Jimmy Carter loves music, and last night at Atlanta's historic Fox Theater, an unexpected number of fans told the “Rock and Roll President” they love it, too.
Carter, who turns 100 on Oct. 1, was at home in Plains, Ga., but that didn't stop Angelique Kidjo, the B-52's, Bebe Winans, Carlene Carter, Chuck Leavell, D-Nice, the Drive-By Truckers, Duane Betts, Eric Church, Jett Loew, India Arie, Lalah Hathaway, the War and Treaty Band, Rickey Minor's Band and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus from celebrating what Carter's life and presidency meant to them.
Since leaving the White House in January 1981, Jimmy Carter has worked to promote peace, fair elections, and disease eradication through the Carter Center. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 and built homes for Habitat for Humanity with former first lady Rosalynn, who died last year. But Carter’s mark on popular culture is also tied to the songs that inspired him—and that got him elected.
From an 1835 hymn to Hoagy Carmichael's 1930 classic, South African Xhosa lyrics and 1970s songs by the Allman Brothers Band, “Jimmy Carter 100: A Celebration of Song” reveals the powerful connections between music in Carter's life and his global reach as a humanitarian leader.
The evening began with a stirring performance of “America the Beautiful” by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, followed by a welcome from Jason Carter, Chairman of the Carter Center Board of Trustees, and a short excerpt from a 2020 documentary, Jimmy Carter: Rock and Roll President.
Although friends of the Carter family, Bob Dylan and Willie Nelson, were unable to attend the event, their appearance in the film earned a standing ovation before Group Love took the stage to explain that Carter’s influence actually spans parts of two centuries. After playing their 2011 hit “Tongue Tied” against a vibrant backdrop of planets, the band told the audience that they were the first to be certified “climate positive” by the United Nations after admiring Carter as an “environmental god” for his role in the U.S. Department of Energy and the expansion of national parks.
De Nice, the upbeat DJ who has gotten many Americans dancing during the pandemic with his Instagram Live streams, warmed up the crowd with a short set of Gen X favorites, including Stevie Wonder's “I Wish,” which reached No. 1 on Billboard. The Hot 100 hit the charts in January 1977, the same week Carter took office.
Dr. Bernice King, CEO of the King Center and daughter of Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, took the stage to draw parallels between Jimmy Carter and her father—both won the Nobel Peace Prize and Grammy Awards for their work advocating for human rights and labor—noting that the messages of peace, love, and nonviolence from the King and Carter families have penetrated the moral conscience of Atlanta for more than fifty years.
The ceremony included video messages from stars: The Indigo Girls sang “Happy Birthday”; Dave Matthews praised Carter for “his stance on the Israeli/Palestinian issue and his courage in speaking out”; and actor Sean Penn said the world needed a “snapshot” of Carter. [like medicine] To continue, TV host Jon Stewart joked that he would be sure to attend President Carter's bicentennial birthday, “because will “It happened.” Other contributors included: Wonder WomanLynda Carter, Jeff Daniels, Nile Rodgers, Martin Sheen, Bonnie Raitt, Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood.
On stage, Renée Zellweger spoke about the love story between Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, describing their first meeting as children in Plains, Georgia, as “a whole new take on meet cute.” Monica Pierson, a longtime television anchor in Atlanta, spoke about exchanging notes with President Carter while they were both battling cancer.
Legendary Georgia musician Chuck Leavell, who had served as the Rolling Stones’ musical director since 1982, joined the Allman Brothers at age 20 and went on to help Jimmy Carter get elected president in 1976, singing “Blue Sky” and “Jessica” with Duane Betts, the son of former ABB guitarist Dickey Betts who died earlier this year. Flashing lights accentuated the rhythm as Leavell leapt from his seat to play the keys and the younger Betts mastered solos on his golden Gibson.
Women dominated the evening with powerful performances: Singer Lalah Hathaway sang a stunning version of “Here’s to Life,” a 1992 meditative song popularized by jazz great Shirley Horn. Electric Angelique Kidjo electrified the audience with “Africa” and “Pata Pata,” songs that represent the continent where much of the Carter Center’s work takes place. Carlyn Carter, accompanied by Bates and Leavell, joined the audience in singing “Will the Circle Be Unbroken,” a song popularized by her grandmother Maybelle Carter. And regal India Arie asked the audience to pay attention to the lyrics of “What If?”, her 2019 song that honors the courage of black historical figures fighting for rights and equality.
Michael Trotter Jr. and Tanya Trotter, better known as War and Treaty, wowed the crowd with their vocal prowess, blues vibes and cowboy charm on “Hey, Pretty Moon” and “Called You By Your Name.” Gospel singer B.B. Winans, flanked by the Spelman College Glee Club, sang the praise tune “All to Thee” as a crowd member shouted “Glory!” The Athens, Georgia-based Drive-By Truckers, led by Patterson Hood, performed 2008’s “The Righteous Path” and 1974’s “Keep on Smilin’” by Wet Willie, who toured as the Allman Brothers’ opening act. The B-52s and Rickey Minor Band brought the house lights to the rafters as every patron danced to “Love Shack” and “Rock Lobster.”
Presidents Biden, Obama, George W. Bush and Clinton appeared via video, each with their own message about Carter’s contributions to democracy and humanity. While Clinton said he believes “we are all better when we work together,” Obama spoke of Carter’s “essential decency and great taste in music,” saying Carter was proof that “we are all created in the image of God” and that “nothing unites us like the power of a great song.”
The Jimmy Carter 100 gala may have been a multi-faceted celebration of Carter’s life and work as he approached his 100th birthday, but what it turned out to be was a portrait of American culture at its best and most vulnerable. The importance of shared values was a theme that ran throughout the ceremony—from videos of four presidents expressing their desires for the world they and Carter helped shape to slideshows of Carter as a young farm boy, later in uniform marrying his sweetheart, as governor, president, and peacemaker to the tune of Norah Jones’s version of Jane Scheer’s 1998 hit, “American Anthem.”
Before all the performers returned to the stage for the closing performance of “Georgia on My Mind,” Leavell sat down to accompany country star Eric Church on “Midnight Rider” and “Ramblin’ Man” by the Allman Brothers Band, complementing tunes performed by President Carter’s favorite Georgia band. During the intermission, Eric Church said he was given a playlist of Carter Family songs and chose to perform Paul Simon’s 1973 “American Tune.”
“We’re coming on the ship they call the Mayflower/We’re coming on the ship that sailed to the moon, We’re coming in the darkest hour of the afternoon, singing an American tune,” he sang, summing up the promise and hope of the American experiment that Jimmy Carter still champions.
