Pete Seeger (1919-2014): Long Time Passing

Pete Seeger (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Pete Seeger was not the first troubadour to try and change the world through his little songs, as Kenny Rogers would put it.  But Seeger did back them up by getting out there and supporting causes he believed in--workers' rights, civil rights, war and the environment.  That ended with his death at 94.

Sometimes Seeger's activism got him in trouble, which was true during the 1950s during the Cold War when Senator Joseph McCarthy was seemingly looking for a Communist under every bed.  Seeger's ties to the Communists (which he said he renounced later) earned him a subpoena to appear before the House Un-American Activities Committee, where he refused to talk about his activities or give up the names of his associates citing the First Amendment.  That got him convicted for contempt of Congress, but was reversed years later.

Like so many others whose livelihoods were ruined during the McCarthy era, Seeger's commercial career suffered.  The Weavers, with whom Seeger had several hit records including "On Top of Old Smokey" and "Goodnight Irene", found themselves kicked off radio and TV for their leftist views.

While in blacklist exile, there was a revival of folk music in the late 50s-early 60s that competed on the record charts with rock and roll and Perry Como-style pop.  Songs Seeger had either written or co-written were hits for others:  The Kingston Trio's "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?", Peter, Paul and Mary's "If I Had a Hammer", and the Byrds' "Turn Turn Turn".

Seeger never stopped combining music with activism, whether by helping popularize "We Shall Overcome" during the Civil Rights movement, performing "Waist Deep in the Big Muddy" on the Smothers Brothers TV show during the Vietnam War, or marching alongside Occupy Wall Street protesters.

Seeger's successors--Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Bruce Springsteen and John Mellencamp, among others--have continued to follow his lead and speak truth to power through music.  Which, when you consider today's music scene, makes you wonder who's going to follow them.

Pete Seeger may have written "If I Had a Hammer", but he used his guitar and banjo as if it were one, banging away for justice, freedom and bringing humankind together.  Seeger spent most of his life helping to build a better world, but construction is by no means finished.  It's up to others to finish the job, whether they know how to sing or not.