[Denver] -- For the 40th anniversary of the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, activists are using Graham Nash's famous song "Chicago" as a rallying cry for protesters to come to the DNC in Denver in August. On their tour stop in Denver recently, Crosby, Stills and Nash played "Denver" to a packed house and dedicated their performance of the song to Colorado Governor Bill Ritter, who was in the audience.
Graham Nash's original song, called "Chicago", contained the lyrics "Won't you please come to Chicago?" and "We can change the world, rearrange the world." These choruses rang out as anthems for young people who were fed up with the draft and the war in Vietnam. Unfortunately, the song was released in 1971, well after the 1968 convention. So although the song sounds like a call to the masses to converge on Chicago in 1968 and protest the war, it was never able to be used for this purpose.
Colorado activists saw the opportunity to use this song as a rallying cry for the 2008 DNC in Denver. With Graham Nash's permission, a local Colorado band called Freedom Kage was enlisted to re-record the song. They changed only the words from "Won't you please come to Chicago?" to "Won't you please come up to Denver?" The accompanying video, recorded on April 20, 2008, contains scenes from the 1968 DNC in Chicago, as well as a cut from Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley to Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper.
When the Crosby, Stills and Nash tour stopped in Denver at the Colorado Convention Center on June 26, they performed "Denver" for the first time. At David Crosby's suggestion, Graham Nash slyly dedicated it to Governor Bill Ritter, who was in the audience. The Governor's office had no comment on how the Governor felt about Crosby, Stills and Nash using their song to encourage protesters to converge on Denver for the 2008 DNC. Even though all the protest groups involved have pledged to act in a non-violent manner, the city is spending up to $18 million on security equipment and non-lethal weapons for the DNC, raising fears that the law enforcement is looking for trouble, as they were at the 1968 DNC.
© 2008