Yarrow writes: "People have been wondering what folksinger/activists, some
of them septuagenarians like Noel Paul Stookey and me, might be doing in the
face of the current cataclysmic challenges to our democracy and our nation.
The answer is simple: we are going to keep on keeping on."
Peter Yarrow and Noel Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul and Mary. (photo: Peter
Yarrow)
Impeachable: A New Kind of Protest Song
By Peter Yarrow, Reader Supported News
26 February 17
'Impeachable' is a new twist on the kinds of songs that Peter Paul and Mary
were singing that helped to mobilize Americans.
People have been wondering what folksinger/activists, some of them
septuagenarians like Noel Paul Stookey and me, might be doing in the face of
the current cataclysmic challenges to our democracy and our nation.
The answer is simple: we are going to keep on keeping on. We inherited a
legacy from Woody, Pete Seeger and the Weavers and many others who inspired
us. They never quit, never stopped and never stopped advocating. Doing so is
"in our blood" and it's a great gift to both Noel and me, as it would be to
Mary - were she still to be with us. She would join, even (or maybe
especially) at our advanced age, the current advocacies that "hammer out a
warning", "ring out danger" and "sing about the love between our brothers
and our sisters". No, we've not "gone away". We, and others who also come
from the folk music/activist tradition, are solidly committed to using our
music to generate community and consensus at our concerts and at gatherings
and demonstrations to confront the most dangerous of challenges now
threatening our country.
I have written, and currently perform, two songs that have come out of the
presidential campaign and its results, one being The Children Are Listening
and the other being, Lift Us Up. I am grateful that, in a limited context
(for sure) both of these songs have become rallying points for efforts to
assert what is good in ourselves and what is reprehensible and frightening
in the face of the recent election.
By far the most important effort yet, by either Noel Paul or me - in terms
of its reach and, in my opinion, its brilliance - is Impeachable, a parody
Noel wrote of the song Unforgettable, which was a huge hit by Nat King Cole
from the early 1950s. Impeachable was just released on the internet and
went viral with, currently, over 800,000 hits. (Please share this link with
your buddies and help us spread the message.)
Impeachable is an example of Noel's extraordinary ability to write a
super-funny, very surprising yet also, highly nuanced, lyric. He is, and has
always been, an amazing songwriter. In its first public performance last
weekend Impeachable brought the audience at our concert in Thousand Oaks, CA
to its feet with a prolonged standing ovation. There were screeches of
delight the likes of which I have never before heard at a Peter Paul and
Mary concert.
Noel has clearly struck a hugely resonant chord amongst those who heard the
hammer strokes warning of a grave danger to our nation, our democracy and,
in fact, the whole earth.
Impeachable is a new twist on the kinds of songs that Peter Paul and Mary
were singing that helped to mobilize Americans at the time of the Civil
Rights Movement and the Anti-Vietnam War Movement. Blowing In the Wind and
If I Had a Hammer written by Bob Dylan and Pete Seeger & Lee Hays,
respectively, were anthems that brought folks together in ways that let them
recognize, in very personal ways, their collective strength as well as
reassert a commonly held ethical/political perspective. Such was also the
case with Where Have All the Flowers Gone and a myriad of other songs. With
their repetition at rallies, marches and on the radio, these songs inspired
many newcomers to the world of activism who asserted to us that our music,
and that of our fellow folk musicians, became the "sound track of their
political awakening". (In our view, this is one of the greatest compliments
we ever received.)
Today, of course, the dominant transmission of such advocacies comes through
social media, though in-person efforts such as The Women's March on
Washington, and the demonstrations at Standing Rock that electrified the
nation are still, I believe, the most powerful tools for social/political
mobilization.
Also, there is another new aspect to a musician's, or an actor's, or any
artist's efforts in the realm of advocacy. In this time, humor, as offered
by the likes of John Oliver, the gifted cast and guests, such as the amazing
Alec Baldwin, on Saturday Night Live, Samantha Bee, Melissa McCarthy,
Stephen Colbert and Trevor Noah, to name just a few, has played a huge role
in inspiring and activating the spirit of our nation. It cuts through the
extreme "noise" in tweets, frightening pronouncement and actions emanating
from the current administration,
Please take heart my friends. From my travels, I have found that there has
been a huge call to action heeded, even (and emphatically) in my and Noel's
elder demographic. Be assured that a large body of former artist-activists
is mobilizing now with their songs, their poetry, their heart-rending
videos, their humor and their visual work on signs and memes that spread
across the internet with ever more amazing directness, humor, and
determination. As long as this continues to build, we're walking together
and gaining strength. Let's carry it on, my friends.
In solidarity and love,
Peter
Impeachable
By Noel
Paul Stookey
Impeachable, that's what you are.
Impeachable, and yet so far...
You've avoided closer scrutiny
And even though Vlad-i-mer Putin, he
Opens many doors, it only makes you more...
Impeachable, and when, some day
We can say 'you're fired' and you go away
You may have thought you were unreachable (but) history makes some moments
teachable:
Someday Pence may be impeachable too
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.
