Pass the Peace Like We Used to Say

Soul Brother Number One!   You know who I'm talking about.   The Legendary James Brown!

I've been thinking about JB a lot lately because I feel like one of my engines is on fire...as in SOS.   I mean, how did he do what he did for year after year without burning out?   That's a lot of energy wrapped up inside some snug tailored suits.   Didn't he ever get tired?   Well, he feigned it sometimes.

Exhibit A:

Not to say that I'm laying down all of those slick moves during a school day, but I sure am beat when the children leave.   I like to imagine that someone comes and puts a cape on me when I feel like I can't go on.   Mine is made out of flannel or terry cloth, and you know it's machine washable.   Otherwise, I'd just fret about getting it dirty and paying the dry cleaning bill.

Lately some of my work stress has also made me wake up in the middle of the night in...you guessed it...a cold sweat.

Oooooooooooh.    Heh.

But not in a good way.

But enough about me, back to JB.

Have you been looking for a way to fit James Brown into your classroom studies?

If you are studying the civil rights movement, I think he fits just fine.

It's April 5, 1968, the day after Dr. Martin Luther King was gunned down during his visit to Memphis where he was supporting the local sanitation workers' strike.   Riots were boiling in cities across America, including Boston.   Boston's Roxbury and South End areas to be specific.

Brown was scheduled to perform at the Boston Garden, 

but would it cause the violence to escalate further?   

The mayor was unsure.   Should the show go on?   

It did.

It was broadcast on television too, and looped repeatedly through the night.

According to History.com, the crime rate was even less than a normal Friday night in Boston.

Here's the set list.

The sound isn't great, but you can catch the concert below.

Here's a better sounding version of one of the songs he performed that night.   

That's life, people.   We gotta pick ourselves up, cape optional, and get back in the race.

Get on the good foot, y'all!

Encore?

Yes.

You can't listen to this and feel bad for too long.