The Weavers
The Weavers were an American folk music quartet based in the Greenwich Vill… Read Full Bio ↴The Weavers were an American folk music quartet based in the Greenwich Village area of New York City.
The Weavers were formed in November 1948 by Ronnie Gilbert, Pete Seeger, Lee Hays and Fred Hellerman.
They sang traditional folk songs from around the world, as well as blues, gospel music, children's songs, labor songs, and American ballads, and sold millions of records at the height of their popularity. Their hard-driving string-band style inspired the commercial "folk boom" that followed them in the 1950s and 1960s, including such performers as The Kingston Trio, Peter, Paul, and Mary, The Rooftop Singers, and Bob Dylan.
In 1940 Lee Hays and Pete Seeger had co-founded, with Woody Guthrie and Millard Lampell, a previous group, Almanac Singers, which had promoted peace and isolationism during the Second World War, working with the American Peace Mobilization. It featured many songs opposing entry into the war by the U.S. In June 1941, the same month Germany invaded the Soviet Union, the APC changed its name to the American People's Committee and altered its focus to supporting U.S. entry into the war. The Almanacs supported the change and produced many pro-war songs urging the U.S. to fight on the side of the Allies. The group disbanded after the U.S. entered the war.
At Hellerman's suggestion, the new group took its name from a play by Gerhart Hauptmann, Die Weber (The Weavers 1892), a powerful work depicting the uprising of the Silesian weavers in 1844 which containing the lines, "I'll stand it no more, come what may". After a period of being unable to find much paid work, they landed a steady and successful engagement at the Village Vanguard jazz club. This led to their discovery by arranger-bandleader Gordon Jenkins and their signing with Decca Records. The group had a big hit in 1950 with Lead Belly's "Goodnight, Irene", backed with the 1941 song "Tzena, Tzena, Tzena", which in turn became a best seller. The recording stayed at number one on the charts for a lengthy 13 weeks. In keeping with the audience expectations of the time, these and other early Weavers' releases had violins and orchestration added behind the group's own string-band instruments. Because of the deepening Red Scare of the early 1950s, their manager, Pete Cameron, advised them not to sing their most explicitly political songs and to avoid performing at "progressive" venues and events. Because of this, some folk song fans criticized them for watering down their beliefs and commercializing their singing style. But the Weavers felt it was worth it to get their songs before the public, and to avoid the explicit type of commitment which had led to the demise of the Almanacs. The new approach proved a success, leading to many bookings and increased demand for the group's recordings.
The successful concerts and hit recordings of the Weavers helped introduce to new audiences such folk revival standards as "On Top of Old Smoky" (with guest vocalist Terry Gilkyson), "Follow the Drinking Gourd", "Kisses Sweeter than Wine", "The Wreck of the John B" (aka "Sloop John B"), "Rock Island Line", "The Midnight Special", "Pay Me My Money Down", "Darling Corey" and "Wimoweh". The Weavers encouraged sing-alongs in their concerts, and sometimes Seeger would shout out the lyrics in advance of each line in lining out style.
In a 1968 interview, in response to claims that record companies found the Weavers difficult to classify, Seeger told the Pop Chronicles music documentary to "leave that up to the anthropologists, the folklorists. ...For you and me, the important thing is a song, a good song, a true song. ...Call it anything you want."
Film footage of the Weavers is relatively scarce. The group appeared as a specialty act in a B-movie musical, Disc Jockey (1951), and filmed five of their record hits that same year for TV producer Lou Snader: "Goodnight, Irene", "Tzena, Tzena, Tzena", "So Long", "Around the World", and "The Roving Kind".
During the Red Scare, however, Pete Seeger and Lee Hays were identified as Communist Party members by FBI informant Harvey Matusow (who later recanted) and ended up being called up to testify to the House Committee on Un-American Activities in 1955. Hays took the Fifth Amendment. Seeger refused to answer, however, claiming First Amendment grounds, the first to do so after the conviction of the Hollywood Ten in 1950. Seeger was found guilty of contempt and placed under restrictions by the court pending appeal, but in 1961 his conviction was overturned on technical grounds. Because Seeger was among those listed in the entertainment industry blacklist publication, Red Channels, all of the Weavers were placed under FBI surveillance and not allowed to perform on television or radio during the McCarthy era. Decca Records terminated their recording contract and deleted their records from its catalog in 1953. Their recordings were denied airplay, which curtailed their income from royalties. Right-wing and anti-Communist groups protested at their performances and harassed promoters. As a result, the group's economic viability diminished rapidly and in 1952 it disbanded. After this, Pete Seeger continued his solo career, although as with all of them, he continued to suffer from the effects of blacklisting.
