I had the pleasure of spending yesterday on an island off the coast of Vancouver yesterday with my dear friend Pete McCormack.

Hailed by the Vancouver Sun as a “modern day renaissance man, Pete is an award-winning filmmaker, novelist, screenwriter, musician, poet and producer. His most recent film, the award-winning and riveting FACING ALI, is an intimate, inspiring and must-see look at the human side of Muhammad Ali and the culture of boxing. The film tells the story of the inimitable Muhammad Ali and the story of ten legendary champions who fought him—in their own words: Smokin’ Joe Frazier, George Foreman, Larry Holmes, Ken Norton, George Chuvalo, Leon Spinks, Sir Henry Cooper, Ron Lyle, Earnie Shavers and Ernie Terrell. Pete’s prior film, the award-winning feature documentaryUganda Rising about the plight of the Acholi people in Northern Uganda, was narrated by Academy Award winner Kevin Spacey and features interviews with Noam Chomsky, Betty Bigombe, Samantha Powers, Mahmood Mamdani and others.

Less known on the world stage is Pete’s inspiring work as a singer-songwriter. Not only does his music feed his soul and give him the strength and inspiration to create such powerful socially conscious work in his film and writing work (oh – did I tell you he has also published 2 full novels, successful screenplays, and countless articles and essays), but has deeply touched the hearts of the audiences who have heard Pete perform.

I wanted to share the following video (and original song) from this important voice and unsung hero.  Introducing Pete McCormack…

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcPPuDeCEbA[/youtube]