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Give Peace a Chance: Music and the Struggle for Peace: A Catalog of the Exhibition at the Peace Museum, Chicago
122 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1983
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March 27, 2024Note: this is my book report assignment for class haha
“Give Peace a Chance: Music and the Struggle for Peace: A Catalog of the Exhibition at the Peace Museum, Chicago” is a collection of essays, interviews, and photographs documenting artistic and musical movements for peace in the mid-20th century. I ended up reading the entire book on the day we were assigned to complete the book report assignment, and not only thoroughly enjoyed the reading, but delved deeper into the music mentioned as well. The collection paints a fascinating picture of the role of artists, specifically musicians, in activism and social critique. As someone who enjoys folk and rock music to begin with, I had a fantastic time taking lyrics mentioned in the text and listening to the songs and albums that inspired these interpretations.
The most poignant point that I took away from the text was this repeated emphasis on the role of an artist in the social view of political movements. John Lennon commented on it in his interviews, discussing how his appearance contributed to a distance from the more clinical look of politicians speaking out at the time, whether for or against an anti-war cause. Bono Vox mentioned this concept as well, stating that “revolution starts at home, in your heart…” (p. 58). To understand one's political responsibility as someone talking out about social issues, an artist has to first connect with their audience on a personal level. To seek community and understanding with an audience is to remove the distance that is created with censorship and sterilization. Each artist mentioned in this text tackles that in a different way, coming back to the inspiration and personal connection that music brings.
I also resonated with the way history was brought into play, especially for the time this text was written. Watching it specify and depict the origins of protest music was fascinating, as it went into a good amount of detail regarding both the movements’ origins and the place where many of their themes originate.
Overall, I believe this text was a great documentation of the artists of this show, and their perspectives on the role of an artist in promoting peace.
5 Things I Learned:
1. Less of a distinct fact, but I’ve honestly never been super interested in the Beatles (definitely more of a Beach Boys guy), and I was surprised to hear about John Lennon’s life and honestly how bold he was about his beliefs and views. His commentary on religion/God was also very interesting.
2. Moreover, I was surprised to learn about the attempts to get him deported, which was a story I’ve never heard about. It really does put a lot of things in perspective, especially with the other things that were going on behind closed doors in that time period with the U.S. Government’s actions against activism.
3. I learned a lot of interesting things about the adaptation of protest songs into the songs that became popular at the time, and the cultures they came from.
4. On a lighter note: I was given a bunch of new music to listen to! (I made a playlist of all 80+ songs mentioned in the collection by name, and spent some time sitting with them and listening to the pieces discussed.) I definitely learned, in a sense, about each of these artists and enjoyed getting to know their values in their own words, both in the ones they have spoken/written and in the ones they’ve sung.
5. I didn’t actually know anything about the Peace Sunday event, and it was amazing to hear and read about. (Bonus: hearing about the use of “Give Peace A Chance” in a protest setting was particularly captivating.)
5 Questions I Have:
1. What sort of opposition did the documentation of this event face?
2. What comparable artists stemmed from these specific ideals?
3. Further, what movements today can be linked directly to the waves made by this group of artists?
4. How have folk and rock musicians following this movement shifted their focuses, if at all?
5. What can we do as artists to reclaim the sense of personality and motivation generated by these creators?
3 Books I Want to Read:
1. I’ve been meaning to read Bono’s “Surrender” for a bit now, and this has definitely motivated me to look more into it.
2. “Lennon on Lennon: Conversations with John Lennon.” I really enjoyed his voice and the topics he touched on, and would love to read more things of that nature.
3. “Where Are Your Boys Tonight: The Oral History of Emo’s Mainstream Explosion 1999-2008” by Chris Payne. I started this book a bit ago but put it down, it’s edited in a similar way to some segments from this book, with interview snippets making up the full body of the volume. I’m definitely thinking about picking it back up now, since I’m thinking a lot about an artist’s role in identity and activism, and much of “emo” music stems from grappling with these larger societal topics.
