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)
Kisses Sweeter Than Wine
The Weavers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh kisses sweeter than wine
When I was a young man never been kissed
I got to thinkin' it over how I had missed
I got me a girl and I kissed her and then
Oh, lord, well I kissed 'er again
Oh kisses sweeter than wine
He asked would I marry and be his sweet wife
Then we'd be so happy for the rest of our life
He begged daddy, pleaded like a natural man
And then, oh lord, I gave him my hand
Oh kisses sweeter than wine
I worked my day hard and so did my wife
Workin' hand-in-hand to make a good life
With corn in the field and wheat in the bins
Then, oh lord, I was the father of twins
Oh
Our children numbered just about four
They all had a sweetheart knockin' on the door
They all got married and they didn't hesitate
I was, oh lord, the grandfather of eight
Oh kisses sweeter than wine
Now that I'm old and ready to go
We get to thinkin' what happened a long time ago
We had a lot of kids, trouble and pain
But, oh lord, we'd do it all again
Oh kisses sweeter than wine
Oh kisses sweeter than wine
Oh
kisses sweeter than wine is a love song that tells the story of a man's relationship with a woman from the time they met until they grew old together. The song begins with the man reminiscing about how he had never been kissed until he met his girlfriend, and how after their first kiss, he couldn't get enough of her. The chorus of the song, "Oh kisses sweeter than wine," emphasizes the sweetness and joy of their love.
The second verse tells the story of the man proposing to the woman, and how they worked hard to build a good life together. The line "Workin' hand-in-hand to make a good life" emphasizes the idea that the couple worked together to achieve their goals, and that their love was strengthened by their joint efforts. The third verse talks about the couple's children, who all grew up, got married and had families of their own, making the couple grandparents.
The final verse of the song sees the couple looking back on their lives and reflecting on how much they went through together. Despite the hardships they faced, they know they would do it all again because their love was always sweet and true.
Overall, the song portrays a love that is enduring, sweet, and joyful. It highlights the importance of working together as a couple to build a happy life, and the deep love that can result from such efforts.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh kisses sweeter than wine
The singer is reminiscing about the sweetness of love and affection.
When I was a young man never been kissed
The singer reflects on their youth and romantic inexperience.
I got to thinkin' it over how I had missed
The singer realizes they had missed out on love and affection in their youth.
I got me a girl and I kissed her and then
The artist found love and affection in someone else.
Oh, lord, well I kissed 'er again
The artist delights in the sweetness of love and passion.
He asked would I marry and be his sweet wife
The singer's partner proposed marriage.
Then we'd be so happy for the rest of our life
The singer and their partner anticipated a lifetime of happiness together.
He begged daddy, pleaded like a natural man
The partner sought approval and blessing from the artist's family.
And then, oh lord, I gave him my hand
The artist accepted the partner's proposal and agreed to marriage.
I worked my day hard and so did my wife
The artist and their partner worked hard to provide for themselves and their family.
With corn in the field and wheat in the bins
The singer and their partner were farmers who grew crops for a living.
Then, oh lord, I was the father of twins
The artist and their partner had twins as children.
Our children numbered just about four
The singer and their partner had four children in total.
They all had a sweetheart knockin' on the door
The singer's children had found love and companionship.
They all got married and they didn't hesitate
The singer's children got married quickly and without delay.
I was, oh lord, the grandfather of eight
The artist and their partner had eight grandchildren.
Now that I'm old and ready to go
The artist is reflecting on their life as they near the end of it.
We get to thinkin' what happened a long time ago
The singer and their partner reminisce about the past.
We had a lot of kids, trouble and pain
The singer and their partner had their fair share of hardships and difficulties.
But, oh lord, we'd do it all again
Despite the hardships, the artist and their partner still cherish their life together and would do it all again.
Lyrics © Kanjian Music
Written by: FRED HELLERMAN, HUDDIE LEDBETTER, LEE HAYS, PETE SEEGER, RONNIE GILBERT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Eli Perl
One of the best folk music groups ever. This song, in particular, is very moving. The combination of the lyrics, guitar, banjo, the beautiful harmony of their voices and sensitive presentation of the text. Much of their work will remain timeless and their memory will live on.
Salim Matt Gras
This is so gorgeous, and so sweet. I'd almost forgotten how magical The Weavers were: true troubadours, with great dignity and presence. What a gift they were!
MrDuckman21
Such a beautiful song, performed by a great folk group. Unfortunately for us all they were blacklisted during McCarthy era. Personally this song makes me think of what I've missed in my life, a perfect partner throughout.
DarkDutchman
Love it! The harmonies and the ladies voice is amazingly beautiful.
Tom Rose
Beautiful song, great folk group. Just love this version
MAGNUM05
Now, this is real folk music!
GloriaJWimberley_ GreenSwanica.PROetess
Both lovely, poignant, and so true of life💐
Basil Thrush
A beautiful and very moving song. The Weavers were wonderful
Jess Caron
I listened to this all the time when I was little and now I sing it when I'm putting away laundry or waiting for the bus because it's a story song to keep myself occupied. The Carnegie Hall album was my favorite album when I was little.
plaguewife | daydreaming astronaut
I have these vinyl records with some of their live performances, and this song is one of them (although it isn't this recording). They were incredibly influential (in my life as well as the folk music industry), and I only wish that I had been alive to see them at the peak of their popularity... I wish that very often about music. I was born in 2002, too late to see even the rise of alternative in the 90's. ;-;