In human context, a family (from Latin: familia) is a group of people affiliated by consanguinity, affinity, or co-residence. In most societies it is the principal institution for the socialization of children. Anthropologists most generally classify family organization as matrilocal (a mother and her children); conjugal (a wife, husband, and children, also called nuclear family); and consanguinal (also called an extended family) in which parents and children co-reside with other members of one parent's family.

There are also concepts of family that break with tradition within particular societies, or those that are transplanted via migration to flourish or else cease within their new societies. As a unit of socialization the family is the object of analysis for sociologists of the family. Genealogy is a field which aims to trace family lineages through history. In science, the term "family" has come to be used as a means to classify groups of objects as being closely and exclusively related. In the study of animals it has been found that many species form groups that have similarities to human "family"—often called "packs." Sexual relations among family members are regulated by rules concerning incest such as the incest taboo.

Extended from the human "family unit" by affinity and consanguinity are concepts of family that are physical and metaphorical, or that grow increasingly inclusive extending to community, village, city, region, nationhood, global village and humanism.

Procreation[link]

One of the primary functions of the family is to produce and reproduce persons, biologically and socially. This can occur through the sharing of material substances (such as semen, and food); jural ties of rights and obligations; and moral and sentimental ties.^[1][2] Thus, one's experience of one's family shifts over time. From the perspective of children, the family is a "family of orientation": the family serves to locate children socially and plays a major role in their enculturation and socialization.^[3] From the point of view of the parent(s), the family is a "family of procreation," the goal of which is to produce and enculturate and socialize children.^[4] It is important to know for children to know the differences in families. As long as you have people to take care of you, that is what a family is about (^[5]). However, producing children is not the only function of the family; in societies with a sexual division of labor, marriage, and the resulting relationship between two people, it is necessary for the formation of an economically productive household.^[6][7][8]

A "conjugal" family includes only the husband, the wife, and unmarried children who are not of age. The most common form of this family is regularly referred to in sociology as a nuclear family.^[9] A "consanguineal" family consists of a parent and his or her children, and other people. Although the concept of consanguinity originally referred to relations by "blood," cultural anthropologists^[who?] have argued that one must understand the idea of "blood" metaphorically and that many societies understand family through other concepts rather than through genetic distance.Genes give a background of behavioral types that can be passed on to the child. In most aspects, genetics are important, but do not make a family a loving family. Genetics is helpful for diseases or problems you may see with your child.^[10] A "matrilocal" family consists of a mother and her children. Generally, these children are her biological offspring, although adoption of children is a practice in nearly every society. This kind of family is common where women have the resources to rear their children by themselves, or where men are more mobile than women.

History of the family[link]

The diverse data coming from ethnography, history, law and social statistics, establish that the human family is an institution and not a biological fact founded on the natural relationship of consanguinity.^[11][12]

Early scholars of family history applied Darwin's biological theory of evolution in their theory of evolution of family systems.^[13] American anthropologist Lewis H. Morgan published Ancient Society in 1877 based on his theory of the three stages of human progress from Savagery through Barbarism to Civilization.^[14] Morgan's book was the "inspiration for Friedrich Engels' book" The Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State published in 1884.^[15]

Engels expanded Morgan's hypothesis that economical factors caused the transformation of primitive community into a class-divided society.^[16] Engels' theory of resource control, and later that of Karl Marx, was used to explain the cause and effect of change in family structure and function. The popularity of this theory was largely unmatched until the 1980s, when other sociological theories, most notably structural functionalism, gained acceptance.

Kinship terminology[link]

Family tree showing the relationship of each person to the orange person. Cousins are colored green. The genetic kinship degree of relationship is marked in red boxes by percentage (%).

Anthropologist Lewis Henry Morgan (1818–1881) performed the first survey of kinship terminologies in use around the world. Although much of his work is now considered dated, he argued that kinship terminologies reflect different sets of distinctions. For example, most kinship terminologies distinguish between sexes (the difference between a brother and a sister) and between generations (the difference between a child and a parent). Moreover, he argued, kinship terminologies distinguish between relatives by blood and marriage (although recently some anthropologists have argued that many societies define kinship in terms other than "blood").

Morgan made a distinction between kinship systems that use classificatory terminology and those that use descriptive terminology. Classificatory systems are generally and erroneously understood to be those that "class together" with a single term relatives who actually do not have the same type of relationship to ego. (What defines "same type of relationship" under such definitions seems to be genealogical relationship. This is problematic given that any genealogical description, no matter how standardized, employs words originating in a folk understanding of kinship.) What Morgan's terminology actually differentiates are those (classificatory) kinship systems that do not distinguish lineal and collateral relationships and those (descriptive) kinship systems that do. Morgan, a lawyer, came to make this distinction in an effort to understand Seneca inheritance practices. A Seneca man's effects were inherited by his sisters' children rather than by his own children.^[17] Morgan identified six basic patterns of kinship terminologies:

• Hawaiian: only distinguishes relatives based upon sex and generation.
• Sudanese: no two relatives share the same term.
• Eskimo: in addition to distinguishing relatives based upon sex and generation, also distinguishes between lineal relatives and collateral relatives.
• Iroquois: in addition to sex and generation, also distinguishes between siblings of opposite sexes in the parental generation.
• Crow: a matrilineal system with some features of an Iroquois system, but with a "skewing" feature in which generation is "frozen" for some relatives.
• Omaha: like a Crow system but patrilineal.

