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)
Forever Young
Pete Seeger Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
May your wishes all come true,
May you always do for others
And let others do for you.
May you build a ladder to the stars
And climb on every rung,
May you stay forever young,
Forever young, forever young,
May you grow up to be righteous,
May you grow up to be true,
May you always know the truth
And see the lights surrounding you.
May you always be courageous,
Stand upright and be strong,
May you stay forever young,
Forever young, forever young,
May you stay forever young.
May your hands always be busy,
May your feet always be swift,
May you have a strong foundation
When the winds of changes shift.
May your heart always be joyful,
May your song always be sung,
May you stay forever young,
Forever young, forever young,
May you stay forever young.
The song Forever Young by Pete Seeger is a heartfelt and warm blessing that he wishes for the listeners. In this song, Seeger wishes eternal youth, both in the physical and spiritual sense, for every listener. He prays that God blesses and keeps us young forever by making our wishes come true, allowing us to do good deeds, and creating a ladder to success. Seeger urges the listeners to grow up and be righteous, always being honest and positive, and to see the positivity that surrounds us. He emphasizes the importance of standing up for oneself and being courageous in difficult situations.
As the song progresses, Seeger wishes that the listener's hands are always busy doing work they love and that they are swift on their feet, moving forward in life. He wants them always to be grounded, even when faced with change, and to know that joy is a state of mind. Seeger concludes the song, wishing that the listener's song is continuously sung, meaning that we maintain our spirits high and have a positive outlook on life, remaining forever young.
The song is not about being young in a literal sense, but rather as a metaphor for staying optimistic, enthusiastic, and full of life, regardless of age or experience. Seeger encourages listeners to continue with youthful ideals like a sense of wonder, a thirst for knowledge, and an open heart.
Below are ten interesting facts about Pete Seeger's Forever Young:
Line by Line Meaning
May God bless and keep you always,
May the divine bless and protect you throughout your life, no matter what.
May your wishes all come true,
May all your desires be fulfilled and may you achieve all your goals.
May you always do for others
May you always think of and help others before your own self.
And let others do for you.
May you allow others to help and support you when you need them.
May you build a ladder to the stars
May you strive for and achieve great heights in your life.
And climb on every rung,
May you not miss even a single opportunity to achieve your dreams.
May you stay forever young,
May you always have the energy, enthusiasm, and curiosity of youth, no matter your age.
Forever young, forever young,
May you always keep the spirit of youth in your heart.
May you grow up to be righteous,
May you develop strong ethical and moral values as you grow up.
May you grow up to be true,
May you always be genuine, honest and faithful in everything you do.
May you always know the truth
May you always seek and find the truth in everything you do.
And see the lights surrounding you.
May you always see the good and positive things in your life, even during difficult times.
May you always be courageous,
May you always have the courage to do what is right, even when it's hard.
Stand upright and be strong,
May you always stand up for yourself and what you believe in.
May you stay forever young,
May you always keep the innocence, enthusiasm, and energy of your youth in your heart.
Forever young, forever young,
May you always stay young at heart, no matter your age.
May your hands always be busy,
May you always have something positive and worthwhile to keep you busy and fulfilled.
May your feet always be swift,
May you always be quick and nimble, ready to face any challenge that comes your way.
May you have a strong foundation
May you have a solid base of values, beliefs, and principles to build your life upon.
When the winds of changes shift.
May you adapt and thrive during times of change and uncertainty.
May your heart always be joyful,
May you always have a happy and cheerful heart, filled with love and positive energy.
May your song always be sung,
May you always celebrate life and express your joy and happiness through your actions and words.
May you stay forever young,
May you always keep the spirit of youth and hope alive within you.
Forever young, forever young,
May you always stay young at heart, full of curiosity and enthusiasm for life.
May you stay forever young.
May you always be energetic, idealistic, and positive, no matter what.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Bob Dylan
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Forever Young Lyrics
Pete Seeger
May god bless and keep you always
May your wishes all come true
May you always do for others
And let others do for you
May you build a ladder to the stars
And climb on every rung
May you stay forever young
(forever young, forever young)
May you stay forever young
May you grow up to be righteous
May you grow up to be true
May you always know the truth
And see lights surrounding you
May you always be courageous
Stan upright and be strong
May you stay forever young
(forever young, forever young)
May you stay forever young
May your hands always be busy
May your feet always be swift
May you have a strong foundation
When the winds of changes shift
May your heart always be sung
May you stay forever young
(forever young, forever young)
May you stay forever young
(you're never too old to change the world)
Maria Duha Klinger
Inspiring! Thanks Peter Seeger and Bob Dylan.
John Pilgrim
Wonderful. Pete Seeger was my first inspiration to play and sing songs in his folk tradition. Thanks so much for posting. Miss you Pete....
Maria Elena van Yurick
beautiful, thank you Pete, you are always an inspiration and an example to follow, that we are never to old to change the world
Donald Criner
Pete's influence ran wide and deep, and probably will continue for years to come. I feel he was a major influence in my life. I will never forget him. I love him
Debanwita Hajra
Same for me.
Susan Baker-Schloth
And me, too...
Allan Briggs
He was my hero when I was at College & University. Carried that through my life.
Hopsing singhope
❤️❤️❤️🙏🦋🦋🦋✨✨✨
As a child the voice and singing of Pete Seeger hast been my lovely first exiting moment of living music
Irene Theodore Heinstein
Very touching. The enjoyment of the kids is contagious. Miss Pete a lot.
robin4400
Everything good that has ever been said about this man is more than true. God continue to Bless us with Pete Seeger.