Seeds of Change

No Nukes! No Wars! CD

The Seeds of Change project documents some of the voices, music and poetry of six decades of resistance to nuclear weapons. From folk to hip hop, rock to spoken word, these artists weave a fabric of alternative possibilities. Each artist offers a unique perspective on empire, the bomb and the imperative to create social and political change. Tri-Valley CAREs (Communities Against a Radioactive Environment) is a Livermore-based nonprofit group that promotes peace, justice and a healthy environment. The group holds open monthly meetings and hosts numerous events, including the August 6, 2005 rally and march to the Livermore nuclear weapons lab.

CD Cover:

Artists Bios and Contact Information

Aztlan Underground
With a blend of hip hop, rock, and indigenous instruments, Los Angeles group Atzlan Underground spreads the message of dignity for Indigenous people, all of humanity, and Mother Earth. www.aztlanunderground.com.

Cesar Cruz
Cesar A. Cruz is an internationally renowned poet, educator and human rights activist. Mr. Cruz has dedicated his life to fighting injustice. His relentless drive and passion have touched the lives of many, and his writings have received praise from activists and scholars throughout the world. home.att.net/~teolol.

Clan Dyken
Clan Dyken are perhaps best known as the activist band that has played in clear cut forests, proposed nuke dumps, nuke test sites, Indian reservations, the Livermore nuclear weapons lab and many more cutting edge venues, often using solar generated electricity and/or plant fuels, for recording and performing. www.clandyken.com.

Company of Prophets
From the depths of Oakland's underground, Company of Prophets brings 5th dimensional tag-team lyricism to Hip Hop's fragile surface. Emcees Brutha Los and Rashidi Omari came to international attention in 1999, leading protest with song at the WTO protests in Seattle. www.companyofprophets.org.

Emma's Revolution
Emma's Revolution, made up of the award-winning, activist songwriting duo of Pat Humphries and Sandy O, is a musical uprising of truth and hope. www.emmasrevolution.com.

Entre Músicos
Entre Músicos creates positive music for the people, opposing the ills of capitalism and consumerism that have taken over society. Out of Berkeley, Entre Músicos brings together cumbia beats, hip hop flows, mariachi singing, Spanish rock riffs, reggae bass licks and psychedelic effects. www.entremusicos.org.

Fariba Mitzban
Fariba brings her "Sounds of the Desert" healing music and touch of magic to Livermore from Iran. She is a local business owner and has sung at major anti-war rallies promoting peace.

Foxglove
Foxglove is an improvisation trio from Berkeley, California. The music was composed and performed by PhoeBe ANNE (sorgen), Nicole Milner, and Edie Hartshorne. "Nuclear Lullaby" is a poem by David Chorlton. www.hartshorne.net/edie/.

Holly Gwinn Graham
Holly Gwinn Graham is a Pacific Northwest singer/songwriter, actress, director, improvisational storyteller, recording artist, and teacher of the arts. She is a devoted peace and justice activist with a long international career. www.hollygwinngraham.com.

Mr. Keijiro Matsushima
Mr. Matsushima is a hibakusha, an atomic bomb survivor. He is the former principle of a junior high school in Hiroshima. In 2005, he was part of the Hiroshima World Peace Mission, and in the spirit of reconciliation and peace, toured the Livermore and Los Alamos nuclear weapons labs. www.chugoku-np.co.jp/hwpm/e/index.html.

Mumia Abu-Jamal
Mumia Abu-Jamal is an award-winning Pennsylvania journalist who exposed police violence against minority communities. A political prisoner, on death row since 1982, Mumia continues to speak out against injustice and persists in being a strong "voice for the voiceless." www.prisonradio.org.

La Brava
La Brava is a co-host of KPFA's La Onda Bajita. She has contributed her music and poems to East L.A. musicians Quinto Sol and the Peace and Dignity Journeys CD compilation. www.kpfa.org/archives/music/archives.php?id=69.

Spearhead
Spearhead is a socially and politically conscious band that combines reggae, hip hop, and soul to unite people with compassion and understanding. In "Bomb the World," they illustrate the futility of war and the need to shift power back into the hands of the people. www.spearheadvibrations.com.

Tara Dorabji
Tara is the outreach director for Tri-Valley CAREs. She is a spoken word artist and has organized major actions at the Livermore nuclear weapons lab, including the August 6, 2005 "Seeds of Change" rally. www.trivalleycares.org.

Tatsumaki
Tatsumaki is a five member Japanese rock band from Nagasaki. They sing "The Ribbon" to abolish nuclear weapons. "The Ribbon" was written and composed by Kenichi Maki. After Kenichi's death, Tatsumaki has kept his vision for nuclear abolition and peace alive by continuing to sing his song. www.ceres.dti.ne.jp/~taturou/index4.htm

Utah Phillips
Bruce "U. Utah" Phillips is a politically-conscious folk singer/songwriter and master storyteller. Also known as the "Golden Voice of the Great Southwest," he tells stories of the people's history, depicting ways in which the world has been changed and inspiring listeners to participate in the process. www.utahphillips.org.

Universal Language
Universal Language is a musical melting pot, fusing traditional Latin music with grooves from all parts of the globe. With strong roots in Mexico, Israel, Italy and California, Universal Language has united realizing a pan cultural vision of unity through music. www.universallanguage.us

About the Seeds of Change CD Project

On August 6 and 9, 1945 the U.S. government unleashed the horror of nuclear war by dropping atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. This year, the U.S. budget for nuclear weapons activities is one and one-half times more than what was spent annually during the Cold War. New nuclear weapons are being sought for use in the open-ended U.S. "war on terror."

Livermore Lab, in the San Francisco Bay Area, is one of two locations that designs every nuclear weapon in the U.S. arsenal (the other is Los Alamos in New Mexico). For 60 years, the U.S. government has led the world in developing nuclear weapons of mass destruction. The hidden history of the bomb involves the contamination of communities across the nation and around the globe. Over 1,000 nuclear weapons have been detonated on Western Shoshone land in Nevada. Locally, one million curies of airborne radiation (roughly equivalent to the amount of radiation deposited by the atomic bombing of Hiroshima) have leaked from the Livermore Lab. Nuclear weapons pollute our air, our water, our land and our culture.

"Seeds of Change" reminds us of our positive, creative power. Our actions today plant the seeds of peace, growing the foundation for future generations. This foundation will one day create the abolition of nuclear weapons and end the wars for empire. Contact us at (925) 443-7148, or www.trivalleycares.org. Call Congress and ask them to stop developing nuclear bombs and clean-up the mess: (202) 224-3121. March, Sing, Write, Dance, Listen, and Speak. When we don't take action, it is complicity. Each of has power to help change the world.

Tri-Valley CAREs would like to thank the artists for their time, work and dedication to social justice. The compilation would not have been possible with out the kind donation of songs from the artists. The songs and specific opinions belong to the artists and reflect the views of the artists. All copyrights reserved for the artists.