Odetta- "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement"

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Odetta Holmes, (December 31, 1930 – December 2, 2008), known as Odetta, was an American singer, actress, guitarist, songwriter, and a human rights activist, often referred to as "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement". Her musical repertoire consisted largely of American folk music, blues, jazz, and spirituals. An important figure in the American folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s, she was influential musically and ideologically to many of the key figures of the folk-revival of that time, including Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Mavis Staples, and Janis Joplin.
Find out more about her amazing life here :)
Influence:
Odetta influenced generations of performers, from Bob Dylan to Bruce Springsteen.
Harry Belafonte "cited her as a key influence" on his musical career.
Bob Dylan, who said, "The first thing that turned me on to folk singing was Odetta. I heard a record of hers [Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues] in a record store, back when you could listen to records right there in the store. Right then and there, I went out and traded my electric guitar and amplifier for an acoustical guitar, a flat-top Gibson. ... [That album was] just something vital and personal. I learned all the songs on that record. It was her first and the songs were:- Mule Skinner, Waterboy", Jack of Diamonds, (I've Been) 'Buked and (I've Been) Scorned."
In 1965, Odetta recorded an album of Dylan covers, Odetta Sings Dylan.
Joan Baez said "Odetta was a goddess. Her passion moved me. I learned everything she sang."
Janis Joplin - "Janis spent much of her adolescence listening to Odetta, who was also the first person Janis imitated when she started singing".
Thomas Winslow and his daughter Thomasina Winslow, the Blues musicians, heralded her influence to their music.[citation needed]
Poet Maya Angelou once said "If only one could be sure that every 50 years a voice and a soul like Odetta's would come along, the centuries would pass so quickly and painlessly we would hardly recognize time."
John Waters's original screenplay for Hairspray mentions her as an influence on beatniks.
Carly Simon cites Odetta as a major influence, and talks about "going weak in the knees" when she had the opportunity to meet her in Greenwich Village.

Odetta Speaks About Her Life As An Activist:

Odetta - "Keep On Moving It On"....February 2008:
Odetta sings at the Thresholds Arts Festival in Des Moines. A major influence on Janis Joplin, Bob Dylan, Joan Baez and others....she looks frail, sitting in a wheel chair - but looks are deceiving, she can still carry her own.

Tennessee Ernie Ford and Odetta - What A Friend We Have:
An Exclusive TEF Enterprises MemoryClip From The Ford Show Archives


Odetta Live in concert 2005, "House of the Rising Sun":
We were lucky enough to record Odetta on one of her most energetic and powerful nights in a long time.

Odetta and Johnny Cash:
Odetta on "The Johnny Cash Show," August 30, 1969. The first song she performs is based on a Negro "field blues" song known simply as "Black Woman," then duets with Cash on "Shame And Scandal In The Family," which was written by a calypso artist who went by Sir Lancelot, in the 40s.

Dr.John & Odetta-Brother Can You Spare a Dime:
This oldie was originally written during the depression (1931) by Yip Harburg, who was later blacklisted during the McCathy era. This Spadecaller video updates its relevance to the poor and disenfranchised prevalent in our nation today.

Odetta sings "Glory Halleluja":
Odetta sings "Glory Halleluja" at "Satyagraha: Gandhi's 'Truth Force' in the Age of Climate Change" presented by the Garrison Institute on April 13, 2008 at the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine in New York City.

Odetta "Amazing Grace":
Odetta sings at Philly folk fest in summer of '03. Good Stuff!


Related Post:
Utah Phillips-Legendary Folk Musician and Labor Activist

David Icke On The Global Awakening

This video series was filmed in Phoenix Arizona. Lecturer and author David Icke explains how the panic-stricken elite are desperate to put the lid back on a global awakening that is stalling their agenda for world domination. Icke explains how drugs, toxic food and electromagnetic pollution are all being ramped up in a last ditch effort to dumb humanity down to a sheep-like mentality so they can be more easily controlled.

Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3:

Part 4:

Part 5:


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Utah Phillips-Legendary Folk Musician and Labor Activist

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Called The "Golden Voice of the Great Southwest", Utah Phillips, a legendary folk musician and peace and labor activist,died at the age of seventy-three on May 23, 2008.
Over the span of nearly four decades, Utah Phillips worked in what he referred to as "the Trade," performing tirelessly throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. The son of labor organizers, Phillips was a lifelong member of the Industrial Workers of the World, known as the Wobblies. As a teenager, he ran away from home and started living as a hobo who rode the rails and wrote songs about his experiences. In 1956, he joined the Army and served in the Korean War, an experience he would later refer to as the turning point of his life. In 1968, he ran for the US Senate on the Peace and Freedom Party ticket. For the past twenty-one years he lived in Nevada City,California, where he started a nationally syndicated folk music radio show. He also helped found the Hospitality House homeless shelter and the Peace and Justice Center.
A few years before he passed, Utah swung by the place where he grew up, to do a show. The place was Salt Lake City, Utah, my home town. I just sat there in awe, listening to his unique brand of folk music and story telling....So sit back, relax, and listen to the stories, music, and most importantly, the message of a true American original....:)

Direct Action - Utah Phillips:
In memory of a great American, a true voice of the worker and a friend to all people that strive to be free.
Utah Phillips
May 15, 1935 -- May 23, 2008
You are loved and you will be missed!



Utah Phillips on Learning on the Road:
Amy Goodman interviews Utah Phillips for Democracy Now! in 2004. In Part 1 of the interview, he talks about his approach to music and learning from his audiences.




Utah Phillips on War and Non-Violence:
In part 2 of the interview, Utah discusses his own military service and becoming a pacifist.



Utah Phillips on His Name, the IWW, and War Resistance:
In Part 3 of the interview, Utah explains how he got the name "U. Utah", the history of war resistance, and the Wobblies.



Utah Phillips on the Role of the Media:
In part 4 of the interview, Utah talks about television, storytelling, capitalism, and alternative media.



Utah Phillips on "Making a Living, Not a Killing":
In part 5 of the interview, Utah tells how he started out in New York, fired his agent, and decided not to play music for profit.




U. Utah Phillips - 4 - Funniest Story Ever!? His performance at the Strawberry Music Festival Spring 2007, Camp Mather, Yosemite.



'I Will Not Obey' - Utah on Anarchism: Utah Phillips talks about Ammon Hennessy and anarchism.



U. Utah Phillips - Miner's Lullaby:
Utah Phillips discusses his song, "Miner's Lullaby," followed by bluegrass duo Jody Stecher and Kate Brislin performing his song. Miners would take a tin of morphine with them down in the shaft, in case of a cave in, or other disaster to ease the pain as they died. The lyrics of "Miner's Lullaby" are:

MINER'S LULLABY (Bruce 'Utah' Phillips)
Once, long ago, he was handsome and tall
And fit to be called to the war
We left our village, family and all
To never return any more

Now he takes his coat, his bucket and lamp
And whistles away to the cage
Where men young and old from all over the camp
Gather in search of a wage

Chorus:
Husband, sleep, lay your head back and dream
A slow fallen leaf borne down to the stream
Then carried away on the wings of morphine
Homeward far over the sea

My husband and I are Roman in faith
And we have a secret to keep
If ever his life is taken away
Then gentle and long will he sleep

Now some men pass with family around
And linens and blankets so clean
But seldom a miner goes underground
Without his tin of morphine

Chorus:
And now here's a word, an explosion is heard
The miners are trapped far below
If any survived down there alive
I'm certain we never will know

Although our families have vainly appealed
No rescue attempt can be seen
Our hope for loved ones in the dark earth sealed
Now lies in a tin of morphine

Chorus Words and music by Bruce 'Utah' Phillips. On Strike Music BMI.

Source: Jody Stecher and Kate Brislin 'Heart Songs: The Old Time Country Songs of Utah Phillips' Rounder CD 0424.



Related Post:
Odetta-"The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement."