger’s new album, “Pete Seeger at 89″, 32 tracks of music and talk, is released today. I got a chance to watch Pete on David Letterman last night, he performed ‘Take it from Dr. King’, a apropos selection and perhaps a bit calculated on Dave and Pete’s part given the snub by McCain on the show this week. I haven’t had a chance to pickup the album yet, but I will swing by the store tonight. For now, here’s the NY Times blurb:
He encourages people to open their hearts and genuinely feel that they are part of something bigger then themselves…they become part of a community of people who are all doing the same thing at the same time
Though these things have a tendancy to end up praising Seeger rather than reviewing the disc. Perhaps, that too, is apropos.
Here’s pete playing that song from last year’s American Masters on PBS. He also talks about being on the Playboy show, one of the very few national outlets that would let him perform during the hollywood blacklist.
If you’re around the Chicago this weekend you may want to check out the 8th Annual County Fair at the Garfield Park Conservatory. My friend who works at the Conservatory helped organize this event and swears it will be great. There are folk music type activities happening all day including a Jugband workshop and concert starting at 11am, a folk jam / workshop at 1:00 pm and Mark Dvorak will be playing at 2pm. Bring you’re instruments and Come on out.
Garfield Park Conservatory’s County Fair is an annual event celebrating both the annual harvest and healthy communities. It’s family-oriented, with programs and activities for all ages. Set in an historic urban setting on Chicago’s West Side, visitors to the fair will discover agricultural traditions, see the best in urban gardening, and enjoy horticultural exhibits and demonstrations. Children’s activities, petting zoo and harvest competitions highlight the connections between plants, food and American heritage. Food and live music make this a unique event for the entire family.
The Conservatory is located at 300 N Central Park Ave and the fair runs from 11 am to 5pm, Saturday September 20th. It’s Free!
Unfortunately It came to my attention I missed the Pullman Hobo Fest this last weekend. Stories and songs of the Hobo life. In a town known for railroad cars. All that now remains are memories and the flickr links. Much like the city of Pullman Illinois itself, a memory. Labor and Folk music have always gone hand in hand in America and in Pullman it is no different. I think Pullman is interesting for it’s labor history. Site of a great railroad strike, Pullman was a company town, everything in it was owned and operated by George Pullman. The town was basically in existance to support the Pullman factory making Pullman Sleeping cars for trains. Pullman ran the town like a fudal lord, controling everything from the papers to the schools. When he cut wages in 1824 (thanks wikipedia) the railway unions went on strike. Eugene Debs and his American Railway Union effectively ran the strike. The strike was eventually broken contraversally by the national guard and Eugene Debs was charged with blocking the mail trains. (His arrest for particaption in the strike lead to his inprisonment in Woodstock IL and his first exposure to what would become American Socalism. ) Eventually the town of Pullman was annexed by the city of chicago. There is some nice old archetecture in the city so go check it out if you get a chance. And listen to some Old Hobo Songs on the way.
Pete Seeger’s new album, “Pete Seeger at 89″, 32 tracks of music and talk, is released today. I got a chance to watch Pete on 