In December 1955, the group reunited to play a sold-out concert at Carnegie Hall. The concert was a huge success. A recording of the concert was issued by the independent Vanguard Records, and this led to their signing by that record label. By the late 1950s, folk music was surging in popularity and McCarthyism was fading. Yet the media industry of the time was so timid and conventional that it wasn't until the height of the revolutionary '60s that Seeger was able to end his blacklisting by appearing on a nationally distributed U.S. television show, The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, in 1968.
After the April 1957 LP release of the Carnegie Hall concert, the Weavers launched a month-long concert tour. That August the group reassembled for a series of recording sessions for Vanguard. As Seeger's college concert bookings grew, the singer felt restricted by his obligations to the group. Vanguard booked the Weavers for a January 15, 1958, session to record a rock-and-roll single. The results were embarrassing and fueled Seeger's frustration. The following month Gilbert, Hays, and Hellerman overruled Seeger about a recording a cigarette ad for a tobacco company. Seeger, opposed to the dangers of tobacco and discouraged by the group's apparent sell-out to commercial interests, decided to resign. Honoring his commitment to record the jingle, he left the group on March 3, 1958.
Seeger recommended Erik Darling of The Tarriers as his replacement. Darling remained with the group until June 1962, leaving to pursue a solo career and eventually to form the folk-jazz trio The Rooftop Singers. Frank Hamilton, who replaced Darling, stayed with the group nine months, giving his notice just before the Weavers celebrated the group's fifteenth anniversary with two nights of concerts at Carnegie Hall in March 1963. Folksinger Bernie Krause, later a pioneer in bringing the Moog synthesizer to popular music, was the last performer to occupy "the Seeger chair." The group disbanded in 1964, but Gilbert, Hellerman, and Hays occasionally reunited with Seeger during the next 16 years. In 1980, Lee Hays, ill and using a wheelchair, wistfully approached the original Weavers for one last get-together. Hays' informal picnic prompted a professional reunion, and a triumphant return to Carnegie Hall on November 28, 1980, which was to be the band's last full performance. They appeared one final time in June 1981 at the Clearwater Festival, in an informal "rehearsal." A documentary film, The Weavers: Wasn't That a Time! (1982), was released after the death of Hays, and chronicled the history of the group, and the events leading up to the reunion.
Following the dissolution of the band, Ronnie Gilbert toured America as a soloist and Fred Hellerman worked as a recording engineer and producer. The group was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2001.
In February 2006, The Weavers received the Lifetime Achievement Award. Represented by members Ronnie Gilbert and Fred Hellerman, they struck a chord with the crowd as their struggles with political witch hunts during the 1950s were recounted. "If you can exist, and stay the course – not a course of blind obstinacy and faulty conception – but one of decency and good sense, you can outlast your enemies with your honor and integrity intact," Hellerman said. Some commentators see the reference to 'blind obstinacy' as a veiled criticism of those who believed blindly in all the actions of the Communist Party.
Lee Hays died in 1981, aged 67, and his biography, Lonesome Traveler by Doris Willens, was published in 1988. Erik Darling died August 3, 2008, aged 74, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, from lymphoma. After a long career in music and activism, Pete Seeger died at the age of 94 on January 27, 2014, in New York City. Ronnie Gilbert died at the age of 88 on June 6, 2015. Fred Hellerman died at the age of 89 on September 1, 2016.
Members
Ronnie Gilbert – Alto (1948–1952, 1955–1964, 1980; died 2015)
Lee Hays – Bass (1948–1952, 1955–1964, 1980; died 1981)
Fred Hellerman – Baritone (1948–1952, 1955–1964, 1980; died 2016)
Pete Seeger – Tenor (1948–1952, 1955–1958, 1980; died 2014)
Erik Darling – Tenor (1958–1962; died 2008)
Frank Hamilton – Tenor (1962–1963)
Bernie Krause – Tenor (1963–1964)
The Weavers were formed in November 1948 by Ronnie Gilbert, Pete Seeger, Lee Hays and Fred Hellerman.
