Legendary Mpls Rocker Honors Renee Good & Alex Pretti to Raise Funds for Immigrant Rapid Response Fund with New Video

Curtiss A cover song honors Renee Good & Alex Pretti, as do the many posters near where Pretti was killed and the recording studio

Posters of Renee and Alex, just steps from the recording studio and where Alex was killed

Twin Cities Rocker Curtiss A & Friends Reach Back and Reimagine the “Walk Away Renee” ‘60s Hit for Two Killed by Federal Agents During ICE Surge in Minnesota

I thought of that 1966 Left Banke song when Renee Good was murdered. The original song is about unrequited love. But when I sang the new arrangement, I thought it’s really about an unfinished life.”

— Curtiss A, legendry Godfather of the Twin Cities rock scene

MINNEAPOLIS, MN, UNITED STATES, February 18, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- After artists famed and not-so-famous have recorded new music commemorating the 2026 ICE Siege of Minnesota (aka “Operation Metro Surge”), the legendry Godfather of the Twin Cities rock scene, Curtiss A, is reaching back to the past to honor both Renee Good and Alex Pretti who were murdered in January by federal ICE and Border Patrol agents – and to raise funds on a GoFundMe site to benefit the nonprofit organization, The Immigrant Rapid Response Fund (IRRF). *

With a little help from his friends (many who have played for the 45 consecutive years of his annual John Lennon tributes every December 8, most at First Avenue), Curtiss and A-list producer and musician John Fields (Pink, Soul Asylum, Switchfoot, Miley Cyrus, et al) reimagined the 1966 Left Banke hit, “Walk Away Renee,” complete with brass and a string trio.*

YOUTUBE VIDEO CAPTURES ICE PROTESTS, RECORDING SESSION & MEMORIAL SITES

A subsequent YouTube video captures the memorial sites of both Renee Good and Alex Pretti -- less than just 20 blocks away from the other – ICE protests and the recording session, which took place on Curtiss’ 75th birthday, January 31, 2026!

New Version is Really about Renee Good’s “Unfinished Life”

“I immediately thought of the song when Renee Good was murdered because of the name. The original song is about unrequited love. But when I sang the new arrangement, I thought it’s really about an unfinished life,” noted Curtiss. “For me there’s a certain spiritual connection, too: When she said to her assassin moments away from being killed -- ‘I’m not mad at you, dude’ -- it’s quite obvious she had no malice. Proof enough in any court that there was no reason WHATSOEVER to fire rounds into her body. Her death was beyond heinous; my brain screamed at me to do something. Singing is all I really know. Plus, everybody in the room that day felt like they each individually had to do something.

The Song was Recorded Just Steps Away from the Alex Pretti Site

Curtiss said both he and producer-musician John Fields wanted to do a stunning version because Fields, too, loved the song as a kid. “He did all the heavy lifting as they say. It was a Herculean effort,” Curtiss explained, “done all in one day, exactly a week after Alex Pretti was killed right near the studio. On the day we recorded, 8,000 bicyclists rode down Nicollet Avenue in honor of Alex, which was very inspiring. It was like a river of people on rubber tires and bike frames, and their show of strength probably helped me hit the high notes in the song. Everything for this effort fell into place, but it couldn’t have happened without John Fields.”

“Now She Haunts My Dreams and Waking Moments”

The former Twin/Tone Records rocker, collage artist and grandpa feels a special affinity for Renee Good: “I’m a former resident of that exact neighborhood where she was killed. That ‘empty sidewalks’ line in the song is particularly touching and triggering. I’ll never be able to travel down that ‘one way street’ (Portland Avenue South) without thinking of Renee. I don’t think anyone in the Twin Cities or the world could ever forget the totally unjust circumstances in which her life was taken.

“Now, she haunts my dreams and waking moments. It’s beyond tragic, especially when I think of her children – and all the deported and kidnapped children who have been severely traumatized – some for life -- because of this senseless and incompetent show of force over three months by our own government.”

*More about The Immigrant Rapid Response Fund (IRRF)

IRRF is a coalition of 32 philanthropic leaders rooted in communities most impacted by immigration-related harm. IRRF ensures that resources move quickly, responsibly, and with community accountability to trusted organizations responding to immigration-related emergencies across Minnesota.

Martin Keller
Media Savant Communications
+1 612-220-6515
mkelller@mediasavantcom.com
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Video for "Walk Away Renee" to honor Renee Good & Alex Pretti and to raise funds for The Immigrant Rapid Response Fund

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