Western kinship[link]

Georgian family of writer Vazha-Pshavela (in the middle, sitting)

A Chilean family from Población, Chile, in 1987.

Most Western societies employ Eskimo kinship terminology. This kinship terminology commonly occurs in societies based on conjugal (or nuclear) families, where nuclear families have a degree of relative mobility. Members of the nuclear use descriptive kinship terms:

• Mother: a female parent
• Father: a male parent
• Son: a male child of the parent(s)
• Daughter: a female child of the parent(s)
• Brother: a male child of the same parent(s)
• Sister: a female child of the same parent(s)
• Grandfather: father of a father or mother
• Grandmother: mother of a mother or father
• Cousins: two people that share the same grandparent(s)

An infant, his mother, his maternal grandmother, and his great-grandmother.

Such systems generally assume that the mother's husband has also served as the biological father. In some families, a woman may have children with more than one man or a man may have children with more than one woman. The system refers to a child who shares only one parent with another child as a "half-brother" or "half-sister." For children who do not share biological or adoptive parents in common, English-speakers use the term "stepbrother" or "stepsister" to refer to their new relationship with each other when one of their biological parents marries one of the other child's biological parents. Any person (other than the biological parent of a child) who marries the parent of that child becomes the "stepparent" of the child, either the "stepmother" or "stepfather." The same terms generally apply to children adopted into a family as to children born into the family.

Typically, societies with conjugal families also favor neolocal residence; thus upon marriage a person separates from the nuclear family of their childhood (family of orientation) and forms a new nuclear family (family of procreation). However, in the western society the single parent family has been growing more accepted and has begun to truly make an impact on culture. The majority of single parent families are more commonly single mother families than single father. These families face many difficult issues besides the fact that they have to rear their children on their own, but also have to deal with issues related to low income. Many single parents struggle with low incomes and must cope with other issues, including rent, child care, and other necessities required in maintaining a healthy and safe home. Members of the nuclear families of members of one's own (former) nuclear family may class as lineal or as collateral. Kin who regard them as lineal refer to them in terms that build on the terms used within the nuclear family:

• Grandparent
  • Grandfather: a parent's father
  • Grandmother: a parent's mother
• Grandson: a child's son
• Granddaughter: a child's daughter

For collateral relatives, more classificatory terms come into play, terms that do not build on the terms used within the nuclear family:

• Uncle: father's brother, mother's brother, father's sister's husband, mother's sister's husband
• Aunt: father's sister, mother's sister, father's brother's wife, mother's brother's wife
• Nephew: sister's son, brother's son, wife's brother's son, wife's sister's son, husband's brother's son, husband's sister's son
• Niece: sister's daughter, brother's daughter, wife's brother's daughter, wife's sister's daughter, husband's brother's daughter, husband's sister's daughter

When additional generations intervene (in other words, when one's collateral relatives belong to the same generation as one's grandparents or grandchildren), the prefixes "great-" or "grand-" modifies these terms. Also, as with grandparents and grandchildren, as more generations intervene the prefix becomes "great-grand-," adding an additional "great-" for each additional generation. Most collateral relatives have never had membership of the nuclear family of the members of one's own nuclear family.

• Cousin: the most classificatory term; the children of aunts or uncles. One can further distinguish cousins by degrees of collaterality and by generation. Two persons of the same generation who share a grandparent count as "first cousins" (one degree of collaterality); if they share a great-grandparent they count as "second cousins" (two degrees of collaterality) and so on. If two persons share an ancestor, one as a grandchild and the other as a great-grandchild of that individual, then the two descendants class as "first cousins once removed" (removed by one generation); if they shared ancestor figures as the grandparent of one individual and the great-great-grandparent of the other, the individuals class as "first cousins twice removed" (removed by two generations), and so on. Similarly, if they shared ancestor figures as the great-grandparent of one person and the great-great-grandparent of the other, the individuals class as "second cousins once removed". Hence one can refer to a "third cousin once removed upwards."

Cousins of an older generation (in other words, one's parents' first cousins), although technically first cousins once removed, are often classified with "aunts" and "uncles." Similarly, a person may refer to close friends of one's parents as "aunt" or "uncle," or may refer to close friends as "brother" or "sister," using the practice of fictive kinship. English-speakers mark relationships by marriage (except for wife/husband) with the tag "-in-law." The mother and father of one's spouse become one's mother-in-law and father-in-law; the female spouse of one's child becomes one's daughter-in-law and the male spouse of one's child becomes one's son-in-law. The term "sister-in-law" refers to three essentially different relationships, either the wife of one's sibling, or the sister of one's spouse, or, in some uses, the wife of one's spouse's sibling. "Brother-in-law" expresses a similar ambiguity. The terms "half-brother" and "half-sister" indicate siblings who share only one biological or adoptive parent.

