MANY musicians will tell you that John Lennon was the master, but few can say their song was chosen by Yoko Ono as one of three winners in the John Lennon 70th Birthday Anniversary Song Contest.
Arncliffe musician John Morris, one-half of the blues duo The Blues Preachers, can make such a claim.
His original song — Divine Justice Coming Down — performed with band mate and harmonica player Captain Bluetongue, is a blues song with a message of social justice in the face of the global financial crisis.
The band will perform the song and other tracks from their album Dead Catz Can Bounce at The Vanguard, Newtown, tonight (October 9).
The date marks the late John Lennon's 70th birthday.
Morris said it was honour to have the song recognised by Yoko Ono.
"John Lennon for most musicians, well, he's the man," Morris said.
"He could write a great love song, he could write a good song about social justice, so it is an honour that [Yoko Ono] thought that it would be a song that he would have liked."
Morris and Bluetongue write songs with a social justice message to the sounds of pre-war acoustic blues.
He said that at its heart, Divine Justice Coming Down was about greed.
"It is saying that the people who caused the GFC have something to answer for and that the greedy, the people who love power and manipulating systems, at the end of the day won't get away with it," he said.
"I think music is starting to swing back what it used to be about — poking fun like court jesters at the government, the king and queen, and drawing attention to the things that are wrong."
Morris is a guitar and banjo teacher.
His tuition business is Rose Studios and has been in the Arncliffe area for about 10 years.
He said that the banjo had grown in popularity in more recent times.
"The majority of students that come here want to learn how to play those old styles that are quite difficult," he said.
"Most of my students have played in bands or the like, but now they want to specialise in that old-school blues style."
Visit rosestudios.com.au for more details on learning guitar, banjo or mandolin.
