Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur

Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur
Compilation album by Various artists
Released June 12, 2007
Genre Rock, pop
Label Warner Bros./Amnesty International/Art for Amnesty
Producer Jeff Ayeroff, Larry Cox & Bill Shipsey (Executive Producers)
Helen Garrett, Vanessa Moss, Robin Raj, Karen Schneider & Julie Yannatta (Co-Executive Producers)
Individual Song Production Credits Listed Below
Singles from Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur
  1. "#9 Dream"
    Released: March 13, 2007
  2. "Whatever Gets You thru the Night"
    Released: April 17, 2007
  3. "Working Class Hero"
    Released: May 1, 2007
  4. "Instant Karma!"
    Released: June 30, 2007[1]
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [2]
Rolling Stone [3]

Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur is a compilation album of various artists covering songs of John Lennon to benefit Amnesty International's campaign to alleviate the crisis in Darfur. The album and campaign is part of Amnesty International's global "Make Some Noise" project.

Release

The rights to Lennon's songs and music publishing royalties were donated to Amnesty International by Yoko Ono. Amnesty International utilized the songs to start the "Make Some Noise" project, which later led to the subsidiary campaign "Instant Karma." Eventually, enough momentum was achieved through the project to amount to an album.

This album will be used to harness the power of Lennon's music to inspire a new generation of activists to stand up for human rights.[4]

"It's wonderful that, through this campaign, music that is so familiar to many people of my era will now be embraced by a whole new generation," Ono says. "John's music set out to inspire change, and in standing up for human rights, and selling more records, we really can make the world a better place."[4]

Larry Cox, executive director of Amnesty International U.S.A., added, "We know music's power to unite and inspire people. With hundreds of thousands dead, millions driven from their burned out villages and rape being used as a tactic in the Darfur conflict, the world needs a mass mobilization demanding action and justice. The "Instant Karma" campaign combines John Lennon's passionate desire for us to imagine a more peaceful world with Amnesty International's expertise in achieving justice. "Instant Karma" allows ordinary people to lend their hand in saving lives—a notion we think would make John proud."[4]

"John Lennon was not just a famous Beatle, he was the social conscience of his generation," says Jeff Ayeroff, one of the album's executive producers. "By reinterpreting his music and reintroducing it to a new generation, we shine a light on the darkness that is Darfur. Yoko Ono's gift of John's music to Amnesty International, whose work points out the pain and injustice in the world, is a true beacon of light. Give peace a chance is all we are saying." [4]

Proceeds from CD and digital sales will support Amnesty International and its campaign to focus attention and mobilize activism around the urgent catastrophe in Darfur, and other human rights crises.[4] It was released in the U.S. on June 12 and the U.K. on June 25, 2007.

The digital version of the album made it to #1 on iTunes in Portugal, Ireland, Greece, Denmark and Luxembourg. The physical album made it to #1 in Ireland and Mexico. As of July 13, 2007 it had certified Gold Status in Italy and Ireland. As of July 11, 2007, the album has sold 107,689 copies in the US.

Track listings

US

Disc One

# Title Performer(s) Producer(s) Time
1 "Instant Karma!" U2 Larry Mullen, Jr. and Tal Herzberg 3:14
2 "#9 Dream" R.E.M. David Barbe & R.E.M. 4:38
3 "Mother" Christina Aguilera (featuring Bigelf) Linda Perry 4:48
4 "Give Peace a Chance" Aerosmith featuring Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars Marti Frederiksen 4:35
5 "Cold Turkey" Lenny Kravitz Lenny Kravitz 4:43
6 "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night" Los Lonely Boys Los Lonely Boys 3:35
7 "I'm Losing You" Corinne Bailey Rae Steve Chrisanthou 4:01
8 "Gimme Some Truth" Jakob Dylan featuring Dhani Harrison Tony Berg 3:53
9 "Oh, My Love" Jackson Browne Jackson Browne 2:39
10 "Imagine" Avril Lavigne Butch Walker 3:12
11 "Nobody Told Me" Big & Rich Adam Shoenfeld 3:30
12 "Jealous Guy" Youssou N'Dour Prince N'Dour 3:59