“Give Peace a Chance: Music and the Struggle for Peace: A Catalog of the Exhibition at the Peace Museum, Chicago” is a collection of essays, interviews, and photographs documenting artistic and musical movements for peace in the mid-20th century. I ended up reading the entire book on the day we were assigned to complete the book report assignment, and not only thoroughly enjoyed the reading, but delved deeper into the music mentioned as well. The collection paints a fascinating picture of the role of artists, specifically musicians, in activism and social critique. As someone who enjoys folk and rock music to begin with, I had a fantastic time taking lyrics mentioned in the text and listening to the songs and albums that inspired these interpretations.
The most poignant point that I took away from the text was this repeated emphasis on the role of an artist in the social view of political movements. John Lennon commented on it in his interviews, discussing how his appearance contributed to a distance from the more clinical look of politicians speaking out at the time, whether for or against an anti-war cause. Bono Vox mentioned this concept as well, stating that “revolution starts at home, in your heart…” (p. 58). To understand one's political responsibility as someone talking out about social issues, an artist has to first connect with their audience on a personal level. To seek community and understanding with an audience is to remove the distance that is created with censorship and sterilization. Each artist mentioned in this text tackles that in a different way, coming back to the inspiration and personal connection that music brings.
I also resonated with the way history was brought into play, especially for the time this text was written. Watching it specify and depict the origins of protest music was fascinating, as it went into a good amount of detail regarding both the movements’ origins and the place where many of their themes originate.
Overall, I believe this text was a great documentation of the artists of this show, and their perspectives on the role of an artist in promoting peace.
5 Things I Learned:
1. Less of a distinct fact, but I’ve honestly never been super interested in the Beatles (definitely more of a Beach Boys guy), and I was surprised to hear about John Lennon’s life and honestly how bold he was about his beliefs and views. His commentary on religion/God was also very interesting.
2. Moreover, I was surprised to learn about the attempts to get him deported, which was a story I’ve never heard about. It really does put a lot of things in perspective, especially with the other things that were going on behind closed doors in that time period with the U.S. Government’s actions against activism.
3. I learned a lot of interesting things about the adaptation of protest songs into the songs that became popular at the time, and the cultures they came from.
4. On a lighter note: I was given a bunch of new music to listen to! (I made a playlist of all 80+ songs mentioned in the collection by name, and spent some time sitting with them and listening to the pieces discussed.) I definitely learned, in a sense, about each of these artists and enjoyed getting to know their values in their own words, both in the ones they have spoken/written and in the ones they’ve sung.
5. I didn’t actually know anything about the Peace Sunday event, and it was amazing to hear and read about. (Bonus: hearing about the use of “Give Peace A Chance” in a protest setting was particularly captivating.)
5 Questions I Have:
1. What sort of opposition did the documentation of this event face?
2. What comparable artists stemmed from these specific ideals?
3. Further, what movements today can be linked directly to the waves made by this group of artists?
4. How have folk and rock musicians following this movement shifted their focuses, if at all?
5. What can we do as artists to reclaim the sense of personality and motivation generated by these creators?
3 Books I Want to Read:
1. I’ve been meaning to read Bono’s “Surrender” for a bit now, and this has definitely motivated me to look more into it.
2. “Lennon on Lennon: Conversations with John Lennon.” I really enjoyed his voice and the topics he touched on, and would love to read more things of that nature.
3. “Where Are Your Boys Tonight: The Oral History of Emo’s Mainstream Explosion 1999-2008” by Chris Payne. I started this book a bit ago but put it down, it’s edited in a similar way to some segments from this book, with interview snippets making up the full body of the volume. I’m definitely thinking about picking it back up now, since I’m thinking a lot about an artist’s role in identity and activism, and much of “emo” music stems from grappling with these larger societal topics.
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