I first discovered Franti after being impressed by his powerful, insightful, and hard-hitting lyrics in the song Light Up Ya Lighter off the Body of War soundtrack. I urge you to listen to the album, watch the film, and read more at the website.

It was lyrics like…

The war for oil is a war for the beast
the War on terror is a war on peace
Telling you they’re gona protect you
Telling you that they support the troops and
Don’t let ‘em fool you with their milk and honey
No, they only want your money
One step forward and 2 step back
One step forward and 2 step back
Why do veterans get no respect
PTSD and a broken back
Take a look at where you money’s gone (seen)
Take a look at what they spent it on
No excuses, no illusions
Light up your lighter, bring ‘em home

…that first attracted me to Franti. Here was someone singing a vital social studies lesson in a feel good anthem. After some research, I found myself awash in the many great projects that make up Franti orbit. First there was the album Yell Fire that featured Light Up Ya Lighter and thirteen other hard hitting lessons. Yell Fire was the soundtrack to the film that Franti had produced himself: I Know I Am Not Alone, is a low budget documentary that follows Franti and his guitar into the streets of Baghdad and the Israeli/Palestinian territories. The film is a perfectly poignant glimpse into the realities of war zones and the power of the human spirit and music to survive despite the worst of out human traits. This is a much watch film for any music lover interested in the peace movement.

The more I waded through Franti’s work, the more I realized what a truly important artist he is. In addition to his rebellious, intelligent, sociological stance on a broad range of topics such as war, racism, and poverty, Franti likes to have a good time. He is a loving, peaceful man determined to unite people through his music. He focuses on what humanity has in common, not on what separates us.

His latest album All Rebel Rockers is a perfect blend of feel good summer jams, tender pleas for peace, as well as vintage Franti calls to rebellion. I think I can best describe this multifaceted artist best by mentioning that my two-year old daughter asks for his songs by name. His blend of rock, reggae, and hip-hop strike a chord that is innate in the human spirit. He makes us feel good, dance, all the while educating the listener to the state of the world.

I have embedded a video from the Yell Fire album, but you can find many more of his videos on his youtube channel FrantiTV and listen to more of his song on our ning. While he has several albums, I would recommend starting with Yell Fire and All Rebel Rockers.

In addition to being a musician, film-maker, children’s book writer, Franti also runs an annual music festival in San Francisco called Power to the Peaceful. in addition to the festival this year, he has orchestrated a video contest. I would love for members of IntrepidClassroom to get involved and submit a few videos. Don’t worry about winning the prizes. It is not important whether you will be able to attend the show or not, what is important is for you to think about his intentions and to create some truly powerful videos. I think this contest is a perfect match for us here at IntrepidClassroom and a great way to kick off the year. We have been given clear instructions and a quickly approaching deadline. So waste no more time. Read the instructions and get started. I will leave you with a feel good jam to get you motivated.

Here are the instructions:

CALL FOR ENTRIES:
Power to the Peaceful Online Film Festival 08

WHAT EMPOWERS YOU TO BE PEACEFUL?
WHAT INSPIRES YOU TO CREATE CHANGE?
WHAT DOES PEACE MEAN TO YOU?

Got something to say?
Enter a short film, animation, music video, web works or just film yourself expressing how you feel. Winners will be announced on September 6 2008 at this year’s Power to the Peaceful Festival and featured on our website on FrantiV for the whole world to see!
Watch the entries as they come in and comment!

http://www.youtube.com/pttpfilmfest

SUBMISSION DEADLINE:
September 3, 2008

WINNERS WILL RECEIVE:
2 Backstage VIP passes to PTTP Festival*
2 After Party VIP passes*
10th Anniversary PTTP T Shirt
Signed PTTP poster*

Winners residing outside the country or state of California will receive 2 tickets/backstage passes for a headline MFSH show (festivals not included) in the city nearest you

HOW TO SUBMIT:
Quicktime file under 100 mgs
Length not to exceed 5 minutes

UPLOAD INSTRUCTIONS

MAKING VIDEOS
You’ll need to have a device that can capture digital movies—this could be a camcorder, digital camera, or even your cell phone! You copy the movies to your computer, and then you can either upload them as-is or edit them with software such as iMovie or Windows Movie Maker to add titles and special effects.

