River Songs to Save Salmon

Buy a CD and save some salmon. Artist4Action’s latest effort to solve environmental problems through creative collaboration is Songs for the River, and the CD features an array of songs from local favorite David Jacobs-Strain’s “Ocean or a Teardrop” to songs by national stars Jackson Browne, Ani Di Franco, Don Henley and more.

Cat Koehn of Arists4Action says she sent letters and called musicians, asking them to donate the use of their river songs for the cause. “Pete Seeger called us up the moment he got the letter. One of the thrills of my whole life was talking to Pete Seeger,” she says. Proceeds from the CD’s sales for the next four years will go directly to Columbia Riverkeeper’s efforts to save Northwest salmon.

Koehn says there’s no more complex a problem than dams and salmon in the Northwest right now. “We will not accept extinction as an option,” she adds.

She points to removing dams on the Snake River as “a concrete thing that many, many environmental groups have been pushing for a long time.” Those dams, Koehn says, benefit few people but harm many salmon, and the fight against their removal “shows the recalcitrant nature of the vested interests that have a lot of money.”

She hopes Artists4Action’s efforts will springboard the prominence of the salmon issue and “get public some understanding so that they can advocate for the biologically sustainable thing.”

Songs for the River has its first CD release party 7 pm Sunday, Feb. 17, at Cozmic featuring performances by David Jacobs-Strain and other artists, and sales of the new CD. For more on the salmon issue go to http://Artists4Action.org

A Note From the Publisher

Dear Readers,

The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.

That’s because of you!

Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.

Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.

We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.

And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.

None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.

As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.

Thank you for standing with us!