As a member of The Weavers, Seeger had a string of hits, including a 1949 recording of Leadbelly's "Goodnight Irene" that topped the charts for 13 weeks in 1950. He was formerly a member of the Communist Party of the United States of America and was a major contributor to folk and protest music in the 1950s and the 1960s.
Perhaps best known today as the author or co-author of the songs Where Have All the Flowers Gone, If I Had a Hammer, and Turn, Turn, Turn, songs that have been recorded by many artists both in and outside the folk revival movement and which are still sung all over the world. Flowers was a hit recording for The Kingston Trio (1962), Marlene Dietrich, who recorded it in English, German and French (1962), and Johnny Rivers (1965). "If I Had a Hammer" was a hit for Peter, Paul & Mary (1962) and Trini Lopez (1963), while The Byrds popularized "Turn, Turn, Turn" in the mid-1960s.
Early work
Seeger dropped out of Harvard (where he had been studying journalism) in 1939, and he took a job in Washington, D.C. at the Archive of American Folk Song in the Library of Congress. In that capacity, he met and was influenced by many important musicians such as Woody Guthrie and Leadbelly. He met Woody at a "Grapes of Wrath" migrant workers concert on March 3, 1940 and the two thereafter began a musical collaboration.
In 1948, Seeger wrote the first version of his now-classic How to Play the Five-String Banjo, a book that many banjo players credit with starting them off on the instrument. He went on to invent the Long Neck or Seeger banjo. This instrument is three frets longer than a typical banjo, and slightly longer than a bass guitar at 25 Frets, and is tuned a minor third lower than the normal 5-string banjo.
As a self-described "split tenor" (between an alto and a tenor), he was a founding member of the folk groups the Almanac Singers with Woody Guthrie and the Weavers with Lee Hays, Ronnie Gilbert and Fred Hellerman. The Weavers had major hits in the early 1950s, before being blacklisted in the McCarthy Era.
On August 18, 1955, Pete was subpoenaed to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) where he refused to name personal and political associations stating it would violate his First Amendment rights... "I am not going to answer any questions as to my association, my philosophical or religious beliefs or my political beliefs, or how I voted in any election, or any of these private affairs. I think these are very improper questions for any American to be asked, especially under such compulsion as this." Seeger's refusal to testify led to a March 26, 1957 indictment for contempt of Congress; for some years, he had to keep the federal government apprised of where he was going any time he left the Southern District of New York. He was convicted in a jury trial in March 1961, and sentenced to a year in jail, but in May 1962 an appeals court ruled the indictment to be flawed and overturned his conviction.
Seeger started a solo career in 1958, and is known for songs such as "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?," "If I Had a Hammer" (co-written with Lee Hays), "Turn, Turn, Turn," adapted from the Book of Ecclesiastes, and "We Shall Overcome" (based on a spiritual and later became the unofficial anthem for the civil rights movement). Seeger became influential in the 1960s folk revival centered in Greenwich Village. He helped found Broadside Magazine and Sing Out!. He was strongly associated with Moses Asch and Folkways Records. To describe the new crop of folk singers, many of whom were politically minded in their songs, he coined the phrase "Woody's children", alluding to his former bandmate Woody Guthrie, who by this time had become a legendary figure. He has often sung and is associated with the song "Joe Hill".
In the mid-sixties he hosted a regional folk music TV show called Rainbow Quest which featured folk musicians playing traditional folk music. Among his guests were Johnny Cash, June Carter, Mississippi John Hurt, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Roscoe Holcomb, The Stanley Brothers, Doc Watson, Tom Paxton, Judy Collins, Richard Fariña and Mimi Fariña, and many others. Thirty-eight hour-long programs were recorded at new UHF station WNJU's Newark studios in 1965 and 1966, produced by Seeger and his wife Toshi with Sholom Rubinstein.