Family in the West[link]

Family types[link]

Family arrangements in the United States have become more diverse with no particular household arrangement representing half of the United States population.^[18]

The different types of families occur in a wide variety of settings, and their specific functions and meanings depend largely on their relationship to other social institutions. Sociologists have a special interest in the function and status of these forms in stratified (especially capitalist) societies. The term "nuclear family" is commonly used, especially in North America and Europe, to refer to conjugal families. Sociologists distinguish between conjugal families (relatively independent of the kindred of the parents and of other families in general) and nuclear families (which maintain relatively close ties with their kindred). The term "extended family" is also common, especially in North America and Europe. This term has two distinct meanings. First, it serves as a synonym of "consanguinal family" (consanguine means "of the same blood"). Second, in societies dominated by the conjugal family, it refers to "kindred" (an egocentric network of relatives that extends beyond the domestic group) who do not belong to the conjugal family. These types refer to ideal or normative structures found in particular societies. Any society will exhibit some variation in the actual composition and conception of families. Much sociological, historical and anthropological research dedicates itself to the understanding of this variation, and of changes in the family that form over time. Times have changed; it is more acceptable and encouraged for mothers to work and fathers to spend more time at home with the children. The way roles are balanced between the parents will help children grow and learn valuable life lessons. Their is great importance of communication and equality in families, in order to avoid role strain. ^[19]

According to the work of scholars Max Weber, Alan Macfarlane, Steven Ozment, Jack Goody and Peter Laslett, the huge transformation that led to modern marriage in Western democracies was "fueled by the religio-cultural value system provided by elements of Judaism, early Christianity, Roman Catholic canon law and the Protestant Reformation".^[20]

Less-known family types[link]

In contemporary Europe and North America, people in academic, political and civil sectors have called attention to single-father-headed households, and families headed by same-sex couples,^{[citation needed]} although academics point out that these forms exist in other societies. Also the term blended family or stepfamily describes families with mixed parents: one or both parents remarried, bringing children of the former family into the new family.^[21] Also in sociology, particularly in the works of social psychologist Michael Lamb,^[22] traditional family refers to "a middleclass family with a bread-winning father and a stay-at-home mother, married to each other and raising their biological children," and nontraditional to exceptions from this rule. Most of the US households are now non-traditional under this definition.^[23]

In terms of communication patterns in families, there are a certain set of beliefs within the family that reflect how its members should communicate and interact. These family communication patterns arise from two underlying sets of beliefs. One being conversation orientation (the degree to which the importance of communication is valued) and two, conformity orientation (the degree to which families should emphasize similarities or differences regarding attitudes, beliefs, and values).^[24]

Family members

Sociological views[link]

Contemporary society generally views the family as a haven from the world, supplying absolute fulfilment.^{[citation needed]} Zinn and Eitzen discuss the image of the "family as haven [...] a place of intimacy, love and trust where individuals may escape the competition of dehumanizing forces in modern society".^[25] During industrialization, "[t]he family as a repository of warmth and tenderness (embodied by the mother) stands in opposition to the competitive and aggressive world of commerce (embodied by the father). The family's task was to protect against the outside world."^[26] However, Zinn and Eizen note, "The protective image of the family has waned in recent years as the ideals of family fulfillment have taken shape. Today, the family is more compensatory than protective. It supplies what is vitally needed but missing in other social arrangements."^[27]

"The popular wisdom", according to Zinn and Eitzen, sees the family structures of the past as superior to those today, and families as more stable and happier at a time when they did not have to contend with problems such as illegitimate children and divorce. They respond to this, saying, "there is no golden age of the family gleaming at us in the far back historical past."^[28] "Desertion by spouses, illegitimate children, and other conditions that are considered characteristics of modern times existed in the past as well."^[29]

Others argue that whether or not one views the family as "declining" depends on one's definition of "family". The high rates of divorce and out-of-wedlock births indicate a decline in the institution of the family^{[citation needed]}. Married couples have dropped below half of all American households. This drop is shocking from traditional forms of the family system. Only a fifth of households were following traditional ways of having married couples raising a family together. ^[30]No longer are marriages arranged for political or economic gain, and children are not expected to contribute to family income. Instead, people choose mates based on love. This increased role of love indicates a societal shift toward favoring emotional fulfilment and relationships within a family, and this shift necessarily weakens the institution of the family.^[31]

Margaret Mead considers the family as a main safeguard to continuing human progress. Observing, "Human beings have learned, laboriously, to be human", she adds: "we hold our present form of humanity on trust, [and] it is possible to lose it" ... "It is not without significance that the most successful large-scale abrogations of the family have occurred not among simple savages, living close to the subsistence edge, but among great nations and strong empires, the resources of which were ample, the populations huge, and the power almost unlimited"^[32]

As an agent of socialization, family is the primary source of influence behind the formation of personality and the growth of a child^[33], due to its influence on the basics of personality and its role providing gender identity. This impact is large as the family confers its social position onto the child when it is brought into the world.