Disc Two

# Title Performer(s) Producer(s) Time
1 "Working Class Hero" Green Day Green Day 4:25
2 "Power to the People" Black Eyed Peas Will.I.Am 3:35
3 "Imagine" Jack Johnson Jack Johnson & Robert Carranza 3:40
4 "Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)" Ben Harper Ben Harper 3:48
5 "Isolation" Snow Patrol Garrett "Jacknife" Lee 2:36
6 "Watching the Wheels" Matisyahu David Kahne 3:19
7 "Grow Old with Me" The Postal Service Jimmy Tamborello & Benjamin Gibbard 2:30
8 "Gimme Some Truth" Jaguares Saúl Hernández, Alfonso André & Adrian Belew 3:08
9 "(Just Like) Starting Over" The Flaming Lips The Flaming Lips 3:36
10 "God" Jack's Mannequin featuring Mick Fleetwood Jim Wirt, Andrew McMahon & Robert "Raw" Anderson 4:20
11 "Real Love" Regina Spektor Regina Spektor & Joe Mendelson 3:57
Borders Exclusive Bonus Tracks

(Only available on the special edition of the album courtesy of Borders on Disc Two)

# Title Performer(s) Time
12 "Imagine" Willie Nelson 3:33
13 "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" Angelique Kidjo 3:04
iTunes Digital Bonus Tracks

(Only available for download on the expanded iTunes edition of the album)

# Title Performer(s) Time
1 "Instant Karma!" Duran Duran 3:56
2 "Jealous Guy" Deftones 4:07
3 "Mind Games" Gavin Rossdale 4:13
4 "Oh My Love" Yellowcard 3:20
5 "Crippled Inside" Widespread Panic 4:06
6 "Borrowed Time" O.A.R. 5:55
7 "Woman" Ben Jelen 3:41
8 "Imagine" Me'Shell NdegéOcello 3:16
9 "Well Well Well" Rocky Dawuni 5:00
10 "Mother" Emmanuel Jal 6:03
11 "I Don't Wanna Face It" The Fab Faux 2:49

All songs written by Lennon except "Oh, My Love" & "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" written by Lennon/Ono

International

Disc One

# Title Performer(s) Producer(s) Time
1 "Instant Karma!" U2 Tal Herzberg; additional production by Larry Mullen, Jr. & The Edge 3:14
2 "#9 Dream" R.E.M. David Barbe & R.E.M. 4:38
3 "Mother" Christina Aguilera (featuring Bigelf) Linda Perry 4:48
4 "Give Peace a Chance" Aerosmith featuring Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars Marti Frederiksen 4:35
5 "Cold Turkey" Lenny Kravitz Lenny Kravitz 4:43
6 "Love" The Cure The Cure 3:16
7 "I'm Losing You" Corinne Bailey Rae Steve Chrisanthou 4:01
8 "Gimme Some Truth" Jakob Dylan featuring Dhani Harrison Tony Berg 3:53
9 "Oh, My Love" Jackson Browne Jackson Browne 2:39
10 "One Day At A Time" The Raveonettes Richard Gottehrer 3:22
11 "Imagine" Avril Lavigne Butch Walker 3:12
12 "Nobody Told Me" Big & Rich Adam Shoenfeld 3:30
13 "Mind Games" Eskimo Joe Matt Lovell, Eskimo Joe 4:04
14 "Jealous Guy" Youssou N'Dour Prince N'Dour 3:59

Disc Two

# Title Performer(s) Producer(s) Time
1 "Working Class Hero" Green Day Green Day 4:24
2 "Power to the People" Black Eyed Peas Will.I.Am 3:35
3 "Imagine" Jack Johnson Jack Johnson & Robert Carranza 3:40
4 "Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)" Ben Harper Ben Harper 3:48
5 "Isolation" Snow Patrol Garrett "Jacknife" Lee 2:36
6 "Watching the Wheels" Matisyahu David Kahne 3:19
7 "Grow Old With Me" The Postal Service Jimmy Tamborello & Benjamin Gibbard 2:30
8 "Gimme Some Truth" Jaguares Saúl Hernández, Alfonso André & Adrian Belew 3:08
9 "(Just Like) Starting Over" The Flaming Lips The Flaming Lips 3:36
10 "God" Jack's Mannequin featuring Mick Fleetwood Jim Wirt, Andrew McMahon & Robert "Raw" Anderson 4:20
11 "Instant Karma!" Duran Duran Duran Duran and Paul Logus 3:55
12 "#9 Dream" a-ha a-ha 4:06
13 "Instant Karma!" Tokio Hotel Dave Roth, Peter Hoffman, Pat Benzer & David Jost 3:09
14 "Real Love" Regina Spektor Regina Spektor & Joe Mendelson 3:57

The Complete Recordings

On October 8, 2007,[5] iTunes released 'Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur (The Complete Recordings).

