music to my ears!

When George W was first elected -- or should I say "named"-- president, I remember Dan Stone or That Guy, DJs on WTKS who hosted Sound Opinion on Saturday nights, looked on the bright side and said that at least a Republican in the White House would ensure some great indie music. And they were right. We have awesome protest songs from Bright Eyes and Pearl Jam -- even the Decemberists!

When people get mad or sad, they come together. Since Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast and Lake Pontchartrain flowed freely into the Ninth Ward and other areas of New Orleans, there have been three major music telethons. And I have high hopes that three different CDs will be released capturing all the amazing moments and raising lots more money for those affected.

On Saturday, I had chills watching former New Orleans resident Trent Reznor perform "Hurt" on a piano. I was going out that night, so I missed most of the other performances, but they're on my DVR, so I'll catch up this week. Pearl Jam, Sheryl Crow, Coldplay, U2 and others all volunteered their time and talents for a show that was broadcast on MTV, VH1 and their sister stations.

The first special aired exclusively on NBC stations just a few days after the storm passed. Harry Connick Jr, Wynton Marsalis and the Neville Brothers all performed. It was also the show with where America heard Kanye West say "George Bush doesn't care about black people."

The second show was more mainstream and aired on all the major networks. I was working late that night, so I only caught a portion of it. All three were moving. All three raised millions of dollars. All three could raise a lot more if they were released on a CD!!!

Because the indies can get things done without wasting time on red tape, Saddle Creek made this New Orleans Lady proud when she read the following on saddle-creek.com ...

Saddle Creek Compilation - Many of the artists on the Saddle Creek roster have taken some time in the last week to record some new tracks and organize a compilation to benefit the victims of Hurricane Katrina. The final tracklist for the compilation is coming together now and will feature Bright Eyes, Cursive, The Faint, The Good Life, Mayday, Orenda Fink, Maria Taylor, Andy LeMaster, Broken Spindles, Criteria, and others. The compilation will be made available on iTunes very soon and a CD version will be on the website and in stores as soon as possible. 100% of the proceeds from this will go to the Red Cross.

A full tracklisting and more info will be posted on the Saddle Creek site on Monday, September 12. Our hearts go out to everyone affected by the hurricane.

Conor comes through for me again. :)