Frederick Emerson Small (born November 6, 1952), known publicly as Fred Small, is an American singer-songwriter. He began his career as a lawyer and later became a

Unitarian Universalist Unitarian or Unitarianism may refer to: Christian and Christian-derived theologies A Unitarian is a follower of, or a member of an organisation that follows, any of several theologies referred to as Unitarianism: * Unitarianism (1565–present) ...

minister. Small graduated from

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

and the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

, from which he earned both a J.D. degree and a master's in environmental policy. His first position was as staff attorney for the

Conservation Law Foundation Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) is an environmental advocacy organization based in New England. Since 1966, CLF's mission has been to advocate for New England's environment and its communities. CLF's advocacy work takes place across five integr ...

. His songs often make a political or ethical statement. Among his best-known songs are "Heart of the

Appaloosa The Appaloosa is an American horse breed best known for its colorful spotted coat pattern. There is a wide range of body types within the breed, stemming from the influence of multiple breeds of horses throughout its history. Each horse's colo ...

", "Everything Possible", "Peace Is", and "Cranes Over Hiroshima". His debut album, ''Love's Gonna Carry Us'' (1981), featured Small singing and accompanying himself on guitar. As his fame and success increased, so too did the production level of his albums, as he included more instrumentation, and appearances by other artists, including instrumental and vocal backing by popular New England folk artists. Famous fiddlers, guitarists, and mandolin players alike became a part of Small's discography and helped Small increase his popularity. After graduating from

Harvard Divinity School Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the academic study of religion or for leadership roles in religion, gov ...

, he became the minister of First Church Unitarian in Littleton, Massachusetts in 1996. On April 20, 2008, he was called as Senior Minister at First Parish in

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston ...

. Small resigned in September 2015 to devote his energies to climate advocacy. He is currently Minister for Climate Justice at Arlington Street Church, Boston, and Director of Faith Outreach for Climate XChange, which advocates for

carbon pricing Carbon pricing (or pricing), also known as cap and trade (CAT) or emissions trading scheme (ETS), is a method for nations to reduce global warming. The cost is applied to greenhouse gas emissions in order to encourage polluters to reduce the co ...

legislation in Massachusetts.

Discography

* ''Love's Gonna Carry Us'' (Aquifer, 1981) * ''The Heart of the Appaloosa'' ( Rounder Records, 1983) * ''No Limit'' (Rounder, 1985) * ''I Will Stand Fast'' (

Flying Fish Records Flying Fish Records was a record label founded in Chicago in 1974 that specialized in folk, blues, and country music. In the 1990s the label was sold to Rounder Records. Bruce Kaplan, the label's founder, was a native of Chicago and the son of ...

, 1988) * ''Jaguar'' (Flying Fish, 1991) * ''Everything Possible'' (Flying Fish, 1993) * ''Only Love'' (Aquifer, 2001)

References

External links

*
a collection of Fred Small album reviews
* (since at least 1998)
Fifty-nine Cents
– a Fred Small song about lower wages for women 1952 births Taft School alumni Living people American male singer-songwriters American Unitarian Universalists Unitarian Universalist clergy Fast Folk artists Harvard Divinity School alumni University of Michigan Law School alumni Flying Fish Records artists American singer-songwriters {{US-singer-stub