They sang traditional folk songs from around the world, as well as blues, gospel music, children's songs, labor songs, and American ballads, and sold millions of records at the height of their popularity. Their hard-driving string-band style inspired the commercial "folk boom" that followed them in the 1950s and 1960s, including such performers as The Kingston Trio, Peter, Paul, and Mary, The Rooftop Singers, and Bob Dylan.
In 1940 Lee Hays and Pete Seeger had co-founded, with Woody Guthrie and Millard Lampell, a previous group, Almanac Singers, which had promoted peace and isolationism during the Second World War, working with the American Peace Mobilization. It featured many songs opposing entry into the war by the U.S. In June 1941, the same month Germany invaded the Soviet Union, the APC changed its name to the American People's Committee and altered its focus to supporting U.S. entry into the war. The Almanacs supported the change and produced many pro-war songs urging the U.S. to fight on the side of the Allies. The group disbanded after the U.S. entered the war.
At Hellerman's suggestion, the new group took its name from a play by Gerhart Hauptmann, Die Weber (The Weavers 1892), a powerful work depicting the uprising of the Silesian weavers in 1844 which containing the lines, "I'll stand it no more, come what may". After a period of being unable to find much paid work, they landed a steady and successful engagement at the Village Vanguard jazz club. This led to their discovery by arranger-bandleader Gordon Jenkins and their signing with Decca Records. The group had a big hit in 1950 with Lead Belly's "Goodnight, Irene", backed with the 1941 song "Tzena, Tzena, Tzena", which in turn became a best seller. The recording stayed at number one on the charts for a lengthy 13 weeks. In keeping with the audience expectations of the time, these and other early Weavers' releases had violins and orchestration added behind the group's own string-band instruments. Because of the deepening Red Scare of the early 1950s, their manager, Pete Cameron, advised them not to sing their most explicitly political songs and to avoid performing at "progressive" venues and events. Because of this, some folk song fans criticized them for watering down their beliefs and commercializing their singing style. But the Weavers felt it was worth it to get their songs before the public, and to avoid the explicit type of commitment which had led to the demise of the Almanacs. The new approach proved a success, leading to many bookings and increased demand for the group's recordings.
The successful concerts and hit recordings of the Weavers helped introduce to new audiences such folk revival standards as "On Top of Old Smoky" (with guest vocalist Terry Gilkyson), "Follow the Drinking Gourd", "Kisses Sweeter than Wine", "The Wreck of the John B" (aka "Sloop John B"), "Rock Island Line", "The Midnight Special", "Pay Me My Money Down", "Darling Corey" and "Wimoweh". The Weavers encouraged sing-alongs in their concerts, and sometimes Seeger would shout out the lyrics in advance of each line in lining out style.
In a 1968 interview, in response to claims that record companies found the Weavers difficult to classify, Seeger told the Pop Chronicles music documentary to "leave that up to the anthropologists, the folklorists. ...For you and me, the important thing is a song, a good song, a true song. ...Call it anything you want."
Film footage of the Weavers is relatively scarce. The group appeared as a specialty act in a B-movie musical, Disc Jockey (1951), and filmed five of their record hits that same year for TV producer Lou Snader: "Goodnight, Irene", "Tzena, Tzena, Tzena", "So Long", "Around the World", and "The Roving Kind".
During the Red Scare, however, Pete Seeger and Lee Hays were identified as Communist Party members by FBI informant Harvey Matusow (who later recanted) and ended up being called up to testify to the House Committee on Un-American Activities in 1955. Hays took the Fifth Amendment. Seeger refused to answer, however, claiming First Amendment grounds, the first to do so after the conviction of the Hollywood Ten in 1950. Seeger was found guilty of contempt and placed under restrictions by the court pending appeal, but in 1961 his conviction was overturned on technical grounds. Because Seeger was among those listed in the entertainment industry blacklist publication, Red Channels, all of the Weavers were placed under FBI surveillance and not allowed to perform on television or radio during the McCarthy era. Decca Records terminated their recording contract and deleted their records from its catalog in 1953. Their recordings were denied airplay, which curtailed their income from royalties. Right-wing and anti-Communist groups protested at their performances and harassed promoters. As a result, the group's economic viability diminished rapidly and in 1952 it disbanded. After this, Pete Seeger continued his solo career, although as with all of them, he continued to suffer from the effects of blacklisting.
