Title: Peacenick
Artist: Zimmerman, Roy
Label: CD Baby
Product Type: COMPACT DISCS
UPC: 837101111409
Genre: Folk

What's funny about war, poverty, ignorance, bigotry, neo-conservatism, homophobia, greed, lust and fear? Ask Roy Zimmerman. He's been writing satirical songs for twenty years. The Los Angeles Times says, 'Zimmerman displays a lacerating wit and keen awareness of society's foibles that bring to mind a latter-day Tom Lehrer.' Tom Lehrer himself says, 'I congratulate Roy Zimmerman on reintroducing literacy to comedy songs. And the rhymes actually rhyme, they don't just 'rhyne.'' Joni Mitchell says, "Roy's lyrics move beyond poetry and acheive perfection." Zimmerman sings a compelling combination of headline-driven comedy and original music. It's Lenny Bruce meets Stephen Sondheim meets Ani DiFranco in Brian Wilson's living room. There's a decidedly Lefty slant to his lyrics. "We used to have a name for Right Wing satire, "he says. "We called it â€-cruelty.'" Zimmerman has played clubs across the country, and shared the stage with George Carlin, Bill Maher, Dennis Miller, Andy Borowitz and Paul Krassner. His up-to-the-moment topical songs are featured on American Public Media's syndicated broadcast 'Weekend America' and Sirius Radio's "West Coast Live." Zimmerman has just released his fourth album - a Christmas record called 'Peacenick' satirizing the pain, irony and absurdity of the Holiday Season. The disc includes the acerbic "Buy War Toys for Christmas," a Dylan-esque protest song, "Christmas is Pain" and a bald-faced attempt to lump all world cultures into one holiday, "Christma-Hanu-Rama-Ka-Dona-Kwanzaa." "Homeland" and "Security" are a twin pair of CD releases, containing 23 scathing Zimmerman originals like "Love Your Neighborhood Priest," "One World, One Bank," a "Multinational Anthem" and the breezy pop tune, "Kill a Doctor for Christ." Roy's first solo release was "Comic Sutra" featured the same-sex marriage anthem, "Defenders of Marriage" and "Punish the People," a happy-go-lucky paean to class warfare. Performing at New York City's Symphony Space during the 2004 Republican Convention, he drew this review from the New York Times: 'Roy Zimmerman lifted the evening from it's rut with his song 'Chicken Hawk,' ridiculing the military policies of Bush administration officials who didn't serve in the armed forces. Zimmerman's squawking and clucking conveyed his scorn with contagious irreverence." Zimmerman founded and wrote all the material for the comedy folk quartet The Foremen, who recorded four albums, two of them for Warner/Reprise Records. The Foremen toured extensively, playing the nation's major folk venues, a lot of fancy Progressive benefits, Pete Seeger's Clearwater Festival (under an overpass in the rain) and CBGB's. They even warmed up the crowd for President Bill Clinton. Zimmerman wrote over five hours of satire for the group. 'We never did it all at once,' he reports, 'but we kept it ready in case we had to filibuster.' The group was featured on NPR's 'All Things Considered,' and many other syndicated talk radio shows. They shared the air with Al Franken on NPR's 'Talk of the Nation.' They got to sing Zimmerman's lampoon of Oliver North, 'Ollie Ollie Off Scott Free' directly to the colonel himself on North's own syndicated show. 'Friends,' said North, 'this is a very weird group.' 'Firing the Surgeon General,' Zimmerman's song full of euphemisms for masturbation, was used in MTV's 'Sex in the Nineties' documentary. The LA Weekly reports, "Removed from the Foremen, Zimmerman writes considerably more caustic stuff,attacking personal politics as well as international." Ask Zimmerman about his influences, and have a pencil ready. Steeped in musical theatre, he was fascinated at an early age with the ingenious economy of Irving Berlin, the witty innuendo of Cole Porter and the high-wire rhyme and reason of Stephen Sondheim. You can hear the Beatles and the Beach Boys in there, but folk influences loom large as well -- Phil Ochs' unapologetic blend of humor and politics, the Wayfarers earnest Folk Era goofiness, Pete Seeger's unflagging commitment to social justice, The Roches' eccentric soulfulness. Bob Dylan is obviously in Roy's pantheon, but his favorite writers, tellingly, are Tom Lehrer for his hilarious and impeccably crafted topicality, Ani DiFranco for her marriage of brilliance and balls and Joni Mitchell for her seamless union of sound and sense. "There's nothing funny about World Peace," Roy observes. "Social Justice never killed at the Comedy Store. If we ever attain a worldwide consciousness of peace and justice, I'll be happily out of a job. But as long as power corrupts, I'll absolutely have a career." Zimmerman lives in Marin County with his wife and frequent co-writer Melanie Harby and their two boys. He's hard at work on a new album, 'Faulty Intelligence.' Zimmerman says, 'I hope this record gets good reviews, of course, but mostly I hope it gets denied under oath by Karl Rove.'

Tracks:
1.1 Buy War Toys for Christmas
1.2 Christma-Hanu-Rama-Ka-Dona-Kwanzaa
1.3 Christmas in Crawford, 2004
1.4 Christmas Is Pain
1.5 Jingle Bell Iraq
1.6 I Won't Be Home for Christmas
1.7 Peacenick
1.8 Two Brothers
1.9 Eggnog
1.10 Hula Yule
1.11 Nothing But the Best
1.12 When a Child Is Born