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Courtesy dearneworleansmusic.org
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Tuesday, Aug. 24, marks five years since Hurricane Katrina moved through the Bahamas, on its way toward New Orleans. The cyclone ended up breaching levees and killing about 1,000 people in Louisiana. The resulting disaster also spurred action from stars who staged "A Concert for Hurricane Relief." This year, a group of New Orleans musicians are marking the anniversary with a 31-track digital compilation album. It will benefit victims of the hurricane—and those on the Gulf coast now dealing with the aftermath of the BP oil spill.
The effort, called "Dear New Orleans," features original and cover songs from the likes of My Morning Jacket, OK Go, Indigo Girls, Steve Earle, Nellie McKay, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, Nicole Atkins, Mike Mills, Bonerama, Tom Morello: The Nightwatchman, Flobots and The Wrens.
It will be available for download starting Aug. 24 at dearneworleansmusic.org, and via iTunes, Amazon.com, Rhapsody and eMusic.com. The collection was produced by Air Traffic Control, a nonprofit resource for activist and philanthropic musicians.
Some highlights:
- "Louisiana Land," an original OK Go song born out of the band's time spent in the Big Easy.
- A horn-powered version of Led Zeppelin's "When the Levee Breaks" from Nicole Atkins and Bonerama.
- A live cover of Al Johnson's Mardi Gras anthem "Carnival Time" by My Morning Jacket and The Preservation Hall Jazz Band.
- An early mix of "Crescent," from an upcoming album by The Wrens—their first since 2003.
New Orleans music is so deep in your blood you don't even know it's there until you hear that sound," says Jim James of My Morning Jacket, "... the sound of god and the devil fighting and stars colliding somewhere at the beginning of the universe where we all came from."
If you support this, you'll be supporting New Orleans-based nonprofits like Sweet Home New Orleans and Gulf Restoration Network, which work "to support and sustain the region's unique musical and cultural traditions and to protect and restore vital environment and community resources for future generations."
The compilation's title was inspired by "Dear America," a letter written by Chris Rose of The Times-Picayune shortly after the Katrina disaster.
As explained by its creators: "Dear New Orleans" is a letter of gratitude and promise to the city and her people --- to never forget what happened and to continue to rebuild. A free download from the compilation is being offered at dearneworleansmusic.org. Don't forget to come back on Aug. 24.