In December 1955, the group reunited to play a sold-out concert at Carnegie Hall. The concert was a huge success. A recording of the concert was issued by the independent Vanguard Records, and this led to their signing by that record label. By the late 1950s, folk music was surging in popularity and McCarthyism was fading. Yet the media industry of the time was so timid and conventional that it wasn't until the height of the revolutionary '60s that Seeger was able to end his blacklisting by appearing on a nationally distributed U.S. television show, The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, in 1968.
After the April 1957 LP release of the Carnegie Hall concert, the Weavers launched a month-long concert tour. That August the group reassembled for a series of recording sessions for Vanguard. As Seeger's college concert bookings grew, the singer felt restricted by his obligations to the group. Vanguard booked the Weavers for a January 15, 1958, session to record a rock-and-roll single. The results were embarrassing and fueled Seeger's frustration. The following month Gilbert, Hays, and Hellerman overruled Seeger about a recording a cigarette ad for a tobacco company. Seeger, opposed to the dangers of tobacco and discouraged by the group's apparent sell-out to commercial interests, decided to resign. Honoring his commitment to record the jingle, he left the group on March 3, 1958.
Seeger recommended Erik Darling of The Tarriers as his replacement. Darling remained with the group until June 1962, leaving to pursue a solo career and eventually to form the folk-jazz trio The Rooftop Singers. Frank Hamilton, who replaced Darling, stayed with the group nine months, giving his notice just before the Weavers celebrated the group's fifteenth anniversary with two nights of concerts at Carnegie Hall in March 1963. Folksinger Bernie Krause, later a pioneer in bringing the Moog synthesizer to popular music, was the last performer to occupy "the Seeger chair." The group disbanded in 1964, but Gilbert, Hellerman, and Hays occasionally reunited with Seeger during the next 16 years. In 1980, Lee Hays, ill and using a wheelchair, wistfully approached the original Weavers for one last get-together. Hays' informal picnic prompted a professional reunion, and a triumphant return to Carnegie Hall on November 28, 1980, which was to be the band's last full performance. They appeared one final time in June 1981 at the Clearwater Festival, in an informal "rehearsal." A documentary film, The Weavers: Wasn't That a Time! (1982), was released after the death of Hays, and chronicled the history of the group, and the events leading up to the reunion.
Following the dissolution of the band, Ronnie Gilbert toured America as a soloist and Fred Hellerman worked as a recording engineer and producer. The group was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2001.
In February 2006, The Weavers received the Lifetime Achievement Award. Represented by members Ronnie Gilbert and Fred Hellerman, they struck a chord with the crowd as their struggles with political witch hunts during the 1950s were recounted. "If you can exist, and stay the course – not a course of blind obstinacy and faulty conception – but one of decency and good sense, you can outlast your enemies with your honor and integrity intact," Hellerman said. Some commentators see the reference to 'blind obstinacy' as a veiled criticism of those who believed blindly in all the actions of the Communist Party.
Lee Hays died in 1981, aged 67, and his biography, Lonesome Traveler by Doris Willens, was published in 1988. Erik Darling died August 3, 2008, aged 74, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, from lymphoma. After a long career in music and activism, Pete Seeger died at the age of 94 on January 27, 2014, in New York City. Ronnie Gilbert died at the age of 88 on June 6, 2015. Fred Hellerman died at the age of 89 on September 1, 2016.
