The Occuponics’ Paul Stein performs the Occupy Wall Street song at Duarte Square, November 20, 2011, a few days after Occupy Wall Street’s occupation of Zuccotti Park was closed down by government officials. This protest was held in an unsuccessful attempt to convince Trinity Church to open up a vacant lot for use by the displaced occupiers. Other musicians performing at the vigil was the Rude Mechanical Orchestra.
The Beatles’ Revolution is performed by Stephen C. Baldwin at Zuccotti Park (AKA Liberty Plaza) on November 8th, 2011. John Lennon’s song, like Bruce Springsteen’s “Born In The U.S.A.,” is often misunderstood by those seeking to use this tune as fodder for an ideological grindstone. In fact, the nuanced view presented by each song is testament to the writers’ respect for the complex requirements for peaceful social change.
Stephen C. Baldwin, who was a member of the New York City-based cover band “The Meetles” before joining The Occuponics, observes that of all the Beatles songs he knows, the three that he finds most appropriate for performing at Occupy Wall Street are “Imagine,” “Revolution,” and “Come Together.”
The Occuponics’ Stephen Carl Baldwin performing an original song at Occupy Wall Street in October, 2011, several weeks before Zuccotti Park was closed down by NYPD at the direction of Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Scott Olsen, the subject of this song, is the ex-marine who was seriously injured at the Oakland, California demonstrations that happened several days before in solidarity with OWS.