Oedipal family model and fascism[link]

The model, common in the western societies, of the family triangle, husband-wife-children isolated from the outside, is also called the oedipal model of the family, and it is a form of patriarchal family. Many philosophers and psychiatrists analyzed such a model. In the family, they argue, the young develop in a perverse relationship, wherein they learn to love the same person who beats and oppresses them. Young children grow up and develop loving the person that is oppressing them physically or mentally. These children are taught differently than the appropriate way of raising affectionate children.^[34]The family therefore constitutes the first cell of the fascist society, as they will carry this attitude of love for oppressive figures in their adult life.^[35][36] Fathers torment their sons.^[37][38] Deleuze and Guattari, in their analysis of the dynamics at work within a family, "track down all varieties of fascism, from the enormous ones that surround and crush us to the petty ones that constitute the tyrannical bitterness of our everyday lives".^[35]

As it has been explained by Deleuze, Guattari and Foucault, as well as other philosophers and psychiatrists such as Laing and Reich, the patriarchal-family conceived in the West tradition serves the purpose of perpetuating a propertarian and authoritarian society.^[39] The child grows according to the oedipal model, which is typical of the structure of capitalist societies,^[11][12] and he becomes in turn owner of submissive children and protector of the woman.^{[38][40][41][42][43]}

As the young undergoes physical and psychological repression from someone for whom they develop love, they develop a loving attitude towards authority figures. They will bring such attitude in their adult life, when they will desire social repression and will form docile subjects for society.^[39] Michel Foucault, in his systematic study of sexuality, argued that rather than being merely repressed, the desires of the individual are efficiently mobilized and used,^[35] to control the individual, alter interpersonal relationships and control the masses. Foucault believed organized religion, through moral prohibitions, and economic powers, through advertising, make use of unconscious sex drives. Dominating desire, they dominate individuals.^[44] According to the analysis of Michel Foucault, in the west:

the [conjugal] family organization, precisely to the extent that it was insular and heteromorphous with respect to the other power mechanisms, was used to support the great "maneuvers" employed for the Malthusian control of the birthrate, for the populationist incitements, for the medicalization of sex and the psychiatrization of its nongenital forms.

—Michel Foucault, The History of Sexuality vol I, chap. IV, sect. Method, rule 3, p. 99

Size[link]

Natalism is the belief that human reproduction is the basis for individual existence, and therefore promotes having large families. Many religions, e.g., Islam, Christianity and Judaism,^[45] encourage their followers to procreate and have many children, however many of them also propound stewardship and responsibility to care for the environment and society. In recent times, however, there has been an increasing amount of family planning and a following decrease in the total fertility rate in many parts of the world, in part due to improvements in health care, concerns of overpopulation, decreasing need for manual labor and increasing cost of raising a child as workers need to be more skilled. Many countries with population decline offer incentives for people to have large families as a means of national efforts to reverse declining populations.

See also[link]

• Childlessness
• Childfree

Balance of role strain within family system[link]

Notes[link]

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Mattox, William R., Jr., "America's family time famine", Children Today, Nov–Dec, 1990

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Family

For a list of words relating to family, see the en:Family category of words in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Family database, OECD,
• Family Research Laboratory, unh.edu
• Family evolution and contemporary social transformations, seres.fcs.ucr.ac.cr (Estación de Economía Política)
• Family Facts: Social Science Research on Family, Society & Religion (a Heritage Foundation site). familyfacts.org
• Families Australia – independent peak not-for-profit organisation. familiesaustralia.org.au
• FAMILYPLATFORM - A consortium of 12 organisations providing input into the European Union's Socio-Economic and Humanities Research Agenda on Family Research and Family Policies.
• Unitedfamilies.org, International organisation
• UN.org, Families and Development
• Family, marriage and "de facto" unions, Vatican.va

The Courage (formerly known as "Noah Gundersen & the Courage") is an indie band initially started in Centralia, Washington by siblings Abby & Noah Gundersen and expanded to Travis Ehrenstrom and Ivan Gunderson. The group has two EPs, a live CD, and a studio album. Before the removal of Noah Gundersen's name from the title and the incorporation of the entire band, a majority of the songs were written and recorded by Noah and Abby.

Biography[link]

Noah Gundersen began playing music when he was 10 or 11 years old when his parents had him take piano lessons. Later he taught himself to play the guitar and recorded songs with his father's recording equipment. Around the age of 16, Noah was performing solo in local cafes. His sister Abby began to accompany him with violin and harmonies in 2006 .^[4] Noah Gundersen & the Courage began in 2006 in Centralia, Washington.^[5] They began playing shows throughout the Washington/Oregon region, and quickly gained a fan base there. Noah's first CD, "Brand New World" (recorded by himself, Abby Gundersen, and Michael Porter) was recorded in Eugene, Oregon in a home studio.^[6] It began to be sold on the internet in 2008.^[7] That summer, an internet hacker named "andrewlandon" discovered Noah Gundersen's music and stole his song "Winter" (as well has three songs by a neighboring musician, Jacob White, and several other artists) and put it on his own MySpace.

In mid 2008, Live at the Triple Door, the band's first live CD was released independently as they toured throughout the west coast. In May, Noah and Abby made another western tour with Garage Voice and Tom Rorem, an ensuing two month tour alongside Chelsea Seth of Paper Mache occurred that August. On October 9, The Courage played a show at The Q Cafe to release Noah's newest album, "Saints & Liars". Paige Richmond, a Seattle Weekly reporter attending the show gave the band's performance and new CD an outstanding review, titling the review "Noah Gundersen Brings Q Cafe Crowd to Its Feet"^[8] As winter set in, the band became stationary while Abby began to pursue her college education and the other three set out finding other jobs. Noah Gundersen & the Courage continues to rehearse and play shows in the WA/OR area at venues such as The Round and the Triple Door, while staying less active.^[9]

