Tag Archives: MLK

MLK 2011: This Land Is Your Land

I can’t get enough of Sharon Jones singing “This Land Is Your Land.” It resonated with my mood last week following the shootings in Tucson. When I first posted these clips, I sent them out to “self-righteous Don’t-Tread-on-Me types” who probably failed to grasp the message. So I am re-dedicating them to the spirit of today’s MLK observances. As Woody Guthrie wrote in the song, and as Martin Luther King, Jr. taught us through the example of his life’s struggle, there can be no liberty for one until there is liberty for all. Continue reading






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MLK 2010: Redemption Songs From John Coltrane to Johnny Cash

At the core of American music is a legacy of songs that yearn for freedom and redemption. This week’s American Routes presents a rich array of this music in its celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr. Here are two songs that convey the breath of that legacy, John Coltrane’s Alabama and Bob Marley’s Redemption Songs, sung here by the remarkable pairing of Johnny Cash and Joe Strummer.






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MLK 2009: Marian Anderson Sings at the Lincoln Memorial

MARIAN ANDERSON.1939.LINCOLN MEMORIAL See also MLK 2008: The Legacy of Strange Fruit. See other #inaug09 content on this blog. See #inaug09 on Twitter.






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