This Land Is Your Land (Reprise)

In my last entry, I talked about Pete Seeger and Bruce Springsteen's performance of This Land Is Your Land at the 2009 Inauguration concert for President Barack Obama.

Here is a YouTube clip of the same song, this time as recorded by Woody Guthrie himself. The vision seen here shows Woody Guthrie caught on two vary rare film clips.

The first carries the date, 1945, and appears to be at an outdoor location. This captures Woody as many might expect him to be seen -- singing at a hobo camp or to a group of itinerant workers somewhere. Of course, we have no way of knowing what the real circumstances behind this recording is. It may have been filmed for a very early television program or documentary film. It's not even clear if he is in fact singing This Land... during this clip.

The second piece of footage dated 1946 shows Woody Guthrie performing with Sonny Terry and Brownie McGee, again probably for a very early television program, or film. They are almost certainly not performing This Land... but it doesn't matter.

Just to see an iconic figure like Woody Guthrie caught on film is enough.



Why do people like Woody Guthrie become such iconic figures. After all, it is not as if he found a cure for cancer, or made some other great scientific discovery. And yet Woody seems to have found a place in popular history -- the people's history, if you will -- that has cemented his place in the pantheon of great individuals who have touched other peoples lives in ways they would never have thought possible while they were living their own.

Maybe it is because people like Woody, and Pete Seeger, and Leadbelly walked the walk, and talked the talk. They lived in an age when what you did with your life and art, was always more important than who you slept with, or how you dressed, or whether you had added a few pounds to your butt over the summer.

They also lived in an age when they could carve out a niche for themselves in music, or theatre or the arts. Today, people like Woody and his contemporaries might still carve out a small niche for themselves in the modern music business, but only as curiosities -- as some sort of throwback to an age or era long past and almost forgotten.

Thank goodness these small remnants of film and audio exist to remind us of their greatness and their existence in the world.

Back to Jim's Website...

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...