On December 10 at midnight, The Courage released a new song on their myspace, "Moles", which is the only studio recording of The Courage. The song was only on their music page for a few days but physical CDs were released when they performed at the Triple Door on December 29. In the following February, the track "Middle of June", off of Saints & Liars, appeared on an episode of One Tree Hill.^[10][11]

The band announced through their new website, as well as with an interview with Seattle Weekly, that their first full-length album would be released in the summer of 2010.^[12] The album, according to Seattle Weekly, marks a transition in the band as the group moved from a singer/song-writer led band fronted by Noah Gundersen—one that frequented solo acoustic songs—to a functioning unit that creates songs that incorporate the entire band.^[13] Noah Gundersen has even considered removing his name from the band's title.^[4][5]

Recording for The Courage's studio album began on March 16 of 2010. The band announced their progress with several updates through their Twitter account revealing that on the 27th of March, they had finished recording the album and in early July, they had started mixing the album.^[14] The album is the first full-length recording to be released by The Courage.^[15]

Fearful Bones and name change (2010-present)[link]

By the beginning of August 2010, recording, production, and mixing for the new album had been completed in a barn in Sisters, Oregon. On August 3, the band announced the change of their title as well as the name of their debut album via their Twitter page,

A new song, "Frequency," was streamed for free off of their official website in the beginning of September. On September 11, The Courage played a release show for Fearful Bones and followed up with a three week tour of the West Coast with the album's producer, Matt Lee, playing lead guitar.

The Local Lounge[link]

On January 11, 2009, Noah Gundersen played live for 45 minutes on KCDA during the "Local Lounge". He performed the songs "Poor Man's Son", "The Ocean", and "No Fairness" and aired the songs "America", "Nine Pound Hammer", "Current State of Things", and "Oh, Momma".^[6]

Live performances[link]

The Courage's live performances vary greatly from Noah's studio recordings: while the studio recordings are usually only Noah and Abby Gundersen, the entire band takes part in performing live. The line-up is also constantly changing, guests may appear at shows with additional guitars, saxophones, and other instruments.

Members[link]

The core of The Courage is

• Noah Gundersen- Guitarist/Songwriter/Singer
• Abby Gundersen- Violin/Backing vocals
• Travis Ehrenstrom- Bass guitar
• Ivan Gunderson- Drums^[17]

But additional artist play varying roles in the Courage, often playing with the band live

• Michael Porter - Electric Guitar, additional guitar on "Brand New World"
• Chris Judd - Bass guitar, Vocals
• Michael Rabb - Keys, Tambourine, Vocals (appears on Live at the Triple Door)
• Drew Konzelman - Mandolin, Violin, Octave Violin, Electric Guitar
• Matt Lee - guitar (Fearful Bones tour in September 2010)

Discography[link]

Noah Gundersen and the Courage[link]

• Live at the Triple Door (2008)

The Courage[link]

• Fearful Bones (2010)

Noah Gundersen[link]

• Brand New World (2008)
• Saints & Liars (2009)
• Family (2011)

Compilations[link]

• We Love This Comp. Vol. I (2011)

The Courage's song, "All You Know," was released on Building Burning Record's 16-track compilation called We Love This Comp. Vol I on March 29, 2011.^[18] The album features several Oregon based folk and indie bands.^[19]

Associated acts[link]

National Theatre Project[link]

Bassist Travis Ehrenstrom leads an acoustic Oregon based band, National Theatre Project.^[5][20]

• Travis Ehrenstrom - Vocals, Guitar
• Seth Rodriguez - Saxophone
• Matt Cartmill - Drums
• Patrick Pearsall - Bass

Beneath Oceans[link]

Noah Gundersen was frontman and singer for a post-hardcore group called Beneath Oceans. While the group was active, the band played shows throughout the West Coast, and recorded an unreleased EP. At the end of 2008, with the departure of Keelan O'Hara, Gundersen announced that the band was done.
Beneath Oceans Myspace profile

References[link]

1. ^ ^{a b} http://www.thefalcononline.com/article.php?id=6584
2. ^ http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/noahgundersen2
3. ^ http://www.last.fm/music/Noah+Gundersen
4. ^ ^{a b c} http://penandpaige.com/blog/clintons-ham-it-up-noah-gundersen-sets-precedent/
5. ^ ^{a b c} http://www.tsweekly.com/sound/music-features/the-passionate-life-getting-philosophical-and-sun-tanned-with-noah-gundersen-and-the-courage.html
6. ^ ^{a b} http://www.1031kcda.com/pages/LocalLoungeHome.html?feed=233962&article=4808856
7. ^ http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/noahgundersen
8. ^ http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/reverb/2009/10/live_review_noah_gundersen_bri.php
9. ^ http://www.noahgundersen.com/
10. ^ http://www.tvfanatic.com/2010/02/one-tree-hill-music-the-last-day-of-our-acquaintance/
11. ^ http://www.oth-music.com/episode718.html
12. ^ http://thecourageband.com/Home.html News section
13. ^ http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/reverb/2010/02/last_night_noah_gundersen_cove.php?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
14. ^ http://twitter.com/TheCourage The Courage Twitter account
15. ^ http://thecourageband.com/TheBoards.html Boards -> Posts from the band -> New blog from Abby
16. ^ http://twitter.com/TheCourage August 3rd, 2010
17. ^ http://www.facebook.com/pages/Noah-Gunderson/66583399539#!/pages/Noah-Gunderson/66583399539?v=wall
18. ^ http://burningbuildingrecordings.bandcamp.com/album/we-love-this-comp-vol-i
19. ^ http://www.whatsup-magazine.com/2011/04/13/cd-reviews-april-2011-various-artists-we-love-this-comp-vol-1/
20. ^ http://www.myspace.com/travisehrenstrom