An early advocate of Bob Dylan, Seeger was supposedly incensed over the distorted electric sound Dylan brought into the 1965 Newport Folk Festival, especially with the inability to clearly hear the lyrics. There are many conflicting versions of exactly what ensued, some claiming that he actually tried to disconnect the equipment. He is often cited as one of the main opponents to Dylan at Newport 1965, but claimed in 2005:
"There are reports of me being anti-him going electric at the '65 Newport Folk festival, but that's wrong. I was the MC that night. He was singing 'Maggie's Farm' and you couldn't understand a word because the mic was distorting his voice. I ran to the mixing desk and said, 'Fix the sound, it's terrible!' The guy said 'No, that's how they want it.' And I did say that if I had an axe I'd cut the cable! But I wanted to hear the words. I didn't mind him going electric.
Later work
Seeger achieved some notoriety in 1967 and 1968 for his song "Waist Deep in the Big Muddy", about a captain—a "big fool"—who drowned while leading a platoon on maneuvers in Louisiana during World War II. Seeger performed the song on the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour after some arguments with CBS about whether the song's lyrics were objectionable. Although the song was cut from the Smothers Brothers show in September 1967, Seeger returned in January 1968 and sang the entire song. It was clearly an allegory about the U.S. under the leadership of Lyndon Johnson which was in over its head in the Vietnam War.
Another slight against Lyndon Johnson can be heard in his singing of Len Chandler's seemingly juvenile song, "Beans in My Ears" from his 1966 album Dangerous Songs!? in which he accuses "Mrs. Jay's little son Alby" (Alby Jay is meant to sound like LBJ) of having beans in his ears, or of not listening to the people.
In 1998 a double-CD tribute album was released - "Where Have All the Flowers Gone: the Songs of Pete Seeger". It contained contributions from Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne, Ani DiFranco, Billy Bragg, Eliza Carthy, Bruce Springsteen, Roger McGuinn, Judy Collins, Indigo Girls, Dick Gaughan, Martin Simpson, Odetta and others.
Pete Seeger still performed occasionally in public until his death, and for a number of years appeared at the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough Tennessee to tell stories, mostly children's stories such as Abiyoyo. He performed at MerleFest April 27-30, 2006 in Wilkesboro, NC.
On March 16, 2007, the 88-year old Pete Seeger performed with his siblings Mike Seeger and Peggy Seeger, and other Seeger family members at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., where he had been employed as a folk song archivist 67 years earlier.
In April 2006, Bruce Springsteen released a collection of songs associated with Seeger or in Seeger's folk tradition, We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions. Bruce Springsteen performed a series of concerts based on those sessions, to sellout crowds. Springsteen had previously recorded one Seeger favorite, "We Shall Overcome," on the 1998 "Where Have All the Flowers Gone" tribute album.
Seeger lived in the hamlet of Dutchess Junction in the Town of Fishkill, NY and remained very politically active in the Hudson Valley Region of New York, especially in the near-by City of Beacon, NY. He and Toshi purchased their land in 1949, and lived there first in a trailer, then in a log cabin they built themselves, and eventually in a larger house. Seeger joined the Community Church (a church practicing Unitarian Universalism), is considered a famous Unitarian Universalist, and often performed at functions for the Unitarian Universalist Association.
Seeger died in 2014 of natural causes.
