About Peace Not War :: Volume One

The Peace Not War CD has grown from a burned-CD production in an East London living room to a double-album with American, Australian and UK bands as diverse as Ms Dynamite, Ani DiFranco, Public Enemy, Asian Dub Foundation and a reformed Crass, distributed by Shellshock in 18 countries and raising over £20,000 for UK peace groups. A simple idea became an international production through the support given by so many musicians, managers and record companies, who each waived their royalties. The War On Terror marks the rebirth of protest music, far more prolific than the recordings of the Vietnam era. BILLY BRAGG: "Protest music was prematurely declared to be unfashionable: hearing these songs might help people who feel ambiguous about it make a conscious decision to oppose the war." CRASS: "There is no time for people to become complacent and withdraw - this is just the beginning."

The Peace Not War CD is as grass roots as it gets: produced and funded by Australian musicians Kelly and Mudge, with help from a handful of friends but without any support from an organization. Their independence has meant that the broad spectrum of peace groups could be fairly funded and radical lyrical content could not be censored, although their lack of resources has been challenging. With no record label and no promotional budget, the word had to be spread by peace groups, and by DJs and stores who simply liked the music and the cause. JOHN PILGER: "The Peace Not War CD is vital to the grass roots opposition to war, conquest and occupation. Censorship of anti-war music by the BBC, MTV and other media is all the more reason for doing it yourself."

Read Reviews of Peace Not War :: Volume One

• Amazon.co.uk - Customer Review :: 4/5
• Amazon.co.uk - Customer Reviews :: 5/5, 5/5
• Amazon.com - Customer Review :: 5/5
• Amazon.com - Customer Reviews :: 4/5, 4/5, 3/5
• PopMatters.com - Review by David Antrobus
• Socialist Review - Review by Tom Whittaker