On Saturday, December 26th, 50+ artists and hundreds of thousands of viewers around the world came together for Georgia Comes Alive, a virtual music festival aimed at promoting voter participation in Georgia’s critical Senate runoff elections on January 5th, 2021.
One of the many world-renowned acts to take part in the nine-hour livestream was acclaimed gospel group The Blind Boys of Alabama, the long-running musical institution born in 1939 as the school chorus at the Alabama Institute for the Negro Deaf and Blind in Talladega, Alabama. For their Georgia Comes Alive performance, The Blind Boys of Alabama delivered an inspiring version of Pete Seeger and Lee Hays‘ 1949 folk tune, “If I Had A Hammer”.
The song has been covered by a number of notable artists over the years ranging from Johnny Cash to Sam Cooke, and would become a freedom anthem sung by progressive activists during the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s. The Blind Boys of Alabama, who are Grammy Lifetime Achievement honorees with an impressive musical legacy in their own right, sing the song with enough spunk and energy to make the listener feel like the tune was released just yesterday, as the members take turns trading off vocal lines while their backing band brings the music alive behind them. The folk music of the American south is still alive and thriving with iconic acts like The Blind Boys of Alabama keeping the flame of rebellious musical spirit burning heading into the new decade.
Relive the group’s performance of “If I Had A Hammer” from Georgia Comes Alive in the video below. If you enjoyed the show and have the means, consider donating to Georgia grassroots voter organizations via GeorgiaComesAlive.com. Subscribe to the Live For Live Music YouTube channel for more Georgia Comes Alive videos.
The Blind Boys Of Alabama – “If I Had A Hammer” – Georgia Comes Alive
The Blind Boys of Alabama joined 50+ other performers and speakers as part of Georgia Comes Alive, presented by Live For Live Music in partnership with voter registration nonprofit HeadCount. The marathon streaming event, powered by Nugs.TV and Plus 1, generated more than $160,000 in funds for organizations like CivicGeorgia and Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda that are putting in work on the ground to get Georgians out to the polls. For more information, head here. For more information on Georgia Comes Alive, or to donate to CivicGeorgia and Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda, visit GeorgiaComesAlive.com.