Awards
Seeger has been the recipient of many awards and recognitions throughout his career, including:
A Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (1993)
The National Medal of Arts from the National Endowment for the Arts (1994)
Kennedy Center Lifetime Achievement Honor (1994)
The Harvard Arts Medal (1996)
Induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1996)
Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album of 1996 for his record "Pete" (1997)
Business
Pete Seeger Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Two thousand horsemen all at his command
In a fortnight the rivers ran red through the land
The year, fifteen hundred and twenty
The year is now nineteen sixty five
It's easier far to stay alive
Just keep your mouth shut while the planes zoom and dive
Simon was drafted in sixty-three
In sixty-four, sent over the sea
Last month this letter he sent to me
He said, "You won't like what I'm saying"
He said, We've no friends here, no hardly a one
We've got a few generals who just want our guns
But it will take more than them if we're ever to win
Why, we'll have to flatten the country
It's my own troops I have to watch out for, he said
I sleep with a pistol right under my head
He wrote this last month, last week he was dead
And Simon came home in a casket
I mind my own business, I watch my TV
Complain about taxes, but pay anyway
In a civilized manner, my forefathers betray
Who long ago struggled for freedom
But each day a new headline screams at my bluff
On TV some general says, "We must be tough"
In my dreams I stare at this family I love
All gutted and spattered with napalm
King Henry marched forth, a sword in his hand
Two thousand horsemen all at his command
In a fortnight the rivers ran red through the land
The year, fifteen hundred and twenty
The year is now nineteen sixty five
It's easier far to stay alive
Just keep your mouth shut while the planes zoom and dive
Ten thousand miles over the ocean
Pete Seeger's song "Business" is a poignant commentary on the devastating consequences of war for soldiers and their families. The song contrasts the brutality of war in the year 1520, during the reign of King Henry, with the horrors of the Vietnam War in 1965. The lyrics highlight the fact that although much had changed regarding the technology of warfare, the basic human cost remained the same. The first stanza describes King Henry's brutal campaign, which resulted in rivers running red with blood, and the second stanza describes the war in Vietnam, where soldiers faced a similar fate.
The second stanza is particularly powerful in its depiction of the bleak and senseless nature of the Vietnam War. Simon, a soldier drafted in 1963, writes a letter to a friend in which he expresses his disillusionment with the war. Simon explains that he has no friends in Vietnam and that even his own troops are a threat to him. He sleeps with a pistol under his pillow and laments the fact that the war is being fought for no clear reason. Simon's letter serves as a heartbreaking reminder of the human cost of war and the senseless loss of life that it often entails.
Line by Line Meaning
King Henry marched forth, a sword in his hand
The ruler led an army into battle.
Two thousand horsemen all at his command
He had many soldiers at his disposal.
In a fortnight the rivers ran red through the land
The battle led to widespread violence and death in the area.
The year, fifteen hundred and twenty
This event took place in the year 1520.
The year is now nineteen sixty five
This event is happening in the year 1965.
It's easier far to stay alive
It is easier to prioritize staying alive over standing up for what is right.
Just keep your mouth shut while the planes zoom and dive
Don't speak out against the violence and war that is happening.
Ten thousand miles over the ocean
The violence is happening far away from home.
Simon was drafted in sixty-three
A young man named Simon was forced to join the army.
In sixty-four, sent over the sea
Simon was sent to another country to fight in a war.
Last month this letter he sent to me
Simon recently sent a letter to the singer.
He said, "You won't like what I'm saying"
Simon had negative news to share.
He said, We've no friends here, no hardly a one
There are very few people willing to help Simon and his fellow soldiers.
We've got a few generals who just want our guns
The high-ranking officials in charge are not really interested in helping the soldiers.
But it will take more than them if we're ever to win
The soldiers need real support and resources to be successful.
Why, we'll have to flatten the country
The only way to win this war is to completely destroy the enemy nation.
It's my own troops I have to watch out for, he said
Simon is more worried about his own fellow soldiers than the enemy.
I sleep with a pistol right under my head
Simon is constantly in danger and must be ready to defend himself at all times.
He wrote this last month, last week he was dead
Simon died in combat shortly after writing the letter.
And Simon came home in a casket
Simon's remains were sent back to his home country in a coffin.
I mind my own business, I watch my TV
The artist is detached from the war and only focuses on their own life.
Complain about taxes, but pay anyway
The artist has no real control over where their money goes and is forced to pay taxes even if they disagree with government actions.
In a civilized manner, my forefathers betray
The singer's ancestors fought for freedom, but the singer is not living up to their legacy by remaining passive and uninvolved.
But each day a new headline screams at my bluff
The artist is constantly reminded of the violence and war happening in the world.
On TV some general says, "We must be tough"
High-ranking officials continue to justify the violence and war.
In my dreams I stare at this family I love
The singer is haunted by thoughts of losing the people they care about to war.
All gutted and spattered with napalm
The gruesome images the singer imagines are the result of the brutal violence of war.
Contributed by Connor F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.