External links[link]

• Noah Gundersen's myspace profile
• The Triple Door website
• Interview with Noah Gundersen
• Concert review by The Falcon online
• The Courage twitter page

Laurie Berkner (born March, 1969, in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France of American parents) is an American musician best known for her work as a children's musical artist. Berkner plays guitar and sings in the Laurie Berkner Band, along with pianist Susie Lampert, bassist Adam Bernstein, and drummer Bobby Golden. She is a popular artist in the Kindie rock genre.^[1]

Biography[link]

Growing up in Princeton, New Jersey, Berkner was involved in choirs, bands and musical theater. As a student at Rutgers University, she toured Europe as a choir soloist and an orchestral guitar player. After working as a summer-camp music counselor, she spent several years as a children's music specialist for day care centers and preschools in the New York area.

In 1992, she began to perform as a professional rock musician, playing in an all-female cover band called Lois Lane. When she started a band that played original music, Red Onion (Berkner, Brian Mueller, Adam Bernstein and Alan Lerner), she found song-writing to be a struggle—a problem that disappeared when she started writing children's music. "Writing music for kids has not been a struggle at all," Berkner has said. "The more I started working on material for children, the more I realized that it opened up creativity in me that I never knew I had."^[2]

Some of her first performances as a children's musician were birthday party gigs at $125 a show. "Those days were intense,” she told The New York Times. “I used to arrive early and memorize every child’s name, so I could feel like I knew them.”^[3]

In 1997, working with Susie Lampert, Mueller and guest bassist Adam Bernstein, she put out her first album, Whaddaya Think of That? as a cassette-only release. She had been encouraged to record by the parents of the children she worked with. "The children were really responding to the music we created together," she said.^[4] The album contained original songs like "We Are the Dinosaurs" and "I Know a Chicken", along with covers of classics like "The Cat Came Back" and "Wimoweh (The Lion Sleeps Tonight)".

In 1998, Berkner formed her own independent record company, Two Tomatoes Records, to release her second album, Buzz Buzz, which includes such Berkner standards as "Pig on Her Head" and "Monster Boogie". With 1999's Victor Vito, Berkner achieved national fame, appearing on the FX network's American Baby Show and winning a Parent's Guide to Children's Media Award. Her latest album is Rocketship Run, which came out in August 2008.

Berkner's audience increased dramatically when she appeared on The Today Show in 2001. Since then, she has played in high-profile locations such as Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center; she has also played at the White House Easter Egg Roll.^[5] Berkner also played a free concert in Central Park to celebrate Earth Day, which was attended by fifteen thousand people.^[6]

Mueller, who is married to Berkner, left the band in 2006 "to keep the couple’s personal and professional lives separate", and was replaced by Adam Bernstein.^[3] In 2008, Bobby Golden became the band's drummer after producing Rocketship Run," as well as "We Are The Laurie Berkner Band" and all of her songs for Jack's Big Music Show.

Her music is generally in a major key and in what Berkner calls the "human tempo": 100-120 beats per minute, the speed of walking or marching. Her lyrics have been called "self-effacing and occasionally confessional".

Berkner was also a judge for the 10th annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists' careers.^[7]

Other media[link]

Berkner regularly appears on Nick Jr. (with Lampert and Bernstein), a television network aimed at children, in music videos played between programs and on the program Jack's Big Music Show. Berkner has also appeared in Jamarama Live!, a touring music festival for children sponsored by Noggin, and in the 2006 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. In 2009, she was featured on Ziggy Marley's children's album Family Time in a song called "Future Man, Future Lady".

Berkner has written two children's books: Victor Vito and Freddie Vasco, based on her song "Victor Vito", and Story of My Feelings. She has also put out a video and DVD, We Are...The Laurie Berkner Band; the DVD, has sold more than 400,000 copies since its 2006 release.^[3]

Works[link]

[edit] Albums^[8]

• Whaddaya Think of That? (1997)

1. We Are the Dinosaurs
2. Doodlebugs
3. Down Down Baby
4. She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain
5. Bring Your Clothes
6. I'm a Little Snowflake
7. The Animal Fair
8. What Falls in the Fall
9. These Are My Glasses
10. ABCD Medley
11. I Know a Chicken
12. Wimoweh (The Lion Sleeps Tonight)
13. I Love My Rooster
14. The Cat Came Back
15. Can You Imagine
16. (I'm Gonna Eat) On Thanksgiving Day
17. All the Pretty Little Horses
18. The Airplane Song
19. 123
20. Last Night I Had a Dream
21. The Great Big Dog

• Buzz, Buzz (1998)

