original article | www.dailycandy.com

Listening to a CD doesn't ordinarily constitute an act of charity.

Unless it's that earsplitting demo your little brother's alt-country/speed-metal band cut in your parents' basement last month.

But by simply buying a copy of Between Us, a benefit recording for Internos Music Organization, you're helping local underprivileged kids gain access to music lessons, teachers, supplies, and instruments that enrich their lives and foster their creativity.

The CD contains 24 tracks recorded by such luminaries as John Doe, Los Lobos, Dave Alvin, and Jeremy Toback -- good stuff you'd want to hear anyway. Sprinkled among the pros' offerings are a few by kids who have benefited from Internos's help. They tend to be on the rougher side, but they have their charm nonetheless: "The Cookie Snatcher," an original composition by ten-year-old Tiffany Brevard, is a favorite.

Basically, Between Us is the easiest philanthropic gesture we've heard about in a long time.

And it definitely beats attending your brother's next performance. Available online at internosmusic.org.