Members
Ronnie Gilbert – Alto (1948–1952, 1955–1964, 1980; died 2015)
Lee Hays – Bass (1948–1952, 1955–1964, 1980; died 1981)
Fred Hellerman – Baritone (1948–1952, 1955–1964, 1980; died 2016)
Pete Seeger – Tenor (1948–1952, 1955–1958, 1980; died 2014)
Erik Darling – Tenor (1958–1962; died 2008)
Frank Hamilton – Tenor (1962–1963)
Bernie Krause – Tenor (1963–1964)
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The Weavers Lyrics
À la Volette Once there was a swallow, And her birdies three. Birdies t…
A Round The Corner Around the corner Beneath the berry tree Along the footpath,…
A-Walkin' And A-Talkin' The cuckoo is a pretty bird, she sings as she…
Almost Done On a Monday I was arrested On a Tuesday I was…
Around The Corner Around the corner Beneath the berry tree Along the footpath,…
Aunt Rhodie Go tell Aunt Rhodie Go tell Aunt Rhodie Go tell Aunt Rhodie …
Aweigh Santy Anno From Boston Town, we're bound away Heave aweigh Santy Ano Ar…
Aweigh, Santy Ano From Boston town we're bound away, Heave away, Santy Ano! Ar…
Below the Gallows Tree Farewell, ye dungeons dark and strong, Farewell, farewell t…
Born in East Virginia I was born in East Virginia North Carolina, I did go There…
Bring a Little Water Sylvie Sylvie, Sylvie Sylvie, Sylvie Bring me little water, Sylvie…
Brother Can You Spare a Dime They used to tell me I was building a dream…
Burgundian Carol The winter season of the year When to this world our…
Bury Me Bury me beneath the willow ′Neath the weeping willow tree Wh…
Buttermilk Hill Here I sit on Buttermilk hill Who can play me, cry…
Come Away Melinda Mommy, mommy, come and look And see what I've found A litt…
Dark As A Dungeon Oh come all you young fellers so young and so…
Darling Corey Wake up, wake up, darling Corey What makes you sleep so…
East Virginia Blues I was born in East Virginia North Carolina, I did go There…
Eddystone Light Me father was the keeper of the Eddystone Light And corded…
Eres Alta Eres alta y delgada como tu madre, morena salada, como tu…
Erie Canal We were forty miles from Albany, Forget it I never shall. …
Fight On We are almost down to the shore Peter, Peter on the…
Follow The Drinkin' Gourd When the Sun comes back And the first quail calls Follow the…
Get Along Little Dogies As I was out riding one morning for pleasure I spied…
Get up Get Out When I was young and short of tongue A silly, wee…
Good Old Bowling Green Wish I was in bowling greens Sitting in my chair When I'm…
Goodnight Irene Irene, goodnight Irene, goodnight Goodnight, Irene Goodnight…
Gotta Travel On Gotta Travel On Performer：The Weavers Composer ：Paul Clayt…
Guantanamera Guantanamera, guajira, Guantanamera Guantanamera, guajira, …
Hard Ain't It Hard Well it'shard and it's hard, ain't it hard To love one…
Hard, Ain't It Hard There is a house in this old town, And that's where…
Hush Little Baby Hush little baby don't say a word Papa's gonna buy…
I'm Standing Outside of Your Shelter I'm standing on the outside of your shelter, lookin' in Whi…
I've Got a Home in That Rock I've got a home in that rock, don't you see? I've…
If I Had a Hammer We wish you a merry Christmas We wish you a merry…
In That New Jerusalem Well, in a that new Jerusalem, In that new Jerusalem, My Lo…
It's Almost Day My dearest my darling tomorrow is near The sun will bring…
John B We come on the sloop John B My grandfather and me 'Round…
John B. We come on the sloop John B My grandfather and me 'Round…
Kisses Are Sweeter Than Wine Oh kisses sweeter than wine Oh kisses sweeter than wine Whe…
Kisses Sweeter Than Wine (Live) Well, when I was a young man never been kissed I…
Kisses Sweeter Than Wine Pt. 1 Oh kisses sweeter than wine Oh kisses sweeter than wine Whe…
Last Night I Had the Strangest Dream Last night I had the strangest dream I ever dreamed before I…
Let the Midnight Special Oh, let the midnight special, shine her light on me Oh,…
Lonesome Traveler I am a lonely and a lonesome traveler I am a…
Lonesome Traveller I am a lonely and a lonesome traveler I am a…
Marching to Pretoria Row, row, row your boat, gently down the stream Merrily, me…
