Songs of Social Justice showcase superb storytelling

10/23/08 - Though the Songs of Social Justice series held at University of Rhode Island's Edwards Auditorium occurred in the fall 2006 honors colloquium, its messages are as relevant today as they were two years ago.It's hard to believe any of the musicians who participated could have envisioned our current global situation, but the songs on this collection could have easily been sung today and are still socially pertinent in 2008.

Right now, the United States is in the midst of one of the most important presidential elections in recent memory. We are still at war. The world economy is in disarray and today, the most famous American civilian is simply known as "Joe the Plumber."

The performers in this series all brought their own messages of war, segregation and politics, among other subjects. No song in this collection is meant to be a masterpiece or a showcase of musical prodigy.

Nor is any song or performer destined for a Grammy. But the central idea of the series isn't about that it's to instill social messages that would have otherwise gone unsaid.

Power and conviction are clearly evident in every performance on this compilation as the artists try to evoke emotion and social change. They sing with a level of intimacy that can sometimes be lost with more popular mainstream artists.

The performers are not just singing a song to sing a song: rather, they put forth their best effort in telling a story. The series could have easily been named Stories of Social Justice . Accompanied by Music.

"If you dance for the truth, you will get shot at," one performer claims as he explains his opinion of censorship in the United States. He continues on, "If you step in the zone of truth, you will get shot at; whether physically or you lose your job or they cut you off."

One song is about government money making its way to corporate "greedy chisellers." Its chorus sings, "It's time to end welfare as we know it, teach them a little self control. For far too long we've allowed these corporate hogs to belly up to the public trough."

Though it's a somewhat different situation, this song could easily be related to the current $700 billion congressional bailout plan.

A startling introduction begins a song about civil rights activist, Medgar Evers. "If you were a worker for freedom, what would you tell your family? Watch out when you open the door; there could be a bomb," the track begins.

The song emphasizes the importance of Evers and his role in the civil rights movement while reconstructing the scenario in which he died.

The sound quality of the recording leaves more to be desired, but the focal point is the storytelling and the accompanying music. The artists are mostly all raw folk musicians without any kind of dazzling tricks, but that's because they don't need them.

They touch upon topics that we don't always think about - or that we are too afraid to bring up - and in their goal of bringing up rarely unmentioned topics, the artists of the Songs for Social Justice series are masterful.

Anyone interested in purchasing the album should email Professor Steven Wood at docwood@mail.uri.edu.