Valerie Vigoda first came to my attention in the 1990′s as part of the jazzy pop band Groovelily, who toured through here a number of times and always put on tremendous shows. Vigoda is a violinist and with fellow Groovelily member Brendan Milburn (now her partner in life as well as music), the pair have branched out into writing for film (“Tinkerbell”) and the Broadway and off-Broadway stages. Her newest project is an upcoming solo album, and with Mother’s Day upon us this week Vigoda has offered up a taste of the new recording sessions via “Thaw/Irish Lullaby” a re-cast version of a tune from the Groovelily days that was written about the changing relationship between Vigoda and her own mother as she became an adult. On the Bandcamp page for the song, Vigoda says:

“My mom passed away in 2009, and we haven’t played it in the band since — but this solo project is the perfect opportunity to bring it back; I think my mom would be very excited and proud about what I’m doing here. Just like my son is now, she was a small person with a very big voice and big personality, and she loved to sing. She was part Irish, and loved to sing Irish songs…so this is a re-imagining of “Thaw,” my song for my mother, mashed up with the Irish lullaby she used to sing to me.”

And here is a video of Vigoda performing the song live:

Every so often a song captures the essence of public sentiment in a way that’s so obvious it sounds simple, yet profound. James McMurtry did it most recently with “We Can’t Make it Here,” perhaps the finest protest/folk song of the past couple decades. Journeyman musician Paul Thorn has hit upon a similar theme of frustration and disbelief that things have gotten to the point they have in his latest release, “What the Hell is Goin’ On?” The title is a not-so-subtle nod to another famous protest song with a similar theme, Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Goin’ On?”

The song is from a new album of cover tunes, this one is from Elvin Bishop of “Fooled Around and Fell In Love” fame. Bishop himself plays the slide guitar solos on Thorn’s version, and it may be his hands you see playing in Thorn’s new video for the song, which also features footage of disasters such as 9/11, housing foreclosures, and gas prices. Watch for several other Bishop cameos via a T-shirt and an album cover, too.

Human rights are everyone’s business” Salil Shetty, General Secretary of Amnesty International, says in the “making of” video for the new song “Toast Of Freedom” which was put together to celebrate and commemorate the 50th anniversary of the organization. Almost fifty artists participated in either the basic sessions for the song or by lending their vocals to the track, including Rosanne Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Angelique Kidjo, Keb’ Mo, the Blind Boys of Alabama, Shawn Mullins, and many more. The basic tracks were laid down at the late Levon Helm’s studio, “the Barn”, in Woodstock, NY, with Helms himself on drums. With the Arab Spring still fresh in our memories and activists around the world still struggling to maintain their own freedoms and those of their people, the positive, uplifting message of this song couldn’t have come at a better time; it is “We Are The World” updated for this generation, no less. Check out the official video below, plus the ‘making of’ clip that shows several snippets of Helm.

click here for more info on the song and the artists involved