Paranoid Xenophobic Bigoted Racism

A Jewish friend of mine just posted something about not accepting refugees because she was certain there were terrorists among them. (This of course has been the rallying cry of the Christian conservatives all week) I called her out immediately for being a paranoid xenophobic bigoted racist.

It's the 4 word combination that is truly needed to encapsulate what is going on right now in this country. It's not at all about security. It's about fear, ignorance, and hatred of those who are 'different'. This is the shit that leads up to genocide! But good luck wiping out those 1.5 billion Muslims you hate. Maybe haters should just go back to killing Jews. My people were a much smaller and easier target. And we had to suffer this same xenophobic bullshit from America during WWII when we were fleeing the Nazis. In fact (and you can google this) America turned one of the ships full of Jewish refugees back to Europe and many of those refugees went straight to the concentration camps to be exterminated by Hitler, so thanks America for that move!

If you are an American who is more worried about the 'potential' for terrorism arriving in the form of helping Syrian refugees than you are worried about the millions of armed angry white conservative right-wing Christian male terrorists ALREADY HERE KILLING who cling to a radical ideology no better or worse than that of ISIS and have been desperately working towards instituting a Christian brand of Sharia law, the self-righteous murderers who slaughter tens of thousands of innocent American men, women, and children every single year in terrorist attacks that are well-funded and directly sponsored by the NRA and the GOP... Well you are the problem, not the Syrian refugees. And shame on you and your radical ideology for making my home country one of the least safe I spend time in.

Chew on that, America.

We're The Same ©2015 Russell Wolff

After 48 hours of hell, very little sleep, a batch of frustrated songs not fit to share, this one was waiting for me this morning. I know the title is similar to another recent one I wrote. Anyway, I promised Jill Courtney​ I would post it. For victims of terror around the globe. For friends, family, and loved ones.

My friends in Paris

My friends in Paris are finally accounted for. So many others are not. There are people I know in that list of souls even if I couldn't remember names. One friend, Maya Thomas, was in fact asleep and learned of the tragedy in the morning. I wish she kept her phone on!!! Here was my reaction learning Maya was ok: Fucking hell that is a relief. My love to her and to all of Paris. To friends and family. I feel more determined than ever now to return to your city. To play guitar on the bridge next to the Cathedral of Notre Dame. To perform again at Chair De Poule. I will try and get back to sleep now. Thank you for the update! 

Attached is one of the happiest moments of my life, playing in Paris around the corner from the massacres in a small club called Chair De Poule. I remember the drummer being a fan of heavier rock. The guys didn't speak English and I didn't speak French. But music is a universal language. I met them 10 minutes before we went onstage. If you recognize these guys, please let me know if they are ok! Theo Olivier might. I think Rachel Lynn Sebastianwas singing backup though tough to hear in the video. It was all adrenaline, friends, and plenty of French wine that night! 

There was another singer with us that night from SF living in Paris but I cannot find her info.

A promise broken

I promised my rockstar shrink I would stay positive on Facebook this week, and even in this post I am trying to. But... terrorists are awful!!! It's so frustrating. They ruin the entire world for the rest of us. I get it. I understand why they are so angry. I know what they grew up being taught about Americans and Jews. I understand how powerful and tempting indoctrination into ANY cult or religion can be. But I cannot excuse this evil. Nor can I remain silent when it is so blatant.

On behalf of America, I continue to be deeply sorry that we as a nation slaughtered a million or so innocent Arab civilians in the Middle East during the Iraq/Afghanistan wars. Nothing I can say or do will change that or bring them back. But whether it is gun-toting 'licensed' Americans killing people right in our neighborhoods with handguns, or foreign cells of bombers and shooters in Beirut and Paris, or all the recent stabbings in Jerusalem, this world needs to take a long slow deep breath and figure out a better way to communicate. 

Terrorism and murder is in fact a form of communication, but of the worst possible kind. I don't have the answers, but I have reached out to close friends in Paris... I was VERY grateful to hear back from one of them while typing the name of his city. Theo is ok. But there are many more I am thinking of this evening. At 42, I am still an atheist and can't personally imagine any other belief system. I know that so many terrorists (of ALL religions) kill in the name of their god. But here's the thing, world: If ANY god actually exists, it's the same one for you, for me, for all of us. ‪#‎Peace‬ ‪#‎Love‬  ‪#‎Paris‬ ‪#‎France‬ ‪#‎Beirut‬‪#‎Lebanon‬ ‪#‎Jerusalem‬ ‪#‎Israel‬

Up for 4 GRAMMYS!!!

