Two Seattle Men Inspire through Song about Oil Spill

“There’s a hole in the ocean that’s breaking my heart. When will it end? Why did it start?” Joe Monto and Steve Barlett ask those poignant questions—which, frankly, most of us still wonder about two months after the oil started spilling in the Gulf—in Hole in the Ocean, a song they co-wrote. Their intent isn’t to get answers, but to inspire people, no matter their physical distance from the spill, to use their unique talents to keep the spotlight trained on the Gulf catastrophe.

Click here to hear the song.
 

Bartlett, 49 and Monto, 46 met in April at a funeral, for which Bartlett created a photo montage set to music that Monto played live. It was a powerful bonding experience for the two men and the impetus for their next collaboration. “I’m thinking about the Gulf Coast disaster on my way into work, and just start thinking these lines and these thoughts,” Bartlett says. “They just start flooding into my mind.”

 

But Bartlett needed a partner (he’s not a songwriter; by day, he works for a company that connects universities and students). Monto, a guitar-playing, song-singing youth pastor, was an obvious choice, and less than 12 hours later, the idea came to life. Less than a week after that, their video had almost 4,000 views, and their website went live.

 

The song has struck a chord. The tune’s somber yet catchy. It gets stuck in your head and hangs out for hours (I caught myself humming it after just two listens). It evokes sadness and passion, and puts into words their reaction to this disaster—and based on what readers have told us at Audubon, the frustration and pain many others feel. “The intent of this song was never about money or fame or any of that,” Bartlett says. “It’s all about the emotion and the feeling of what is going on down there.”

 

They’ve received thank yous and invitations to the Gulf Coast. A teacher in the United Kingdom used the song as an educational tool for her students. “It’s resonating with people all over the world,” Bartlett says. But “it’s not a political song,” he adds. “It’s not a finger-pointing song, but it’s a song of sorrow, of bringing people together at this moment in time to stop and take notice.”

 

And to motivate action. “My hope is that this song, somebody has it in his iPod, that he can really take some time and just reflect on what is going on down there and what’s being affected,” Monto says. “How can we be creative with our own unique gifts and abilities? Let’s do something in a very proactive way.” For information how you can help with relief efforts—no matter where in the country or world you live—visit Audubon’s Action Center.
 

 

In case you can’t listen to the song or see the video, here are some of the song’s lyrics:

 

Verse
The wave crests on fire
The storm clouds below
The oozing dark monster
Creeps silently slow

The heartache of many
The future unclear
We stand on the shoreline
Surrounded by fear

Chorus

There's a hole in the ocean
That's breaking my heart
When will it end?
Why did it start? 

Can we ever return
To our blue-watered bay
There's a hole in the ocean
That stands in our way

Verse 2
For the diving birds diving
And the fish 'neath the waves
There is so much to do
There is so much to save

With the bitter tears stinging
For the ones who were lost
Is there really a way
To assess what this cost?

Chorus