Pete Seeger: This Land Is Your Land

You can't imaging my delight at seeing the great Pete Seeger lead the singing of Woody Guthrie's This Land is Your Land at the 2009 Inauguration Concert for President Barack Obama.

Yes, I know Pete's nephew Tao Rodriguez-Seeger, and Bruce Springsteen were on stage as well, but for me it was all about Pete and Woody and the millions of people they represent.

Pete Seeger has paid his dues, not once, but many times over. To see him up there on stage in front of a live audience of at least one million people, and a world wide audience of who knows how many millions, was a tribute to the man and his music, his politics and beliefs, and to his great staying power. Now approaching 90 years of age, Pete has lost the best part of his singing voice, but he doesn't let that stop him from doing what he does best. And that is leading an audience in song, with full voiced, open hearted singing.

Pete looked like he was having a great time during the performance, and his enthusiasm and joy were contagious. This is the 'political' version of the song. Here Pete leads the singing on several verses that don't often get sung today.

In the squares of the city, by the shadow of the steeple,
By the relief office, I saw my people.
As they stood there hungry, I stood there whistling,
This land was made for you and me.

A great high wall there, tried to stop me,
A great big sign there, said private property.
But on the other side, it didn't say nothing,
That side was made for you and me.

Nobody living, can ever to stop me,
As I go walking, that freedom highway.
Nobody living, can make me turn back,
This land was made for you and me.

Just in case you missed it, here is the performance again. Make sure you watch it in high quality.



If this video has been removed from YouTube at the behest of HBO, the station which broadcast the concert, just search YouTube for other clips of the same performance. There are already dozens of versions online, but the above seems to be one of the best quality clips I have seen.

By they way, at the two minute, 15 second mark (2:15), the camera cuts to the film director George Lucas, who is clearly having a great time singing along with Pete, Tao, Bruce, and literally, a cast of millions.

So start the video, turn the sound up loud, and join in with one voice.

Back to Jim's Website...

Rare 1940 Leadbelly and Woody Guthrie Program

I've just been listening to a Podcast of the Down Home Radio Show which features a very rare program featuring Huddie Ledbetter (more commonly known as Leadbelly), and the greatest hobo folk singer of them all, Woody Guthrie. The original show was recorded back in 1940 on WNYC. Here's what they say about the show on the Podarama.Com website:

"Leadbelly & Woody Guthrie Live! On WNYC 1940
This week Henrietta and Eli discuss outlaw ballads and how criminals are transformed into popular heroes. In conjunction with that and of extra special interest, they rebroadcast a show Henrietta produced for WNYC radio back in 1940. It is Leadbelly's show and he has as his guest, Woody Guthrie. This program has not been heard since it was first broadcast 67 years ago! Down Home would like to thank WNYC and archivist Andy Lanset for providing us with this rare material."

It seems that back in 1940, Leadbelly had his own radio show on WNYC, and was able to invite his own guests on to the show. On this particular occasion, the guest was Woody Guthrie. It's almost certain that no other records exist of any of Leadbelly's other programs. If that is the case, this show is a rare gem indeed.

The Down Home Radio Show broadcasts online only out of New York City. They have some other excellent programs available for your listening pleasure among the extensive archives. If you like folk music in particular, this station is well worth exploring.

Here's Leadbelly caught on what may be his only filmed appearance. This nine minute film shows him singing Pick a Bale of Cotton, The Grey Goose, and Take This Hammer. The film dates from 1945 and was edited by Pete Seeger.



Enjoy.

Back to Jim's Website...

Sacred Harp Singing

Some time ago I become aware of a documentary about Sacred Harp singing called, Awake, My Soul. You can see the trailer below...


Here's what Matt Hinton, the director has to say about his documentary and the tradition of Sacred Harp singing:

"Awake, My Soul is a feature documentary that explores the history, music, and traditions of Sacred Harp singing, the oldest surviving American music. While often linked only to its history, (e.g. the songs were used in the recent historical films Cold Mountain and Gangs of New York) this haunting music has survived over 200 years tucked away from sight in the rural deep south, where in old wooden country churches, devoted singers break open The Sacred Harp, a shape note hymnal first published in Georgia in 1844.

"These singers have inherited The Sacred Harp and its traditions from those who came before them and preserved these fierce yet beautiful songs, many of which are much older than the hymnal itself. These singers have inherited The Sacred Harp and its traditions from those who came before them and preserved these fierce yet beautiful songs ... songs of both beauty and sorrow, of life and of death, songs that cause feet to stomp and tears to flow, often at the same time.

"They are ancient sounds, which are at times disorienting to the modern ear, and yet they are sung with such passion and force that it becomes obvious that these songs are very much alive. Awake My Soul is a film that captures both the history and the vitality of a music that is utterly unlike any music most viewers are likely to have heard."

Go to the Awake, My Soul website and listen to several full sound files of this remarkable music as you read more about the film, the singers, and the Sacred Harp tradition.

What is it about the sound of this music that moves me so much?

As someone who has had little time for organised religion, and its trappings, why am I so stirred by these songs and the collective sound of massed voices singing together? Whether it is shaped note singing, or the songs of the black American gospel tradition, I am constantly surprised by my reaction to the power of this music. So surprised, in fact, that if I ever have an opportunity to experience the music first hand, I am almost scared of what I might do, once I am totally immersed in the environment from which is springs.

Here is a YouTube clip showing a Sacred Harp group in Bloomington, Indiana singing Idumea...



This is one documentary I'd love to see on Australian television.

Back to Jim's Website...

Letter to America

Thank you, America.

Thank you for taking a day off work last November, and sacrificing a days wages to stand in line for hours at a time so you could vote for the change America needed so much. And thank you for showing us that when it matters, really matters, you are colour blind. That in spite of the colour of his skin, you were still prepared to take a chance on a young African-American man whose middle name is Hussein, and whose surname, Obama, is remarkably similar to that of the most wanted terrorist in the world. And still you elect him as your President.

So thank you, America.

Thank you for giving us a reason to believe again. To believe when many thought there was nothing left to believe in. When many said there was nothing worth believing in. Thank you for showing us you are paying attention. That you do care. That you do recognised talent, intelligence, vision, and leadership, and that you can embrace it when you need it most.

Thank you again, America.

Thank you for having the “audacity of hope,” when many thought you were beyond hope. And thank you for allowing us to hope again, too. Because many of us had lost hope. Given up hope. Or thought you had reached a stage in your development where to expect more from you was truly hopeless.

Thank you, America.

Thank you for caring again. For caring about your people, your country, your political system, your place in the world, and for daring to make a change so radically different from all those that have gone before, that you really did take us all by surprise.

So thank you, America.

Thank you, for allowing us to dream again.

No – thank you, for daring us to dream again. For showing us Martin Luther King’s ‘dream’ was not an illusion; nor was it a delusion; but a vision of the future built on love, hope, faith, and a belief that one day, America would once again be the light on the hill that drew to it, the faithful from all over the world.

So make us proud, America. Make us proud. You have given your citizens a reason to hold their heads up again. To hold their heads up, push their shoulders back, and to walk tall again. And you have given your friends a reason to do the same.

Thank you, America.

Thank you.

Back to Jim's Website...