so it's another earth day and i'm not posting a blog to talk about all the "tsk tsk's" and "pshhaw's" and "you really should's" and the "you so should not's" ... i think most of us (well, most of the people who read this) know exactly what they should and shouldn't be doing and what small steps they can take to make a collective big difference today and every day. no, instead i figured i'd post some interesting stuff sort of in honor of earth day.
i got this from canada's entertainment tonight online info:
In honour of Earth Day, here are 10 eco-protest songs that get our rivers flowing.
1. Bruce Cockburn, "If a Tree Falls" (1988)
Songwriters and environmentalists love Cockburn equally, for his music represents unflinching activism. It's an ugly job, so give Cockburn credit. Without his many ecological laments -- of which "If a Tree Falls" ranks near the tippy-top -- our world would be a much colder place.
2. Joni Mitchell, "Big Yellow Taxi" (1970)
The view from her Hawaii hotel room -- a vista that was part pavement, part tropical nirvana -- inspired Mitchell to write her most famous song. Hawaiian Islands or Vancouver Island, the theme behind "Big Yellow Taxi" is universal. Sure, parking lots are necessary. But when paradise is paved to accommodate one, we all lose something significant.
3. Cat Stevens, "Where Do the Children Play?" (1970)
Tea For the Tillerman opens with "Where Do the Children Play?," a dreamy tune upheld by Stevens' softly sung queries. Stevens smartly hung his concerns over blind industrial progress on the fate of our children. And fans bought it hook, line and sinker.
4. Jackson Browne, "Before the Deluge" (1974)
There are Biblical overtones, to be sure, but "Before the Deluge" -- some of the finest California country-rock of Jackson Browne's career -- is about our mistreatment of the environment as much as anything else. Peter Gabriel bridged the same topic on his gem, "Here Comes the Flood," but Browne's tale cuts deeper.
5. Tracy Chapman, "The Rape of the World" (1995)
Tracy Chapman was everywhere, musically and emotionally, on New Beginning. During one tune she's singing about heaven on earth, and the next, how humankind has "clear-cut, dumped on, poisoned and beaten up" Mother Earth. Blind anger isn't always pretty. However, "The Rape of the World" proves it can be profound.
6. Marvin Gaye, "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" (1971)
A cunning character, that Marvin Gaye. By housing one of his most political songs inside a smouldering, soulful groove, he finds a way to make "Mercy Mercy Me" relevant and rewarding. "Where did all the blue sky go?" Gaye wondered. To which we respond: Where did all the political soul music go? Not since "What's Going On" have we heard genius like this.
7. Black Sabbath, "Into The Void" (1971)
Three months after Gaye released "What's Going On," these blokes from Birmingham issued the anti-war tirade, "Into the Void." Among the talk of "hateful battles raging on," Ozzy Osbourne sings of a diminishing environmental future. The combination of social conscience and bludgeoning riffs worked throughout Masters of Reality; Rolling Stone magazine placed the recording on its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
8. Pixies, "Monkey Gone to Heaven" (1989)
Our relationship with the environment is considered by some a spiritual endeavour, a sentiment with which Pixies leader Black Francis would most likely agree. His first "hit" is a masterpiece of scream-sing aggression, laced with a toddler-friendly chorus and fetching high-register help from singer-bassist Kim Deal, but it's also a complex take on the earth's mistreatment. If you haven't heard it -- and we're nicking Chris Rock here -- y'all better recognize.
9. The Pretenders, "My City Was Gone" (1984)
Chrissie Hynde put her native Akron, Ohio, at the centre of "My City Was Gone," one of many highlights found on The Pretenders' career best, Learning to Crawl. The song's lean groove and the group's tragic back story (two members died of drug overdoses within a year) add emotional heft to Hynde's calculated missives, which are directed at "a government that had no pride."
10. Midnight Oil, "Dreamworld"(1987)
To see Oil singer Peter Garrett wail on stage is among the best concert experiences one could hope to have. When the towering front man puts his pen to paper, he's no less insurgent or tenacious. Garrett, defiant as ever, rails in "Dreamworld" against one of his old standbys: Environmental abuse."No amount of make believe can help this heart of mine." Rail on.
i'd just like to add a couple more: Jack Johnson's "3 Rs" and Mos Def's "New World Water" :) so go ahead, make yourself a cool lil' playlist on your ipod ... or whatever sort of mp3 player you use.
next up, i got this from billboard magazine online. i'm not sure what they based this on, but i figure billboard is somewhat reliable, right? so ... eh - here's who they list as the top 10 greenest musicians (in order of last to first):
10. The Roots
9. Missy Higgins
8. Radiohead
7. Serj Tankian
6. Pearl Jam
5. K.T Tunstall
4. Dave Matthews Band
3. Mana
2. Willie Nelson
1. Jack Johnson
then, from the very cool ecorazzi site, i copied this next info from green cuties the Dave Matthews Band:
For last year's 2007 Summer Tour, the Dave Matthews Band partnered up with green org Reverb to lighten their impact on the planet and get others involved. ... For 2008, the group will be continuing with last year's initiatives (eco-village outside the concert, biodiesel for tour buses, offsets, recycling, organic, local food, etc.) and adding a few new twists. For instance, coming soon online, DMB will launch a carpooling service for fans going to and from concerts. Not only will this save fuel, but it will also reduce emissions and traffic. Additionally, there will be an eco-footprint reduction contest enabling fans to easily track and minimize their own environmental impact. Said Reverb Co-founder and Director Lauren Sullivan. "Now that we know just how environmentally committed the fans are, we're really looking forward to setting the bar even higher for 2008."
another eye-catching article at ecorazzi i noticed was:
click it and read all about it! in addition to the awesome ecorazzi, here is a small (in comparison to the gazillions of sites that are out there) list of some super fly sites to guide you in all your ultra-hip green needs:
Eco-Chick
Green Options
Treehugger
Sustainable Is Good
No Impact Man
Ideal Bite
The Daily Green
Reusable Bags
The Green Guide
Gorgeously Green
Planet Green
Urban Homesteaders
and finally, a sad-but-true little comic strip i came across:
enjoy the rest of today - but remember: tomorrow is just as much earth day as today. plant something, walk somewhere, recycle things, reuse stuff, reduce junk, consume less, move more, dance, sing, laugh, read, learn, love and be kind to all living creatures!
much love and peace ....