Meet the Johnson Boys Johnson boys was raised in the ashes, Didn't know how to…
Midnight Special Oh, let the midnight special, shine her light on me Oh,…
Miner's Life Miner's life is like a sailor's 'Board a ship to cross…
No Irish Need Apply I'm a decent boy, Just landed from the town of ballyfad…
Oh My Darlin' Oh my darling There's nothing I can do I will row the…
Oh Sinner Man Oh, sinner man, where you're gonna run to all on…
Old Paint I ride an old paint, I lead an old dan I'm…
Old Riley Old Riley crossed the water On them long hot summer days Old…
On My Journey Well, when I'm on my journey don't you weep after…
On The Top Of Old Smoky On top of old smoky All covered with snow I lost my…
On Top of Old Smokey On top of old Smokey All covered with snow I lost my…
On Top of Old Smoky On top of old smoky All covered with snow I lost my…
On Top of Old Smoky (Live) On top of Old Smokey All covered with snow Lost my true…
Pay Me My Money Down Pay Me My Money Down - The Weavers I thought I…
Poor Liza Poor Liza, poor girl, oh Liza Jane Poor Liza, poor girl,…
Rally Round the Flag We will rally round the flag, boys, rally once again Shoutin…
Ramblin' Boy So fare ye well, my ramblin' boy, May all your rambles…
Rock Island Line Oh the Rock Island Line it is a mighty good…
Roving Kind As I cruised out one evening upon a night's career I…
Run Come See Jerusalem It was in nineteen hundred and twenty nine, Run come see,…
Sinner Man Oh, sinner man, where you're gonna run to all on…
Sixteen Tons Some people say a man is made out of mud A…
So Long So long, it's been good to know ya So long, it's…
Stewball Oh, Stewball, he was a great name Oh, Ringo he was…
Study War No More I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield Down by the…
Sylvie Sylvie, Sylvie Sylvie, Sylvie Bring me little water, Sylvie…
Talking Blues Kau bilang cinta padaku Aku bilang nanti dulu Selera kita te…
The Crawdad Song You get a line and I′ll get a pole, Honey You…
The Eddystone Light Me father was the keeper of the Eddystone Light And corded…
The Gandy Dancer's Ball Oh they danced on the ceiling And they danced on the…
The Keeper The keeper did a hunting go Under his cloak he carried…
The Midnight Special Oh, let the midnight special, shine her light on me Oh,…
The Roving Kind As I cruised out one evening upon a night's career I…
The Wreck of the John B We come on the sloop John B My grandfather and me 'Round…
This Land Is Your Land This land is your land This land is my land From…
Train Time Train time man, train time, train time I'm a depot man,…
True Religion Who's gonna make up my dyin' bed when I die? Who's…
Twelve Gates to the City Three gates to the north and three in the south There's…
Tzena Tzena Tzena, Tzena, Tzena, Tzena Can't you hear the music playing …
Tzena, Tzena Tzena, Tzena, Tzena, Tzena Can't you hear the music playing …
Wasn't That a Time Our fathers bled at Valley Forge The snow was red with…
We Wish You A Marry Christmas We wish you a merry Christmas We wish you a merry…
We're All Dodgin' Oh, the candidate's a dodger, yes, a well-known dodger, Oh,…
When the Saints Go Marching In We are trav'ling in the footsteps Of those who've gone befor…
When the Stars Begin to Fall My Lord, what a morning My Lord, what a morning My Lord,…
Wild Goose Grasses In Tarry-town there did dwell A handsome youth I knew…
Wimoweh Oh, wimoweh Wimoweh Wimoweh Wimoweh Wimoweh Wimoweh Wimow…
Wimoweh (Mbube) In the jungle the mighty jungle the lion sleeps tonight In…
Woke up This Morning I woke up this mornin' with my mind My mind, it…
Wreck Of The We come on the sloop John B My grandfather and me 'Round…
You Made Me a Pallet On the Floor You made me a pallet on the floor Oh, yes, you…
You Old Fool I came home the other night as drunk as I…
Craig Meese
on Benoni
Benoni was a beautiful small town which grew into a city. It is situated in South Africa.. The name Benoni means 'Son of my Sorrow. When Rachel in the Bible was in labour with Benjamin there were complications and she died. Just before she slipped away she named her son Benoni. However Jacob who was renamed Israel named the boy Benjamin. See Gen 35:18.