The Protest movement hit its musical peak with the work of Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie, Ramblin' Jack Elliot, Josh White and many others, which in turn spawned the younger fresh faced movement of the Greenwich Village folk scene and the songs of Phil Ochs, Fred Neil, Joan Baez and of course, Bob Dylan.
The late 70’s brought a burst of socio-political activity in the music scene courtesy of the punk and post punk movement, but apart from a few notable exceptions it faded out as the 80’s wore on and turned into the 90’s and the naughties.
The 50’s, 60’s and 70’s were troubled times but today we have a world that is equally troubled - reeling from economic meltdown, natural disasters fuelled by man-made global warming and wars continuing to rage in the Middle East with the continuous loss of innocent life. But very few musicians and songwriters these days seem to be reflecting our modern yet difficult times.
It is sixteen years since Edwyn Collins wrote his line about the lack of protest songs. Fast forward to 2010 and now there is also a lack of protest singers.
With the release of his new album, 'I Didn’t Raise My Boy To Be A Soldier' Michael Weston King is aiming to kick start a new wave of singers and songwriters who will comment on and reflect what is going on around us. The album consists entirely of protest songs.
A mixture of brand new songs, along with his interpretation and reworking of some old ones, not just from the 1960's but some dating back as far as the 1900's. All of these songs have one thing in common, they are as relevant now as when they were first written.
The track list reads:
In Time (Michael Weston King)
I Didn't Raise My Boy To Be A Soldier (words, from 1915, by Alfred Bryan, music by MWK)
Life Is Fine (words by Langston Hughes, music by MWK)
Hey Ma, I’m Coming Home (Michael Weston King)
Parish of Rope (Oliver Lomax / Paul Hesketh)
Cops Of The World (Phil Ochs )
Sounds of Our Time (Jim Ford / Bobby Womack)
High Price Blues (Brownie McGhee)
Is There Anybody Here? (Phil Ochs)
In Spain The Dogs Are Too Tired To Bite You ( Michael Weston King)
I Pity The Poor Immigrant (Bob Dylan)
Simple Song Of Freedom (Bobby Darin )
Michael will be taking these songs out on the road, touring Europe and N. America throughout 2010 & 2011, including a host of festival appearances, which will also include talks and workshops on the history and relevance of the protest movement.
For more information please contact Allie Fox at Foxy Music:
01750-720538
07791-765956
afox@vixenrecords.com |
