Deadly Humorous A message to singer/songwriters Vaudree Lavallee has explained to me that I may not be getting our dozen or so poets and songwriters involved in the musical thread for my Molly and Mother Jones novel, Market Force, because I have not told them what I want. Heres my first attempt. Bottom line is, I want Mollys theme song to be deadly humorous. Meaning deadly serious with an attitude. Consider Mollys motivation. She has lost her infant son because of the lack of medical diagnosis due to the lack of healthcare coverage. She is an abandoned wife, working two jobs, less than 30 hours each, simply to make ends meet. Consider her environment. She lives in a dying Appalachian town where capitalists have exploited the natural and human resources of the region for more than two decades. Downtown is boarded up and the largest employer is now Walmart, seconded by the fast food chains who have moved in to capture the food stamps and public assistance benefits now comprising the basis of the local economy. And, exploitation of the labor force. Slave wages. Consider the culture. Those who remain in her hometown have settled into a victim mentality driven by generations of grief and futility. They were defeated before they were born. They lack even less than hope. They lack spirit. Consider Mollys heritage. Mollys heritage is the same but different. Her most distant grandfather was a black slave, her father a coal miner. Her mother was the daughter of an irish immigrant. But her mother was a local school teacher who also supplemented Mollys education with home schooling. Mom and dad had hopes for a college education for their girl. Consider the story. Molly was prepared, but opted to delay her education while her brother earned a medical degree. Next it would be her turn. Meanwhile, she made some personal mistakes and ended up among the impoverished. Consider the strategy. Sad stories breed sad songs. But Molly thinks differently. As devastated as she is, she realizes a dirge will not make the death of her son lead to something good, nor will it lift the spirits of the people. And so, I see Mollys strategy being uplifting, upbeat. And happy! How else can she bring her town alive? Consider the event. She jams regularly with fellow pickers and singers from across the region. She organizes a special concert and jam session to kick off a movement which becomes known as WE Are The Market Force. Consider the tactics. Molly wants to punish the big, bad, greedy capitalists by emptying their parking lots and transferring the money flow to local businesses. She expects it to allow local merchants to raise wages as a means of redirecting the the money from outside pirates back to the local economy. At the event, she will unveil a WE Bus that will provide transportation for everyone, including the 25 percent living in households without access to an automobile. The bus only stops at WE sponsors. And, money will drop from heaven. Coupons, that is, for buy-one-get-one deals at participating local merchants. A happy day. Until this day, nothing much happens on a Saturday night in the town. This is a happy day (and night). Beer and food available at a price you decide to pay. A concert of pickers and singers selected by Molly, followed by an open mike for dozens of other amateur musicians. All acoustic, but the band has amp hook-ups for the first time. They are the happiest. Thus, for Mollys theme, I want a happy song. Humorous in that it would make fun of the local corporate bosses and their establishments. Of the nasty way they do business. And serious, in that the exploited have had enough and they have the spirit to rise up with no fear. Things could not get worse. So, the people who sing the chorus to this song can only get better. The overall play list for the concert would follow the same thing. In the first set, Molly would sing some powerful old tunes from her black familys days of slavery to those of her Irish familys days of exploitation in the homeland and the new world. Her fellow musicians would give renditions of some of the most memorable and social protest songs from the best of folk and jazz singers past to present. At the break, Molly would announce and explain her movement, WE Are The Market Force. To help people shop local she will unveil the WE Bus, and look to the heavens as the coupons float down. Following the break, the band would move into a collection of upbeat songs from folk to contemporary country. When its over, the crowd (I envision thousands — more than the diminished population of the town) would be happy, excited and ready to rise up with Molly to save their town. Beyond the day. I envision the music component of Mollys movement to continue beyond that day as We Are The Market Force reaches beyond her town to others like it across the nation. Right now, I see Detroit in the mix. Mollys agent (yes, shell need one) will precede her to every town where a Market Force alliance plans a launch. Local musicians will be recruited, the kickoff will mirror the original event, and the campaign will remain locally-driven with Molly (and Mother Jones) as mentors. There will be many key factors in this story, but I think one of the most important will be the music theme. For this, I need help. I have made lots of noise with several instruments, but Im no musician. Nor am I a poet. At best, Im a lover of homemade music and avid supporter of local bands. Of course, the writer of that theme song will be the forever owner. He or she will be prominently credited in the book. But beyond that, I hope that this singer/songwriter will become a partner in a dream to extend the reach of this book from fiction to reality. Right away, I want this song to be heard on YouTube as being associated with the book and the movement. I dream of this song being performed at concerts and on stage by the singer/songwriter and other musicians who buy the rights from the songwriter. I even dream of the song (and others) being part of an audio book. I dream of it all having some impact on the future of our children in a kinder, gentler, happier time. What more can I say!?
Posted on: Sun, 03 Aug 2014 15:20:31 +0000
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