Sometimes, like maybe on a beautiful spring day, it’s impossible not to think, “Hey, I see skies of blue!” And next thing you know, you think to yourself, “What a wonderful world.”
That’s a pretty good reason, this Earth Day, to think about how we can protect some of that wonderfulness. You could take direct action – finally figuring out how to properly dispose of those used batteries; turning your old CD jewel cases into market garden stalls, etc. – or you could take musical action.
Consider, for example, one of this year’s Earth Day slogans: “mobilize the planet.”
Without a doubt, one of the best ways to mobilize the people of the planet is through music.
And that’s something CBC Music can help out with, via everything from eco tips for jazz lovers, to soundtracks for activism – something 100-Mile Diet creators Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon share with us.
Here’s what we’ve got cookin’ for CBC Music’s celebration of Earth Day:
Jack Johnson: 100% for the planet charts Johnson’s putting-his-money-where-his-mouth-is actions as someone who’s a fierce advocate for the planet.
CBC Music's rock community brings you 100-Mile Diet creators, Smith and MacKinnon, and their soundtrack to eco-activism.
Eco tips for jazz lovers (and the jazz-curious) are suggested through some great jazz tunes. (When Diana Krall sings "Guess I'll Hang my Tears Out to Dry" she could save energy big time if she air-dries.)
In Seeing Earth Day, Tom Allen of CBC Radio 2’s Shift recommends taking a tip from Keith Jarrett, who reminds us to appreciate our environment (by insisting audiences truly stay in the moment during his performances).
Gustav Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde (The Song of the Earth) touches on issues of living, parting and salvation – hear the work in a performance by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra at Concerts on Demand: Mahler's Song of the Earth at Concerts on Demand.
The Mississippi River delta is one of the most delicate ecosystems in North America, and also one of the most fertile musical environments for blues. Find out about an environmental awareness project started by bluesman Tab Benoit in Earth Day blues: Tab Benoit's Voice of the Wetlands.
Marvin Gaye wrote one of the greatest environmental odes of all times, and CBC’s R&B and soul contributor Nana Aba Duncan brings us the backstory in Earth Day 2012: Marvin Gaye's 'Mercy Mercy Me (the Ecology).'
Our aboriginal music community looks at an updating of the traditional Anishinabe way of creating songs – finding inspiration from the land — with Digging Roots.
Earth Day: One world, many voices investigates literal global music – projects connecting musicians in totally different parts of the world – through technology.
And we leave it to those experts at mobilizing the people, singer-songwriters, to have the final word. From Sarah Harmer’s commitment to protecting the Niagara Escarpment to Bruce Cockburn’s desire to save the forests, we hear some examples of Canadian performers’ songs about the environment in Earth Day 2012: Canadian singer-songwriters' odes to Earth.
CBC Radio 3 takes a look at 11 Canadian bands who are touring green.
Related links:
CBC News: Going Green, the changing environment
CBC Digital Archives: Earth Day comes to Canada
Earth Day: The History of A Movement