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Artists participating in "Votefir Change" concerts include Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band; R.E.M.;
John Fogerty; Bright Eyes; Dixie Chicks; James Taylor; Pearl Jam; Death Cab for Cutie; Dave Matthews Band;
Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals; Jurassic 5; My Morning Jacket; Bonnie Raitt; Jackson Browne; Keb Mo';
John Mellencamp; and Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds.

Voter obilization

Bands jam in bat eground states to get people to the polls.

LYNNE KONSTANTIN

Special to the Jewish News

I

t is through the truthful exercising of the best of human
qualities — respect for others, honesty about ourselves,
faith in our ideals — that we come to life in God's eyes,"
wrote Bruce Springsteen in "Chords for Change," an Op-Ed
piece published in the New York Times on Aug. 5. "It is how our
soul, as a nation and as individuals, is revealed. Our American
government has strayed too far from American values. It is time
to move forward. The country we carry in our hearts is wait-
ing."
Always one to speak his mind on issues ranging from home-
lessness to the Iraq war — while at the same time managing to
stay out of the partisan political arena — the singer-songwriter
has now co-initiated a first-of-its-kind weeklong concert tour of
nine electoral swing states, including Michigan, under the
umbrella "Vote for Change."
In an effort to unseat the Bush administration in November's
election, Dave Matthews, Pearl Jam, Babyface, John
Mellencamp, James Taylor, the Dixie Chicks and more will per-

form without pay in simultaneous concerts in Michigan on Oct.
3 at various venues, including the Fox Theatre in Detroit, the
Palace of Auburn Hills and the Delta Plex in Grand Rapids.
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will appear with John
Fogerty, R.E.M., and Bright Eyes at Detroit's Cobo Arena.
Each artist will differ in how much his concert will focus on
the election, and each may have different reasons for participat-
ing.
Bonnie Raitt, for example, who will appear with Jackson
Browne at East Lansing's Wharton Center, says, "I want to see
Americans everywhere honor those who have fought and died
for our right to vote by getting out to the polls on Election Day.
Democracy only works if we work it."
According to Springsteen, however, all have one common
goal: "to change the direction of the government and change the
current administration come November."
To that end, Springsteen and his longtime manager, Jon
Landau, a former Rolling Stone music critic, began discussing
how they "wanted to do something this election season,"

VOTER MOBILIZATION

on page 50

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