Acceptable video file formats include .WMV, .AVI, .MOV, and .MPG transferred from most digital cameras, camcorders, and cell phones.

UPLOAD INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Go to www.yousendit.com

2. Login as
user: carla@powertothepeaceful.org
password: peace

3. To: carla@powertothepeaceful.org
Subject: PTTP ONLINE FESTIVAL
Enter Message: YOUR NAME AND CITY HERE + brief description
Select a file: Click ‘browse’ and choose your file

4. Click ‘Send it’

QUESTIONS?
carla@powertothepeaceful.org
aenoch@aenoch.com

Good luck and let’s see what you can come up with. Please also post your videos on our wiki page.

Now did you want to see me broken,
bowed head and lowered eyes,
shoulders fallen down like teardrops,
weakened by my soulful cries.
Does my confidence upset you?
Don’t you take it awful hard cause I walk,
like I’ve got a diamond mine breakin’ up in my front yard.

So you may shoot me with your words,
you may cut me with your eyes,
and I’ll rise – I’ll rise – I’ll rise – rise – rise.
Out of the shacks of history’s shame,
up from a past rooted in pain,
and I’ll rise – I’ll rise – I’ll rise – rise – rise

I remember the day I first heard Ben Harper. It was sometime in the early nineties. I was young and falling in and out of love. I was on a porch in San Francisco, and the day before I had told my girlfriend at the time that I just wanted to be friends. She was due to come and talk. I wasn’t sure about what or why, but I had agreed. The sun was getting ready to set, and the fog waited in the Richmond to be unleashed.

I share this story with you, because as writers I think it is important to remember that all of our writing no matter how structured it may appear is anchored in real life experiences, and connecting to those memories is one of the most important aspects of writing. Back to the story…

She arrived. Broken. Smiling. I offered her something to drink. We sat on the porch. She had been crying. I have some songs to play for you she said. I have a new favorite artist she said. You will love him she said. I hated that she knew me so well. It made it harder to make the break. Before I knew it, I was heairng the basic three-chord progression of the song Walk Away by Ben Harper. You can hear the song on the Ning.

The words floated from the speakers and disappeared over the edge of the porch:

Oh no- here comes that sun again.
And (that) means another day without you my friend.
And it hurts me to look into the mirror at myself.
And it hurts even more to have to be with somebody else.

And it’s so hard to do and so easy to say.
But sometimes – sometimes,
you just have to walk away – walk away.

The connection I made to that song on that late afternoon was so strong that even as I type these words years later, I can feel the same tears welling up in my eyes. We sat listening to the entire album- Welcome To The Cruel World. The girl and I remained friends. I was just invited to her wedding this August. But it was the music that helped solidify that day in my memory.

My admiration and love of Ben Harper was born that day years ago, but his music has been a constant source of inspiration and comfort to me throughout the years. We chose his song Forever as our wedding song, and whenever I am in need of honest, truthful, soulful, spiritual music it is to Harper I turn. He is a true artist in the sense that he is more than a musician. He is an activist, a father, and a beautiful human being. These characteristics shine through the words of his song and can be seen in his amazing live performances. I have been lucky enough to see Harper live on several occasions and each show is a carnival of soul, blues, rock and roll, and folk. He blends his political anthems with a tender grace reserved for vespers and lullabies.

I am sharing Ben Harper with this class because I want to show that musicians and artists need not be labeled as merely political. Harper is not a political artist; he is simply a human being aware of the state of the world; he is a man in touch with his spiritual need to bring peace to those he touches with his art. Whether through love or protest songs, he is a man of action and style.

He may not be on top forty lists, but Harper is a spokesman for members of a generation looking for something more than blind consumerism and greed. He stands for peace, love, and the assembling of the human family. I encourage readers of this blog to explore his website and more importantly listen to his music. Watch him on Youtube or at his site see how his work connects with you.