1. I Really Love to Dance
2. The Pretzel Store
3. Pig On Her Head
4. I've Been Working on the Railroad
5. Bumblebee (Buzz Buzz)
6. Telephone
7. There's a Little Wheel A-Turnin' In My Heart
8. Monster Boogie
9. In the Clouds
10. The Cookie Bakers of the Night
11. The More We Get Together
12. I'm a Mess
13. Ice Cream Cone
14. Clean It Up
15. Little Red Caboose
16. Rum Sun Sum
17. Magic Box
18. The Valley of Vegetables
19. Popcorn Calling Me
20. Lots of Little Pigs
21. The Erie Canal
22. I Had a Friend

• Victor Vito (1999)

1. Victor Vito
2. Bottle Caps
3. Moon Moon Moon
4. Froggie Went A-Courtin'
5. I'm Not Perfect
6. The Toy Museum
7. O Susannah
8. BOOTS
9. Oleanna
10. The Crabs
11. Sneaks
12. The Goldfish
13. Zodiac
14. Trucks
15. Fruit Salad Salsa
16. The Story of My Feelings
17. I Feel Crazy So I Jump in the Soup
18. Shakin' Down the Sugar
19. Googleheads
20. Tingolayo
21. White Coral Bells
22. Goodnight

• Under a Shady Tree (2002)

1. Under a Shady Tree
2. Rhubarb Pie (Hot Commodity)
3. Mister
4. Drive My Car
5. I'm Gonna Catch You
6. Just Like the Sun
7. Mahalo
8. I'm Me and You're You
9. Choc-o-lot in My Pock-o-lot
10. Shortnin' Bread
11. Running Down the Hill
12. My Energy
13. After it Rains
14. Do the Dragon
15. Song in My Tummy
16. This Hat
17. Who's That?
18. Smile
19. Boody Boody Ya Ya Ya
20. Blow a Kiss

• Rocketship Run (2008)

1. Rocketship Run
2. Going on a Hunt (ska)
3. Mouse in My Toolbox
4. Candy Cane Jane
5. All Around My Room
6. One More Stop on the Train
7. Going on a Hunt
8. Jump and Fly
9. Pigbasket
10. Five Days Old
11. Mr. Bassman (and Piano Girl)
12. Winter Lullaby
13. Let's Samba
14. Going on a Hunt (conga)
15. My Blue Sailboat
16. Balance Beam
17. Thunderstorm
18. Fast and Slow (The Rabbit and the Turtle)
19. Going on a Hunt (jig)
20. Farm Song (That's What I Did on the Farm)
21. Nona
22. Walk Along the River
23. Going on a Hunt (hand jive)
24. Fly Me to the Moon

• The Best of the Laurie Berkner Band (2010)

1. Bumblebee (Buzz Buzz)
2. Rocketship Run
3. Victor Vito
4. We Are the Dinosaurs
5. I'm Gonna Catch You
6. Moon Moon Moon
7. Pig on her Head
8. Fast and Slow (The Rabbit and the Turtle)
9. I'm Not Perfect
10. I Really Love to Dance
11. BOOTS
12. Five Days Old
13. The Goldfish
14. Monster Boogie
15. Song in My Tummy
16. I Know a Chicken
17. Under a Shady Tree
18. Pig on Her Head (alternate version)
19. Moon Moon Moon (alternate version)
20. Open Your Heart

Videos[link]

1. • Laurie Berkner's Video Songbook (2001)
   • We Are...The Laurie Berkner Band (2006)
2. Jamarama Live (2006)
   • Let's Hear It for the Laurie Berkner Band (2010)
3. The Laurie BERKNER Band: Party Day (2011)

Books[link]

• Victor Vito and Freddie Vasco (2004)
• Story of My Feelings (2007)
• The Laurie Berkner Songbook (2007)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Laurie Berkner Website; includes a biography
• Jack's Big Music Show; features several Laurie Berkner videos

Ziggy Marley
Ziggy Marley performing in 2007.
Background information
Birth name	David Nesta Marley
Also known as	Ziggy Marley
Born	(1968-10-17) 17 October 1968 (age 43) Kingston, Jamaica
Genres	Reggae
Occupations	Musician, Singer-songwriter, Guitarist, voice actor
Instruments	Guitar, vocals, Piano, percussion
Years active	1979–present
Labels	Tuff Gong Worldwide
Associated acts	Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers
Website	www.ziggymarley.com

David "Ziggy" Marley (born 17 October 1968, Trenchtown, Jamaica) is a Jamaican musician and leader of the band Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers. He is the oldest son of famed reggae musician Bob Marley. His father gave him the nickname "Ziggy"; he has stated that it means "a small joint".

Musical career[link]

In 1979, Ziggy and his siblings, Cedella, Stephen and Sharon made their recording debut with their father, "Children Playing in the Streets". The Melody Makers, as the group came to be known, played occasionally for several years, including at their father's funeral in 1981. Their debut LP was Play the Game Right, which was a very pop-oriented album, earning Ziggy some derision from critics. The band's label, EMI, wanted to market Ziggy as a solo act, and so the Melody Makers moved to Virgin Records, where they recorded Conscious Party (1988, produced by Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth). The album was critically and popularly successful, as was One Bright Day (1989) and Jahmekya (1991).

Ziggy Marley singing at Guilfest 2011

As the 1990s continued, the Melody Makers' sales slowly declined, beginning with Joy and Blues (1993) and continuing with Free Like We Want 2 B (1995).

