“New Orleans is a crucible for great music,” the U2 man tells Rolling Stone. “The idea that it would be just a place of history for music is awful to me. Coming from Dublin in the ‘70s, when music was something you had to search out, I’d never dreamt that somewhere like New Orleans could exist. Music was coming out of the walls. It seemed not just a form of escapism, but like it was weaved into everybody’s life.”
The Music Rising project also involves Gibson Guitars and producer Bob Ezrin whose credits include Pink Floyd, Peter Gabriel and The Darkness.
“We both concluded instantly that the human disaster was indescribable,” Ezrin says, “but what was being wiped out at the same time was the culture of the entire region.”
Once the region’s professional musicians have been taken care of, Music Rising will focus on local churches, marching bands and schools.
“It’s clearly achievable,” The Edge insists. “Something should be done and not just because New Orleans deserves it, but because the world needs New Orleans.”
People wanting to make donations should log on to www.musicrising.org.