Where to start? His website allows you to stream many of his songs. His album Fight For Your Mind is a great place to start. As always there is his wikipedia page. Here are some song titles to explore:

Better Way
With My Own Two Hands
Oppression
Excuse Me Mr.
Black Rain

Let me know what you think! Please upload your favorites on your Ning pages! Write a post about how his music affects you.

Take your face out of your hands
And clear your eyes
You have a right to your dreams
And don’t be denied

I believe in a better way

I liked the way Julia posted her thoughts on her own blog. That way you can store your writing for yourself and your other readers as well, but as I mentioned to her in her comments, please leave a link in the comments section here, lettings us know you did so. You can also post your thoughts on the Ning. (If you are not familiar with Nings please read the tab at the top of this page explaining what they are and how they work.)

Okay let’s get to the music:

Soojin mentioned Guns and Roses, which I had never thought about as political, but I do remember being in high school and listening to Civil War and thinking that it was cool that a band like G n’R would sing about peace.

He also talked about the song “The Chronicles of Life and Death” by Good Charlotte. See comments for more on that and an album review by a band called Sonata Arctica. Thank you Soo Jin for your contribution.

Hannah mentioned the Dylan Classic- Mr. Tambourine Man. She mentioned the younger generation’s obsession with music.

It speaks to the social state of the world. Perhaps there’s more to the song as well, but it’s late and my brain is beginning to shut down.

This “more” to the song is what I would like to start discussing, maybe not this song in particular, but any song that is conveying a message.

She talked about the social state of youth!

Youth tend to be idealistic. We soak up what we read and it influences our thoughts for a better world. Youth always knows best!

I agree. There is something that happens in most adults that kills their idealism, but not in all of us. There many adults doing some amazing work. I guess the question is how do we keep that fire alive for as long as we can?

Teach Your Children, Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young was a nice mention as well. She goes on to say,

The music I listen to isn’t directly political. I grew up on world music, specifically, Putumayo. It’s a record label, I think, that releases world music. I listened to a lot of African and Latin songs, and I think that really affected my view of the world. I heard other cultures, so I grew up respecting them and wanting to learn about them. The music I listened to made me more of a global citizen from the start. Politically, it affects my foreign policy views, because I don’t think that the US should be going around imposing on the rest of the world. We’re not at all above the rest of the world, which some people think. Other cultures and ways of life are equal and have just as much value as our own. It may sound obvious, but some people don’t think like that.

Very well said! The Putumayo series is great. They have a series of CDs with lullabies and children’s songs, but 22-month-old daughter loves them too.

Then she left this great recording of her singing the song Time Are A Changin. Well done. In the spirit of camaraderie here is my version of the song. I sang this at my last school in front of a huge audience. It was my first time performing. Unfortunately, I don’t have video of that, but here is a simple Garagband recording. Not really in key, but you get the point…just sing:

Leila shared some Urdu or Hindi music with us. She left us this video to check out.

Aron brought up No More Sorrow, Linkin Park. He mentioned that he was nervous about sharing this song because,

There has been a lot of ridicule for America and it’s decision to enter the Iraq war.

I think it is important to talk about these types of things. All in all, a great start. I will continue to share more music with you, I think that will be a common thread here at Intrepid Classroom. Okay. Time to get set up in the Ning. I think we can share more resources there more easily.

I don’t believe in lectures. I ignored them as a student, and I try to refrain from using them as a teacher. I believe in stories and conversations. I believe in discussions and an exchange of ideas. I will share a story with you here today, one that I hope you learn something from. I will give you some links, show you some videos, and then I will wait for you to respond.

Music, for as long as I can remember, has been my best teacher. My first memories of school are singing Simon and Garfunkel songs with Mrs. Marks my first grade teacher. At home it was the same, as soon as dinner was over, my family did not drone away in front of a TV. No my dad would blast Pink Floyd as I skirted around the living room, eventually begging to stay awake longer. My pleas ignored, I would lay in bed listening to the thumping sounds through the walls.

The first musician that I remember by name is Bob Dylan. I want to share with you my thoughts on Dylan, as musician, poet, social activist, revolutionary, and teacher.

