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)
Talking Union
Pete Seeger Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You got to talk to the workers in the shop with you.
You got to build you a union, got to make it strong,
But if you all stick together, boys, it won't be long.
You get shorter hours, better working conditions,
Vacations with pay. Take your kids to the seashore.
It ain't quite this simple, so I better explain
'Cause if you wait for the boss to raise your pay,
We'll all be a-waitin' 'til Judgment Day.
We'll all be buried, gone to heaven,
St. Peter'll be the straw boss then.
Now you know you're underpaid but the boss says you ain't;
He speeds up the work 'til you're 'bout to faint.
You may be down and out, but you ain't beaten,
You can pass out a leaflet and call a meetin'.
Talk it over, speak your mind,
Decide to do somethin' about it.
Course, the boss may persuade some poor damn fool
To go to your meetin' and act like a stool.
But you can always tell a stool, though, that's a fact,
He's got a yaller streak a-runnin' down his back.
He doesn't have to stool, he'll always get along
On what he takes out of blind men's cups.
You got a union now, and you're sittin' pretty,
Put some of the boys on the steering committee.
The boss won't listen when one guy squawks,
But he's got to listen when the union talks.
He'd better, be mighty lonely
Everybody decide to walk out on him.
Suppose they're working you so hard it's just outrageous
And they're paying you all starvation wages.
You go to the boss and the boss would yell,
"Before I raise your pay I'd see you all in hell."
Well, he's puffing a big seegar, feeling mighty slick
'Cause he thinks he's got your union licked.
Well, he looks out the window and what does he see
But a thousand pickets, and they all agree:
He's a bastard, unfair, slavedriver,
Bet he beats his wife!
Now, boys, you've come to the hardest time.
The boss will try to bust your picket line.
He'll call out the police, the National Guard,
They'll tell you it's a crime to have a union card.
They'll raid your meetin', they'll hit you on the head,
They'll call every one of you a goddam red,
Unpatriotic, Japanese spies, sabotaging national defense!
But out at Ford, here's what they found,
And out at Vultee, here's what they found,
And out at Allis-Chalmers, here's what they found,
And down at Bethlehem, here's what they found:
That if you don't let red-baiting break you up,
And if you don't let stoolpigeons break you up,
And if you don't let vigilantes break you up,
And if you don't let race hatred break you up,
You'll win. What I mean, take it easy, but take it!
Pete Seeger's "Talking Union" is a call to action for workers to unite and form a union to improve their working conditions and wages. Seeger argues that workers cannot rely upon their employers to increase their pay or provide better work conditions; rather, they must come together to form a union that can negotiate on their behalf. The song warns of the challenges that workers may face in forming a union and insists on the importance of overcoming these challenges through solidarity and determination.
Seeger asserts that the boss will try to bust the picket line, and when he does so, the workers must withstand the pressure, knowing that ultimately, they will win. Seeger implores workers to stick with their union through all the challenges, including the red-baiting, race hatred, and stool pigeons used by employers to divide and conquer the union. By remaining united and committed, workers can improve their working conditions and gain higher wages. The song was written in the 1940s, during a time of growing labor unrest, and it continues to be a rallying cry for workers seeking to improve their lives through unionization.
Line by Line Meaning
Now, if you want higher wages let me tell you what to do
To get higher wages, you need to talk to the workers in your shop and build a strong union
You got to talk to the workers in the shop with you.
To build a union, you need to talk to the workers in your shop
You got to build you a union, got to make it strong,
You need to build a strong union to win better working conditions and benefits
But if you all stick together, boys, it won't be long.
Unity is key to achieving better working conditions and benefits
You get shorter hours, better working conditions,
By building a strong union, you can win shorter work hours and better conditions
Vacations with pay. Take your kids to the seashore.
A strong union can also help you win paid vacations to spend time with your family
It ain't quite this simple, so I better explain
Building a union is not easy, so let me explain why it's important
Just why you got to ride on the union train.
I will explain why joining a union is necessary
'Cause if you wait for the boss to raise your pay,
Waiting for your boss to raise your pay is not enough
We'll all be a-waitin' 'til Judgment Day.
We cannot rely on our bosses to increase our wages anytime soon
We'll all be buried, gone to heaven,
By the time we get a pay raise from our boss, we might as well be in heaven
St. Peter'll be the straw boss then.
Our situation will be so bad that even in heaven, we will be treated poorly by our boss
Now you know you're underpaid but the boss says you ain't;
Even if you know you're not being paid fairly, your boss may not admit it
He speeds up the work 'til you're 'bout to faint.
Your boss may also increase your workload until you are overworked and exhausted
You may be down and out, but you ain't beaten,
Even if you are in a bad situation, you can still fight for better working conditions
You can pass out a leaflet and call a meetin'.
You can help organize meetings and distribute leaflets to build support for your union
Talk it over, speak your mind,
Discuss with your coworkers and speak out about your concerns
Decide to do somethin' about it.