Peter Yarrow and Noel Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul and Mary. (photo: Peter
Yarrow)
http://readersupportednews.org/http://readersupportednews.org/
Impeachable: A New Kind of Protest Song
By Peter Yarrow, Reader Supported News
26 February 17
'Impeachable' is a new twist on the kinds of songs that Peter Paul and Mary
were singing that helped to mobilize Americans.
eople have been wondering what folksinger/activists, some of them
septuagenarians like Noel Paul Stookey and me, might be doing in the face of
the current cataclysmic challenges to our democracy and our nation.
The answer is simple: we are going to keep on keeping on. We inherited a
legacy from Woody, Pete Seeger and the Weavers and many others who inspired
us. They never quit, never stopped and never stopped advocating. Doing so is
"in our blood" and it's a great gift to both Noel and me, as it would be to
Mary - were she still to be with us. She would join, even (or maybe
especially) at our advanced age, the current advocacies that "hammer out a
warning", "ring out danger" and "sing about the love between our brothers
and our sisters". No, we've not "gone away". We, and others who also come
from the folk music/activist tradition, are solidly committed to using our
music to generate community and consensus at our concerts and at gatherings
and demonstrations to confront the most dangerous of challenges now
threatening our country.
I have written, and currently perform, two songs that have come out of the
presidential campaign and its results, one being The Children Are Listening
and the other being, Lift Us Up. I am grateful that, in a limited context
(for sure) both of these songs have become rallying points for efforts to
assert what is good in ourselves and what is reprehensible and frightening
in the face of the recent election.
By far the most important effort yet, by either Noel Paul or me - in terms
of its reach and, in my opinion, its brilliance - is Impeachable, a parody
Noel wrote of the song Unforgettable, which was a huge hit by Nat King Cole
from the early 1950s. Impeachable was just released on the internet and went
viral with, currently, over 800,000 hits. (Please share this link with your
buddies and help us spread the message.)
Impeachable is an example of Noel's extraordinary ability to write a
super-funny, very surprising yet also, highly nuanced, lyric. He is, and has
always been, an amazing songwriter. In its first public performance last
weekend Impeachable brought the audience at our concert in Thousand Oaks, CA
to its feet with a prolonged standing ovation. There were screeches of
delight the likes of which I have never before heard at a Peter Paul and
Mary concert.
Noel has clearly struck a hugely resonant chord amongst those who heard the
hammer strokes warning of a grave danger to our nation, our democracy and,
in fact, the whole earth.
Impeachable is a new twist on the kinds of songs that Peter Paul and Mary
were singing that helped to mobilize Americans at the time of the Civil
Rights Movement and the Anti-Vietnam War Movement. Blowing In the Wind and
If I Had a Hammer written by Bob Dylan and Pete Seeger & Lee Hays,
respectively, were anthems that brought folks together in ways that let them
recognize, in very personal ways, their collective strength as well as
reassert a commonly held ethical/political perspective. Such was also the
case with Where Have All the Flowers Gone and a myriad of other songs. With
their repetition at rallies, marches and on the radio, these songs inspired
many newcomers to the world of activism who asserted to us that our music,
and that of our fellow folk musicians, became the "sound track of their
political awakening". (In our view, this is one of the greatest compliments
we ever received.)
Today, of course, the dominant transmission of such advocacies comes through
social media, though in-person efforts such as The Women's March on
Washington, and the demonstrations at Standing Rock that electrified the
nation are still, I believe, the most powerful tools for social/political
mobilization.
Also, there is another new aspect to a musician's, or an actor's, or any
artist's efforts in the realm of advocacy. In this time, humor, as offered
by the likes of John Oliver, the gifted cast and guests, such as the amazing
Alec Baldwin, on Saturday Night Live, Samantha Bee, Melissa McCarthy,
Stephen Colbert and Trevor Noah, to name just a few, has played a huge role
in inspiring and activating the spirit of our nation. It cuts through the
extreme "noise" in tweets, frightening pronouncement and actions emanating
from the current administration,
Please take heart my friends. From my travels, I have found that there has
been a huge call to action heeded, even (and emphatically) in my and Noel's
elder demographic. Be assured that a large body of former artist-activists
is mobilizing now with their songs, their poetry, their heart-rending
videos, their humor and their visual work on signs and memes that spread
across the internet with ever more amazing directness, humor, and
determination. As long as this continues to build, we're walking together
and gaining strength. Let's carry it on, my friends.
In solidarity and love,
Peter
Impeachable
By Noel
Paul Stookey
Impeachable, that's what you are.
Impeachable, and yet so far...
You've avoided closer scrutiny
And even though Vlad-i-mer Putin, he
Opens many doors, it only makes you more...
Impeachable, and when, some day
We can say 'you're fired' and you go away
You may have thought you were unreachable (but) history makes some moments
teachable:
Someday Pence may be impeachable too
http://e-max.it/posizionamento-siti-web/socialize
http://e-max.it/posizionamento-siti-web/socialize