Well, friends and colleagues, ‪#‎GRAMMY‬ voting season is upon us. I couldn't possibly be more humbled and honored to have an album I worked my soul to the bone to make be considered for a GRAMMY in 4 categories!!! For my GRAMMY VOTER friends out there, no nepotism is requested here, simply your ears, a little time and consideration, then your vote if you deem it worthy. ‪#‎NARAS‬

For my #GRAMMY voter friends, we have simplified the method you can listen to the #JamesWolpert record #TheEntireCity at this link. #ForYourConsideration #NARAS It is on the Grammy Ballot in these categories:

Entry #: 46198 Artist: James Wolpert
Title: The Entire City Category: 2. #AlbumOfTheYear

Entry #: 46202 Artist: James Wolpert
Title: The Entire City Category: 15. #BestRockAlbum

Entry #: 46212 Artist: James Wolpert
Title: The Entire City Category: 69. #ProducerOfTheYear, Non-Classical

Entry #: 46227 Artist: James Wolpert
Title: The Entire City Category: 4. #BestNewArtist

VOTING ENDS NEXT WEEK!!!

james-wolpert-the-entire-city

Jerusalem 2015

ISRAEL - once a foreign country, now a second home. Though I have only spent a relatively short time there over a couple of trips, I am forever bound to that land; connected by blood and by people. It is as if I went through the first 39 years of my life not knowing I had a twin brother, but upon meeting him, we felt inseparable. We celebrate each other's joys, we mourn each other's pain and losses.

The violence in Jerusalem is horrifying and impossible for me to ignore. As Hillary Clinton pointed out during the Democratic debate, 90 Americans will die today at the hands of gun violence in America. In Jerusalem this week, far fewer Jews and Arabs will die from the recent violence and renewed terrorist attacks. However, Israel is a country smaller than the size of New Jersey, the state where I got Bar Mitzvah'd. And the fact that terror attacks are occurring once again with frequency is disturbing in and of itself.

Every life counts in Israel. At this point, Jews make up less than one quarter of one percent of the world’s population. That's right, 0.22%. We can't afford to lose any more of them.

I have friends, many close friends, who otherwise agree with me on most issues, but who proclaim that the Jewish State of Israel should not exist and the Jews (who originated on that land and who have inhabited it consistently for thousands of years) should 'go home', 'leave', 'go back to where they came from' etc. However, these people seem unable to face the reality of what has happened to the Jews over the last 5000 years. And I can't say I blame them… It's a pretty lousy story. Not the fun stuff you bring to a campfire.

The Jewish people have been persecuted in and banished from everywhere they have lived on this planet. And early in the last century, at the urging of the British who were in control of the land of the time, Jews returned to the land they started their journey in thousands of years earlier. We 'returned home'. But, not only did Jews return there, they improved it: with agriculture, with industry, and with jobs. And to this day, Israel remains the freest country on the planet for the Arab people. These are facts. Simple as they are complex. There are 22 Arab nations surrounding Israel, some of whom’s governments have vowed to annihilate us. Most of today's Palestinians originated in a few of those countries. From what I understand, mostly from Syria, Jordan, and Egypt. I would never suggest sending them 'back home'. But I do know one thing with every ounce of my being: If any group of people on the planet has endured enough to deserve a tiny nation where they can live freely, it is the Jewish people.

My friend Sarah Tuttle-Singer wrote last week in The Times of Israel 'the Jews are not going anywhere. The Arabs are not going anywhere'. No one should have to leave their home. But, the violence going on in Israel right now is painful to endure. For Sarah and her family, for Ofer, Yael and all her family, for Hadar and her family, for Oz, for Ronen and his family, for my friends Deryn & Oshrat . For so many of my friends facing terror on a daily basis now just for being Jewish and existing. I wish there was something I could do or say to make it easier. To retrain the minds of those who hate so passionately. If there was some way I could take their passion for murder and genocide and convert that to something positive, I would do it.

Israel and my cherished friends there, Jewish and Arab alike, my heart aches for you tonight. I share your tears, your pain, your suffering. I wish I could take it all away. I hold tight to my Star of David tonight and as it weighs heavily on my chest, I hold you all firmly close to my heart. That one-of-a-kind Star found in the Shuk in Jerusalem with Risa, Felicia & Joel. The one that I desperately tried to find for Eden. I close my eyes, and I am there with you all. Protecting you to the best of my ability.

With undying love and deep concern,
Russell

Recording Studio Rockstars with Lij Shaw

Honored! I have done many interviews in my life, but this one with the brilliant Lij Shawis by far my favorite. Honored to be featured on the #1 ‪#‎Podcast‬ on ‪#‎Apple‬‪#‎iTunes‬. ‪#‎RecordingStudioRockstars‬ We were delirious at the end of summer NAMM but on a Sunday morning, we got together and this happened:

http://recordingstudiorockstars.com/5/