I was in the third grade when I began to actually understand the words he was singing. It was at that moment, at the age of eight that my social consciousness was awakened. Lyrics like…

Yes, ‘n’ how many times must the cannon balls fly
Before they’re forever banned?

Yes, ‘n’ how many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry?
Yes, ‘n’ how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died?

Yes, ‘n’ how many years can some people exist
Before they’re allowed to be free?
Yes, ‘n’ how many times can a man turn his head,
Pretending he just doesn’t see?

…made prefect sense to me as a child, maybe even more so than they do now as an adult. But it wasn’t until I was in the eighth grade that I began to study Dylan. I was a shy, skinny, awkward pre-teen without too many friends. After realizing that the popular kids were not the ones I wanted to be involved with, I drew within myself and began trying to figure out what the world was all about and how I would play a part in it. Twenty years later, I am no closer to figuring it out, but Dylan is still there as my guide.

My dad took me to Berkeley for a proper musical education. “You have to have this, “ he would say as he stacked the records on my spindly arms: Led Zeppelin, The Doors, Jimi Hendrix, Simon and Garfunkel, and of course Dylan. We bought an old record player that same day, and as soon as I got home I locked myself in my room and began my education.

The record jackets were better than any textbook, and the lyric sheets taught me more than any teacher I had in school. I gravitated toward Dylan because his songs told stories of people who were ot happy with their fate in society. As a fellow outcast and underdog, I related to the stories of union workers, African Americans, and peace activist. Coupled with the weekly political discussions my dad had with his friends at our house, Dylan’s music taught me that the world was not perfect and that I not only could, but should do something about it.

I learned more about American history from The Times are a Changin album, than I learned my entire twelve years in school. Songs like With God On Our Side, awakened in me a sense of agitation and thirst for knowledge, that I have yet to lose. He spoke negatively about wars I had been taught to revere; he questioned the class hierarchy I was being taught to worship in school. According to Dylan poor peopel had every right to a piece of the pie as the rich.

Years later as a grown man and teacher, I am amazed at the depth of my understating. I think that young people should be given more credit for understanding complex social issues and be given a chance to offer their thoughts. I would have loved to walk into my eighth grade history class and discuss the lyrics:

So now as I’m leavin’
I’m weary as Hell
The confusion I’m feelin’
Ain’t no tongue can tell
The words fill my head

But instead we were taught some gibberish about the civil war and how valiant president Lincoln was. The Times are A Changin is the epitome of Dylan’s distinct talent for being the voice of the voiceless. From the poor industrial workers, to soldiers, to civil rights workers, to the rural poor, Dylan weaves lesson after lesson.

I suggest spending some time exploring the lyrics and listening to his work. With the advent of the Internet you can do more research on names like Hattie Caroll, or Medger Evers.

I still remember sitting in my room, singing along to the title track:

Come mothers and fathers
Throughout the land
And don’t criticize
What you can’t understand
Your sons and your daughters
Are beyond your command
Your old road is
Rapidly agin’.
Please get out of the new one
If you can’t lend your hand
For the times they are a-changin’.

The Free Wheelin Bob Dylan is another must have for any Dylan Scholar. Besides Blowin in the Wind which I already mentioned, songs like Master of War are still anti-war anthems, determined to show the hypocrisy of war-mongers.

With lyircs like…

How much do I know
To talk out of turn
You might say that I’m young
You might say I’m unlearned
But there’s one thing I know
Though I’m younger than you
Even Jesus would never
Forgive what you do

…Dylan was the master of tying into teen angst and promoting the power of youth. With over thirty albums, I could write an entire book on his songs and many people have, but I recommend that you spend some time on his website, explore the lyrics, listen to his songs and do some reflecting. Unfortunately, you live in a time of instant downloads, so you cannot enjoy the thrill of watching a record spin and crackle as you read the words, but you do have the advantage of learning more and more about the artist and his work.

In closing homework:

• Find one song or lyric that you feel is still relevant to the state of the world today.
• Paste the lyric into the comment box and write a paragraph about your thoughts as a whole.
• Record and share a Dylan song on Youtube and/or your blog.
• Share some musicians that have had a profound affect on you politically.