Monthly Archives: May, 2011

Musicians Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne and Graham Nash have spoken out against nuclear power through the website NUKEFREE.ORG. In their statement they say "We may be on the brink of stopping the US nuclear industry from building new reactors". They mention that Japan and Germany have turned away from nuclear power, and urge citizens to contact the White House and their US Senators and Representatives "as often and as forcefully as you can".

Bonnie, Jackson and Graham specifically point out a $36 billion dollar loan guarantee by the US government being sought by the nuclear energy lobby industry. These decisions will be in front of the Appropriations subcommittee as early as June 2nd, so JTMP urges everyone to contact their representatives as soon as possible, and speak out on this important issue.

You can read their statement here:

http://nukefree.org/bonnie-jackson-graham-we-may-be-brink

Global climate change is widely believed to be the cause of the devastating tornadoes that ravaged Alabama this spring, with some tornadoes wreaking a path of destruction 300 miles long. Hundreds have died, and thousands are homeless now, and their plight has caught the attention of musicians who want to raise awareness of the issue, and to help raise funds for the Red Cross who are trying to help the victims of the recent storms, tornadoes and flooding across the south.

A collection of local and national artists have launched a campaign called "the wind will carry the voice of the people". It is a "soundtrack for healing and rebuilding", with 100% of the proceeds going to the Red Cross for their efforts to help the people affected by the devastation.

One of the artists, Jon Black, told CBS 42, "I hope this is a soundtrack for healing and rebuilding. I'm honored to be a part of it and I'm proud of my friends for organizing this and contributing songs. My song is simply my account of watching the live coverage of the tornadoes hit Tuscaloosa. Shortly after that we were huddled in our basement watching online streams when it moved through Birmingham.  We escaped with only a stray shingle in our yard but our hearts are still heavy for those who lost loved ones and homes.  This is an easy way to help but there's still great need for volunteers, clothes, food, and money all across the state.

The album is a digital download, and you can sample the tunes and purchase it by going here: http://musicforalabama.bandcamp.com/

Artist Common performed at the White House Poetry Jam the other night, and he gave a positive and brilliant performance. The video is below.

The White House held an "Evening of Poetry, Music and the Spoken Word" in 2009, to celebrate and explore the wonderful and rich American poetry culture. Performances ranged from jazz by Elew and Esperanza Spalding, to spoken word by Mayda del Valle, an artist who has toured extensively and whose work has helped to raise the bar in poetry circles all over the world.  James Earl Jones performed Othello, and Brave New Voices” slam champion Jamaica Osorio performs her spoken word, "Kumulipo". Some of the videos are below. For the rest of the videos please visit http://www.whitehouse.gov/video.

President Obama makes a brief remark, and the band Little Big Town performs, "Fix You" to help raise awareness and money for the flood victims in the south. For more information, go to http://www.cmtonecountry.com. To help out please visit http://www.redcross.org and donate what you can.