Image by Courtesy of School of Rock Montclair

Thirteen-year-old Eli Clarke was so moved by the plight of Joplin, Mo. tornado victims, that he took to his string instruments. The Montclair, New Jersey native and Bnai Keshet synagogue member will be a bar mitzvah in November, and for his tikkun olam service requirement, he wrote a song to raise funds to rebuild Joplin. One of the deadliest tornados in U.S. history tore through the town at the end of May, killing more than 100 people and demolishing much of what was the birthplace of Langston Hughes. Clarke knew no one in Joplin, but he still felt moved by the tragedy.

“I saw what they were feeling and I thought I should really help them,” he said.

Clarke imagined an uplifting song, wrote a riff, and approached producer John Ginty, a Grammy-winning musician who has worked with Santana and Sheryl Crow. With his guitar teacher, Mark Dollar, who also has big league experience working with Akon and Justin Beiber, Clarke and Ginty recorded what became “Good Song,” an instrumental mishmash of metal and jazz fusion. Clarke, whose influences include bands like Deftones, Mastadon, and the bassist Jaco Pastorius, plays bass and ukulele on the track.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

“Good Song” is a 99-cent download and all the proceeds go to a disaster relief organization founded by the band Linkin Park.

Clarke said that while most of his fellow bar and bat mitzvahs do local volunteer projects — like donating bikes or shoes, he felt compelled to broaden his reach through his love of music.

“I don’t really have any others interests.” he said. “I’m dedicated to music.”

His advice? “Do what you know you’re good at and then you’ll really enjoy it.”

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$90 $180

$360

Other amount