Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Stand By Me
2. One Love
3. War/No More Trouble
4. Biko
5. Don't Worry
6. Talkin' Bout A Revolution - Afro Fiesta (Capetown, South Africa)
7. Better Man - Keb' Mo' (Los Angeles, CA)
8. Chanda Mama
9. Love Rescue Me - The Omagh Community Youth Choir (Omagh, Northern Ireland)
10. A Change Is Gonna Come - Playing For Change Band (New Orleans, LA)

Disc 2:

1. Stand By Me
2. One Love
3. War/No More Trouble
4. Don't Worry
5. Chanda Mama
6. The Playing For Change Foundation
7. Peace Through Music (Feature Film Trailer)

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #137 in Music
• Released on: 2009-04-28
• Number of discs: 2
• Dimensions: .16 pounds

Album Description
Bill Moyers called it a remarkable example of "the simple yet transformative power of music... to touch something in each of us." Variety acknowledged it as "a great showcase for just what incredible, thoroughly accessible popular music is being made worldwide. Utilizing innovative mobile audio/video techniques, Playing for Change (PFC) records musicians outdoors in cities and townships worldwide. They've travelled from post-Katrina New Orleans to post-apartheid South Africa, from the remote beauty of the Himalayas to the religious diversity of Jerusalem. Their talents are captured in myriad environments: under the sun and beneath the streetlights... in public parks, plazas and promenades... in doorways, on cobblestone streets, amid hilly pueblos. Their performances are subsequently combined in allowing them to collaborate - albeit separated by hundreds, or even thousands, of miles.

From the Artist
"The act of playing music with people of different cultures, religions, economics and politics is a powerful statement. It shows that we can find ways of working together and sharing our experiences with one another in a positive way. Music has the power to break down the walls between cultures, to raise the level of human understanding." ~ Mark Johnson, founder, Playing for Change

About the Artist
Playing for Change began a decade ago, the brainchild of Grammy-winning music producer and engineer Mark Johnson. "I was in a subway in New York on my way to work, and I heard these two monks playing music," he recalls. "They were painted head to toe, all white, wearing robes. One was playing a nylon guitar, and the other was singing in a language I didn't understand. There were about 200 people who stopped to watch, didn't even get on the train. Some had tears in their eyes. And it occurred to me that here is a group of people that would normally run by each other, but instead they're coming together. And it's the music that brought them together." For ten years Johnson and his team traveled the globe, with a single-minded passion to record little-known musicians for what would become Playing for Change - its name evoking the coins thrown to street musicians as well as the transformation their music inspires. They went to New Orleans shortly after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. "The city felt sad and desolate, yet the music never stopped," says Johnson. "The street musicians and music in the clubs kept the city alive and gave it a sense of hope." When they visited South Africa and witnessed its growing pains in the aftermath of apartheid, "we saw that people marching down streets singing in groups of thousands did more to effect positive change than any weapons ever could."

Customer Reviews

Incredible
I have watched thousands of videos in my life; being in the music business; but I don't believe I have ever been so moved. This CD/DVD is a must buy. The concept from the filmmakers is both original and brilliant. Adding tracks and overdubbing them into one song took a lot of hard work and it was seamless.

Do yourself a favor and buy this CD/DVD. You will not be disappointed. Stand By Me will never sound the same by anyone else again.

Finally we come together
I first became aware of Playing for Change when a friend sent "Stand By Me" the video to me in an email. I was moved from the very first note. Bringing the people of the world together is the key to finding World Peace and I applaud these musicians for taking the first step. Music is the international language and they have done a superb job with the songs on this album. You can not help but be moved to tears on "Stand By Me", Biko and the rest of the music will find a place in your soul and you will feel what it is to be one with the music, and through the music, one with the world. Please Playing for Change, give us more!

Playing For Change: Songs Around The World
I first learned of Playing For Change when the originator of this brilliant concept was interviewed on Bill Moyers' program several months ago. Two of the songs on this CD were played at that time and I was in love! Now the CD + DVD have been released. I've been able to hear and watch several of the other recorded tracks and been moved and inspired by each. It's a technological marvel with musicians from around the world blending their voices and instruments without ever being together. I have never been more moved or inspired! The musicians, from street players to some who seem to have been classically trained, blend in perfect harmonies and allow me to believe that it is possible that all people could do the same; if we just get together we can feel all right! But if that concept doesn't interest you, just listen for the wonderful music. Peace.