  1. Nobody Told Me - Abdel Wright
  2. Give Peace a Chance - Aerosmith ft. Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars
  3. Imagine - Afroreggae
  4. No. 9 Dream - a-ha
  5. Happy Xmas (War Is Over) - Angelique Kidlo with Naima
  6. Love - Audrey de Montigny
  7. Imagine - Avril Lavigne
  8. Oh Yoko - Barenaked Ladies
  9. Beautiful Boy - Ben Harper
  10. Woman - Ben Jelen
  11. Nobody Told Me - Big & Rich
  12. Power to the People - Black Eyed Peas
  13. Mother - Christina Aguilera ft. Bigelf
  14. I'm Losing You - Corinne Bailey Rae
  15. Watching the Wheels - David Usher
  16. Jealous Guy - Deftones
  17. Power to the People - Dj Emjay & The Atari Babies
  18. Hold On - DobaCaracol
  19. Instant Karma - Duran Duran
  20. Oh My Love - Elvira Nikolaisen
  21. Mother - Emmanuel Jal
  22. Mind Games - Eskimo Joe
  23. I Don't Want to Face It - The Fab Faux
  24. Look At Me - Finger Eleven
  25. (Just Like) Starting Over - The Flaming Lips
  26. Beautiful Boy - Freshly Ground
  27. Mind Games - Gavin Rossdale
  28. Working Class Hero - Green Day
  29. Imagine - Jack Johnson
  30. God - Jack's Mannequin ft. Mick Fleetwood
  31. Oh, My Love - Jackson Browne
  32. Gimme Some Truth - Jaguares
  33. Gimme Some Truth (Spanish) - Jaguares
  34. Gimme Some Truth - Jakob Dylan ft. Dhani Harrison
  35. Imagine - James Stewart
  36. Imagine - Josh Groban
  37. Jealous Guy - K-OS
  38. Bless You - Leeroy
  39. Cold Turkey - Lenny Kravitz
  40. Whatever Gets You Thru the Night (Peu Importe Si tu Passe la Nuit) - Les Trois Accords
  41. Whatever Gets You Thru the Night - Los Lonely Boys
  42. I'm Losing You - Madrugada
  43. Happy Xmas (War Is Over) - Maroon 5
  44. Watching the Wheels - Matisyahu
  45. Imagine - Me'Shell Ndegeocello
  46. Borrowed Time - O.A.R.
  47. Woman - Paddy Casey
  48. Grow Old With Me - The Postal Service
  49. Working Class Hero - Racoon
  50. Real Love - Regina Spektor
  51. No.9 Dream - R.E.M.
  52. Well Well Well - Rocky Dawuni
  53. Isolation - Snow Patrol
  54. Love - The Cure
  55. One Day at a Time - The Raveonettes
  56. Instant Karma - The Sheer
  57. Instant Karma - The Waking Eyes
  58. Working Class Hero - Tina Dickow
  59. Instant Karma - Tokio Hotel
  60. John Sinclair - Trevor Menear
  61. Instant Karma - U2
  62. Give Peace a Chance - The Voices of Asia
  63. Crippled Inside - Widespread Panic
  64. Imagine - Willie Nelson
  65. Oh, My Love - Yellowcard
  66. Jealous Guy - Youssou N'Dour

Other covers

Over 50 artists participated in the "Instant Karma" campaign for the "Make Some Noise" campaign around the world. Some of these covers are available for download on the international Make Some Noise website, but will not be featured on the album.

These covers include (in release date order):

References

  1. ↑
  2. ↑ Allmusic review
  3. ↑ "Rolling Stone review". Rollingstone.com. 2011-08-30. Retrieved 2011-09-09.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 "Artists Unite in Donating Tracks to "Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur," to Be Released by Warner Bros. Records June 12". Market Wire at Marketwire.com. 2007-04-30. Retrieved 2007-05-13.
  5. ↑ "Connecting to the iTunes Store". Itunes.apple.com. Retrieved 2011-09-09.

External links