Ziggy became politically active, working with the United Nations and creating a record label called Ghetto Youths Crew. A solo album, Dragonfly was released on 15 April 2003. On 2 July 2006, his second solo album, Love Is My Religion, was released on his independent record company Tuff Gong Worldwide. This album won a Grammy for best Reggae album and this was Ziggy's 4th Grammy win. On 5 May 2009, his third solo children's album Family Time, was released on his independent record company Tuff Gong Worldwide. Family Time features Family and Friends, Rita Marley, Cedella Marley, Judah Marley, Paul Simon, Willie Nelson, Jack Johnson, Toots Hibbert, Laurie Berkner, Elizabeth Mitchell and more. This album won a Grammy for "Best Musical Album for Children".

Some of his most popular singles include "True To Myself", "Drive", "People Get Ready", and his hit single "Tomorrow People", which reached #39 on the Billboard Hot 100.

In April 2011, Marley announced his fourth album, entitled Wild and Free would be released on 14 June. The title track, featuring Woody Harrelson, is available for free with the pre-order of Ziggy's first comic book, "Marijuanaman."

Personal life[link]

Ziggy Marley is the oldest son of Bob Marley. He is married to Orly Marley, who is a former vice-president of William Morris Agency. He also has 6 children, Daniel Marley, Justice Marley, Zuri Marley, Judah Victoria, Gideon Robert Nesta, and Abraham Selassie Robert Nesta. Most of the family resides in Miami.

Philanthropy[link]

• Ziggy Marley founded Unlimited Resources Giving Enlightenment (URGE), which works to help children (especially in Jamaica and Ethiopia).

• In 2007, Marley signed on as an official supporter of Little Kids Rock, a nonprofit organization that provides free musical instruments and free lessons to children in public schools throughout the United States. He has visited with children in the program and sits on the organization's board of directors as an honorary member.

Other work[link]

In 1991, Marley and the Melody Makers contributed the song "Give A Little Love" to the Disney album, For Our Children. The album is a collection of kid-friendly songs by popular artists (e.g. Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, and Elton John), with proceeds given to the Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

Marley made guest appearances as himself on an episode of the sitcom Family Matters in 1995, and on the television series Charmed in season 6 (episode 14, "The Legend of Sleepy Halliwell"), performing "Rainbow in the Sky".

He and his Melody Makers made a guest appearance on the popular kids television show Sesame Street in the 1991-92 season, and sang a Sesame Street version of "Small People" from their 1991 album Jahmekya

In 1996, Marley and the Melody Makers recorded the reggae-style theme song for the children's television series Arthur called "Believe in Yourself".

He voiced Ernie, one of Sykes' (Martin Scorsese) Rasta jellyfish henchmen in the 2004 film Shark Tale. In the film when Oscar (Will Smith) tries to sing the Bob Marley song "Three Little Birds", Marley's character zaps Oscar on the head and says "That's not the way you sing that song, mon." The title song for the film was a cover version of "Three Little Birds" performed by Marley and Sean Paul.

Further voice acting includes "Crockadle" on an episode of My Gym Partner's a Monkey, the Cheshire Cat in a 2010 episode of Wonder Pets, and Reflux the Knaaren, in the Ubisoft video game Rayman 3.

Marley covered "Drive" by The Cars for the Adam Sandler movie 50 First Dates, and his father's song "Three Little Birds" for the Dora The Explorer soundtrack.

Ziggy is listed as the featured artist on Donna Summer's song, "Crayons," the title track from her 2008 album. He has also performed duets with Angelique Kidjo, Sting, Dora The Explorer, Taj Mahal, The Chieftains, Sean Paul and others.

Marley and his daughter Judah made an appearance in the 2009 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Ziggy Marley released a pro-marijuana song in support of California's Proposition 19 ballot initiative to legalize recreational marijuana. Voters rejected the ballot but backers said they would mount another legalization campaign in 2012.

In popular culture[link]

On an episode of Celebrity Deathmatch, Ziggy was mentioned while his father, Bob Marley (who was brought back to life via time machine), had his hands full with Shaggy. Shaggy first implies that Ziggy was merely a Bob impersonator ("Me? What about Ziggy? He sings all your songs - he even looks like you!"), while Bob answers that Ziggy is his son. Shaggy taunts Bob on how Ziggy might have got his name, on which Bob fight backs with comments on Scooby-Doo, where Shaggy got his nickname.

His song "Love Power" was played during the end credits of Muppet Treasure Island (1996), and "True To Myself" was featured on the TV show Scrubs (Season 8 Episode 14 - "My Soul On Fire", Pt. 1).

In the episode of South Park entitled Medicinal Fried Chicken, Randy Marsh wants to get a prescription for medicinal marijuana before the Ziggy Marley concert in Denver.

He is mentioned in holding a concert in Nevada in The Fresh Prince of Bel Air.

Discography[link]

• Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers albums

Solo albums[link]

• 2003: Dragonfly
• 2006: Love Is My Religion
• 2008: Love Is My Religion Live
• 2009: Ziggy Live From Soho
• 2009: Family Time
• 2011: Wild and Free

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Official Site of the Marley Brothers
• Official Melody Makers website
• Ziggy Marley at the Internet Movie Database