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Song for Ferguson

by An Historic

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1.
Had a craving for the taste of blood for the last few years, since I crawled out of the mud Seems these days I want it more and more turn the TV on, have to pick myself off the floor Spent the last few months clenching my teeth When I get sick it feels like relief Sometimes I’m picking a fight when I sing but there’s too much rage, I can’t do nothing But Oh I can’t believe it You heard the audio they caught him breathing his last how quick you forget the past how short your memory It makes me wonder when will the thunder come it makes me wonder when we won’t have to run I know that I am lucky to still be breathing I got arrested once and didn’t even catch a beating Hold my breath a lot to keep down the stress only works sometimes, don't know what to do with the rest I could never put my faith in a system or a god that could not recognize his many flaws Sometimes I’m picking a fight when I sing but there’s too much rage, I can’t do nothing but oh I can’t believe it another killer with a badge and his freedom I know my wallet could be a gun even with hands above my head It makes me wonder when will the thunder come We're going under Twenty eight hours gone
2.

about

This album is released as a Pay-What-You-Can download. All proceeds from the sale of this release will be donated to the St. Louis Area Foodbank, which has been helping to address the food desert conditions of Ferguson, MO in the last several months.

I began writing this song on Monday night after the grand jury decision was announced. Like many, I was overwhelmed by anger and pain, but in my heart I knew I was expecting this, despite the valiant efforts of protestors in Ferguson and many on the Internet trying to keep attention on the story and expose the corruption of the Ferguson police department and the legal apparatus that led us to this point.

This keeps happening, and with increasing frequency, and there continues to be no accountability in this. As a light-skinned black man I am relatively lucky to have avoided a lot of the harassment and violence that has left us with so many dead Black children, women and men - victims both of police aggression and of vigilantism that refuses to recognize the humanity of Black Americans across this country. The murder of Michael Brown is only an exception with regards to media coverage, the way Travyon Martin's murder was - and even still, most coverage is slanted against the victims and against the people rallying in their memory. So many more murders like this go completely uncovered and forgotten by the media - and even more so when you factor in intersections of identity, as with the many stomach-turning cases of violence against Black transgender women. This is not just a Southern issue or a Midwestern issue, as many people believe in various places I've lived in the Northeastern US. I wrote this song to reflect on this situation and my position in it, and I've posted the lyrics in the individual song page to be 100% clear on what I mean.

The album also includes a cover of "Strange Fruit", penned by Abel Meeropol and made famous with versions by Billie Holiday and Nina Simone. The song was written in reaction to the climate of lynching of Black Americans in the 1930s, and continues to be relevant today - it is hard not to draw parallels between the lynchings of the Jim Crow era, and the extrajudicial murders of Black Americans in the present day. The statistics are indicating that they happen at about the same rate, and are punished about as infrequently.

Thank you for reading and listening.

credits

released November 28, 2014

An Historic is:
Adam Matlock - Accordion, Voice, Percussion, Guitar, Glockenspiel, Viola

"Song for Ferguson" written by Adam Matlock, 2014. Dedicated to Michael Brown, Jr., VonDerrit Myers, Deandre Joshua, and the countless other Black victims of police brutality nationwide.

"Strange Fruit" written by Abel Meeropol, 1937.

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An Historic New Haven

The home for the music of Adam Matlock, his songwriting alias An Historic, and his electronic project GZARA (fka G. Zarapanecko).

All music composed by Adam Matlock unless otherwise indicated. For all related projects, visit adammatlock.bandcamp.com

Contact: mystaltree@gmail.com
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