DESCRIPTION:
The life and legacy of Frederick Douglass, seen through the eyes of one Comfort Washington, born a slave, his first teacher, and now a free woman, still living in Baltimore after the civil war. This tribute to Frederick Douglass, from a performance by noted R&B and session singer Joyce Dee was written and produced by New York City singer/ songwriter Kevin Kane. Kane's acoustic guitar and string bass, and Ms. Dee's heart-wrenching vocals are tied together by jazz violinist Jim Nolet's soaring accompaniment. At almost nine and a half minutes, this is more folk opera than it is song - offered here in honor of a great American hero.
 
- notes from my last CD . . . "I was the opening act last year for historian James Oakes at Union College's Annual Douglass/Lincoln Lecture.  I take work where ever I can get it.  They asked if I had any songs about Frederick Douglass.  The money was good and so I said, "Probably . . ."  And I got writing.  I hadn't known much about Douglass, so I read a bit of that history, most notably Professor Oakes' own book, The Radical and the Republican, a well-written account of Lincoln and Douglass's very special friendship.  That book lead me to Douglass's second autobiography, which he titled, My Bondage and My Freedom.  Frederick Douglass was a great man, a wonderful writer, and as a fine an American hero as you'll ever find.  I was pleased with the song I came up with, a nice long one, but I couldn't be the one to sing it . . . and so I connected with April Ruffin, a jazz and gospel singer from New York City, and later, when April moved to LA, with Ms. Joyce Dee, who sings it here. Both women made me very proud of what I had wrought.  Last year April and I sang this one on stage with the Boys' Choir of Newark, and now Joyce Dee and I are doing the same thing out at Union College on Feb 29. Hope this video moves one and all to go to Frederick Douglass himself - to see what he had to say.