To say that music and musicians have been an integral part of the 2008 Obama presidential campaign would be an understatement. In addition to obvious efforts like will.i.am's "Yes We Can" song and video, many people may not be aware that in collaboration with the Obama campaign, Steve McKeever and his team at Hidden Beach Records put together the first-ever official political soundtrack album.
This unprecedented compilation album had the overwhelming support and participation of many superstar recording artists spanning all genres of music such as John Legend, Sheryl Crow, John Mayer, Stevie Wonder, Lionel Ritchie, Kanye West, Bebe Winans and Dave Stewart and more. There were so many great submissions, over 150 songs in a one week time, that the label and the campaign had a very tough time deciding what to finally include on the album. It was originally produced as a fundraiser for the Obama campaign, but it was unfortunately released just after the anti-Obama "celebrity" campaign launched and as the financial crisis was hitting. So at the time the album did not receive the attention it deserved. With the campaign now behind us, this musical cry for "Change" can now be enjoyed as a celebration of President-elect Obama and cherished by future generations as a memento of his historic candidacy.
By clicking on the MagNet player below, for the first time you can sample - and buy - the album right here on the Huffington Post. And if you buy the album here, you will also get a bonus track not previously available which is exclusive to the Huffington Post edition. It's a new song called "Obama Rock" by The Not So Silent Majority, a collective of musicians and artists including Danielle Brisebois (writer/producer of Natasha Bedingfield's "Unwritten" and "Pocketful Of Sunshine", Paul McCartney's guitarist Rusty Anderson, Rick Nowels (writer of Dido's "White Flag") and Gregg Alexander (writer of Santana's "Game Of Love" and New Radicals' "You Get What You Give") as well as many other musicians.
Hidden Beach is planning on releasing an Obama Soundtrack Vol. 2 in the new future with a lot of the great music that they wanted to put on this album so stay tuned. In the meantime, enjoy! For more information go to hiddenbeach.com