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)
Sixteen Tons
The Weavers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Some people say a man is made out of mud
A poor man's made out of muscle and blood
Muscle and blood and skin and bones
A mind that's a-weak and a back that's strong
You load sixteen tons, what do you get
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
I was born one mornin' when the sun didn't shine
I picked up my shovel and I walked to the mine
I loaded sixteen tons of number nine coal
And the straw boss said "Well, a-bless my soul"
You load sixteen tons, what do you get
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
I was born one mornin', it was drizzlin' rain
Fightin' and trouble are my middle name
Raised in the Canebrake by an old mama lion
Ain't no a high-toned woman make me walk the line
You load sixteen tons, what do you get
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
If you see me comin', better step aside
A lot of men didn't, and a lot of men died
With one fist of iron, and the other of steel
If the right one don't get you then the left one will
You load sixteen tons, what do you get
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
A poor man's made out of muscle and blood
Muscle and blood and skin and bones
A mind that's a-weak and a back that's strong
You load sixteen tons, what do you get
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I was born one mornin' when the sun didn't shine
I picked up my shovel and I walked to the mine
I loaded sixteen tons of number nine coal
And the straw boss said "Well, a-bless my soul"
You load sixteen tons, what do you get
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
I was born one mornin', it was drizzlin' rain
Fightin' and trouble are my middle name
Raised in the Canebrake by an old mama lion
Ain't no a high-toned woman make me walk the line
You load sixteen tons, what do you get
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
If you see me comin', better step aside
A lot of men didn't, and a lot of men died
With one fist of iron, and the other of steel
If the right one don't get you then the left one will
You load sixteen tons, what do you get
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
The Weavers’ song Sixteen Tons, written by Merle Travis, paints a vivid picture of life as a coal miner in the mid-twentieth century. The first verse challenges the idea that all men are equal, highlighting the divide between rich and poor. The verses that follow describe the daily grind and hardships of working in a coal mine. The chorus, “You load sixteen tons, what do you get? Another day older and deeper in debt” perfectly captures the sense of hopelessness and exhaustion felt by the miners. The line “I owe my soul to the company store” refers to the practice of companies paying their workers in “scrip,” which could only be used at the company-owned store, often at inflated prices. This meant that miners were effectively trapped in a cycle of debt, unable to buy from other stores or to leave their jobs.
The final verse, with its violent imagery, shows the miners’ anger and desperation, as they struggle against their bosses for their rights. The song speaks to the broader issues of workers’ rights, social inequality, and the power of corporations. Sixteen Tons remains an iconic piece of music, encapsulating the struggles of the working class in America during the 1940s and 1950s.
Line by Line Meaning
Some people say a man is made out of mud
According to some people, a man’s worth is based upon his physical strength and endurance.
A poor man's made out of muscle and blood
A man who is not wealthy is defined by his physical attributes and his ability to work.
Muscle and blood and skin and bones
Physical characteristics are the defining qualities of a man who is not of considerable wealth.
A mind that's a-weak and a back that's strong
While a man who is not wealthy may not have much mental fortitude, he is defined by his physical strength.
You load sixteen tons, what do you get
When a worker loads heavy amounts of coal, he gains only the knowledge that he is another day older and further in debt.
Another day older and deeper in debt
Working hard results in further debt and time passing by, seemingly without a result.
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
The worker is unable to leave his job or his debts behind, even in death.
I owe my soul to the company store
The worker owes everything he has, including his soul, to the company he works for.
If you see me comin', better step aside
The worker comes with tremendous strength and may harm anyone who is blocking his progress.
A lot of men didn't, and a lot of men died
Many other workers have died trying to do what he does.
With one fist of iron, and the other of steel
The worker has tremendous strength, as represented by his metaphorical iron and steel fists.
If the right one don't get you then the left one will
The worker could potentially harm someone with either hand, creating a sense of fear and caution in those around him.
Writer(s): Merle Travis
Contributed by Caleb T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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lednew2010
The Weavers were the best! ...and in many ways, they still are.
Shadow Cat
Here is their recorded lyrics, as close as I can make them out:
Well now, some folks say a man is made outta mud
But a poor man's made outta muscle and blood
Muscle and blood, skin and bone
A mind that's weak and a back that's strong
You haul sixteen tons, and what do you get?
You get another day older and a-deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
Well I was born one mornin' when the sun didn't shine
I grabbed my shovel and I went to the mine
I hauled sixteen tons of number 9 coal
The Straw boss hollered "Well, damn your soul!"
You load sixteen tons, and what do you get?
You get another day older and a-deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
Well I was born one mornin' in the drizzlin' rain
Fightin' trouble is my middle name
See me comin', you better step aside
A lotta men didn't and a lotta men died
You load sixteen tons, and what do you get?
You get another day older and a-deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
I owe my soul to the company store
Julie Vee
A great song!
Derek M. Theriault
#ugottalisten2b4udie