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Times of crisis are met with music. From the Civil Rights movement and Vietnam War to 9/11, the world turns to music, and often times songs of depth. Just look at the songs that have spoken to those times from Crosby, Stills, Nash And Young's "Ohio" and Bob Dylan's "The Times They Are-A-Changin'," in response to the turmoil of the '60s into the '70s, to post 9/11 music like Bruce Springsteen's The Rising album and Alan Jackson's "Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning)." It is real songs by real troubadours that provide comfort and answers during turbulent times.
So an unprecedented crisis like the Coronavirus pandemic is not surprisingly bringing about musical heroes. This week saw the first new music in eight years by the great bard, Dylan. Only in times like this would the most talked about song in America be a nearly 17-minute epic that starts with the assassination of John F. Kennedy in Dallas in 1963 and winds through two decades of music and pop culture. But these are extraordinary times and Dylan's brilliant, poetic, powerful and mind-blowing "Murder Most Foul," which finds Dylan largely speaking against a stirring, melancholic musical backdrop is an extraordinary song.
Of course in 2020, music can be found everywhere. So the best songs can be found anywhere and everywhere. And those standing out are some of the biggest names, like Dylan and fellow Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame songwriting icon Jackson Browne, whose sweet "Little Soon To Say" was accompanied by the unfortunate news Browne had tested positive for Coronavirus, as well as Pearl Jam's stellar new Gigaton album. Then Neil Young is doing his "Fireside Sessions" live stream series. Tonight on FOX at 9 EST and 6 PST iHeart will present The Living Room Concert For America with Dave Grohl, Billie Joe Armstrong, Billie Eilish, Alicia Keys and more.
But there is also opportunity for unheard artists to emerge on social media. For example, check out new music from Canadian songstress Claire Hunter. Hunter, one of the most promising singer/songwriters I have heard in years, shows why on her superb, gorgeous new "Elliah," which you can find on her Instagram (Clairehuntermusic). And on the daily emerging artists are using Instagram Live to offer musical solace and get their music out.
Music right now is everywhere. So the iconic R.E.M. singer Michael Stipe can drop a new song with the National's Aaron Dessner on social media randomly on a Saturday night, as he did last night.
Stipe, out of nowhere, released a demo of the stunning "No Time For Love Now" last night (March 28). Of all the musical heroes to emerge in this time, Stipe is, on the surface, the most unlikely.
Absent from music since R.E.M. broke up in 2011, he started to reemerge musically late last year as a vocalist (he produced Fischerspooner's Sir in 2018) with his first solo single, "Your Capricious Soul," followed in January by "Drive To The Ocean." But he has rarely performed other than at benefits and hasn't been a public figure. However, on March 17, at the start of the lockdown in the States he delivered a video message singing a snippet of R.E.M.'s "It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)," which has become an anthem for the pandemic, returning to the charts after 33 years.
That was followed March 20 by a video message of him singing the 1986 R.E.M. song "Underneath The Bunker," and another message of encouragement to stay at home. And then last night saw the unexpected "No Time For Love Now," a masterful anthem for the times.
Apparently it is not the only song Stipe and Dessner have worked on together. On Twitter this morning Dessner Tweeted, " Michael Stipe has been a great hero and friend to me (and the National) and I never in my wildest dreams imagined writing songs together... but here is the demo of one in progress... coming to you from Michael in isolation at home — hope it raises some spirits."
Clues for Stipe to come out as an unexpected source of light and hope in this time were there. When I spoke to him and Casey Spooner in 2018 for Sir Stipe delivered a message that proved to be eerily prophetic.
"I think a big part of our job is to respond to the moment that we’re in and help all of us, artists and non-artists, recognize and realize where we are," he said. "Darwin once said, 'It’s not the strongest of the species that survive, not the most intelligent, but the ones most responsive to change.' Art is absolutely essential in times like this and our job is to try to present a way forward that’s progressive and not all darkness and sadness and be activists."
Indeed with new music and his messages of hope Stipe is doing his job of presenting a way forward that is not darkness and sadness and leading a movement of songs to comfort and provide necessary distractions of light in this time of isolation. Music does become a welcome respite and new music from Dylan and Stipe, the emergence of new talents, goes a long way to lighting the darkness. Now if only we could get new songs from Tom Waits and Paul Westerberg.