Take action and decide to build a union to fight for better working conditions and benefits
Course, the boss may persuade some poor damn fool
Your boss may try to convince someone to betray the union
To go to your meetin' and act like a stool.
He will try to plant a spy who will act like a supporter but reveal information to the boss
But you can always tell a stool, though, that's a fact,
You can tell who the spy is because they have a cowardly streak
He doesn't have to stool, he'll always get along
The spy does not have to reveal information as they will always be able to get by
On what he takes out of blind men's cups.
The spy can survive due to charity even though he is betraying his fellow workers
You got a union now, and you're sittin' pretty,
With a strong union, you can feel secure and confident in your ability to get better working conditions and benefits
Put some of the boys on the steering committee.
Form a committee to lead and make important decisions for the union
The boss won't listen when one guy squawks,
If only one worker complains, the boss is unlikely to listen
But he's got to listen when the union talks.
With a strong union, the boss has to listen to the collective voice of the workers
He'd better, be mighty lonely
If the boss does not listen, he will become isolated
Everybody decide to walk out on him.
If the boss does not listen or make changes, the workers can choose to strike
Suppose they're working you so hard it's just outrageous
Imagine if the boss is overworking and exploiting you
And they're paying you all starvation wages.
Imagine if the boss is paying you barely enough to survive
You go to the boss and the boss would yell,
If you complain to the boss, he may not listen and may even become angry
"Before I raise your pay I'd see you all in hell."
The boss would rather go to hell than give you a pay raise
Well, he's puffing a big seegar, feeling mighty slick
The boss is smoking a cigar and feeling powerful
'Cause he thinks he's got your union licked.
He believes he can beat your union
Well, he looks out the window and what does he see
The boss looks out the window and sees something unexpected
But a thousand pickets, and they all agree:
He sees a thousand picketers who all support the union
He's a bastard, unfair, slavedriver,
The workers describe the boss as abusive and unfair
Bet he beats his wife!
They even make accusations that the boss is violent towards his wife
Now, boys, you've come to the hardest time.
Building a union and standing up to the boss is a difficult challenge
The boss will try to bust your picket line.
The boss will try to break up your protests and strikes
He'll call out the police, the National Guard,
The boss may even involve the authorities, such as the police or national guard, to break up your union
They'll tell you it's a crime to have a union card.
The authorities may try to make it illegal to join or support the union
They'll raid your meetin', they'll hit you on the head,
The authorities may violently disrupt your union meetings and arrest or harm members
They'll call every one of you a goddam red,
The authorities will call you communists or socialists to discredit and weaken your movement
Unpatriotic, Japanese spies, sabotaging national defense!
They may also accuse you of being unpatriotic or spies working against your country
But out at Ford, here's what they found,
Despite these challenges, workers at Ford found success in building a union
And out at Vultee, here's what they found,
Workers at Vultee also found success in forming a union
And out at Allis-Chalmers, here's what they found,
Allis-Chalmers workers also succeeded in building a union
And down at Bethlehem, here's what they found:
Even workers at Bethlehem Steel found success in unionizing
That if you don't let red-baiting break you up,
If you do not let false accusations weaken your union
And if you don't let stoolpigeons break you up,
And if you do not let spies weaken your union
And if you don't let vigilantes break you up,
And if you do not let violent groups harm your union
And if you don't let race hatred break you up,
And if you do not let racism divide your union
You'll win. What I mean, take it easy, but take it!
If you stay united and persevere in building your union, you can win better working conditions and benefits
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: PETER SEEGER, LEE HAYS, MILLARD LAMPELL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Carrie Dunne
My parents on a strike line with Pete there singing. I have lived my entire life with his music; unionizing and civil rights. Best upbringing a child could have.
OptimistPrime69
Imagine how different the pandemic would have gone if unions were as strong as they were back in the 60s and 70s?
Mr. Hat
Support the Amazon Unionization efforts in alabama!
adub4ever
RIP Pete Seeger. Thank you to the Labor movement in this country.
Dani
Damn hard to organize my Walmart but I'm trying
Anthony Smith
This song was a very intricate party of my life, I organized 8 venues in my building, Stagehands, Recording (audio) and Broadcast departments. We had a successful organizing drive. And a very long negotiation process. But we were patient. And now have a contract and are union now! The president of the local and business managers we have are the best. There is hope for younger generations be the change you want to see. I am Anthony and I am IATSE Local One.
surferpam1
Anthony, my union brother, back in the mid-70's we organized and brought the NABET into KABC-AM radio. So proud of that!
Whitney Rose
Thank you for your hard work in helping organize! TAKE IT EASY, BUT TAKE IT
Miriam Frank
Anthony, you all did a great job pushing back on Peter Gelb last opera season. congratulations to IATSE LOCAL ONE.
Sean Hartnett
Good.