Woody Guthrie has served as an inspiration for many a musician and song writer, but Guthrie has provided a different form of inspiration to local musician Dan Harris. He has embarked on a 100 day Woody Guthrie challenge – to learn and perform 100 Woody Guthrie songs the first 100 days of the new presidential administration.
“A week before the election I was at our local music store and they were having a sale and I bought a song book of 100 Woody Guthrie songs, an anthology…and I joked with my wife that if Trump were to win the election I was going to learn everyone of the songs in that book and dang it…he won.”
Harris says that a lot of the topics that Guthrie wrote about are still very relevant today. “Issues of immigrant rights, internal displacement, issues of war, peace and fascism, racism. He was confronted in a very stark way with many of the issues that we’re faced with today.”
On Earth Day, Dan Harris is organizing a Woody Guthrie Tribute Concert and inviting various local non-profits whose missions involve strengthening our communities and fighting for social, civil and environmental justice, to speak about their groups and how people can help and become involved.
The Woody Guthrie Tribute Concert happens Saturday April 22nd, from 3-6pm, at E. Simpson Coffeeshop, Lafayette.
KGNU is one of the participating non-profits along with CASA, InterCambio, The I Have a Dream Foundation of Boulder County, The Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition, Sister Carmen Community Center, East Boulder County United, Out Boulder County.
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Resistance Radio: The Woody Guthrie Tribute Benefit Concert KGNU News
Harris and some musician friends are also putting out daily videos on You Tube of the Woody Guthrie songs.