I have been a folk music lover since the 1960s, and my favorite folk singer as well as song writer has got to be Pete Seeger. His passion for the common man and for sharing his music as a communal gift to the world is totally phenomenal. If you ever go to a Pete Seeger concert singing along is expected! I cannot think of many other artists who encourage an audience to sing along as loudly and as enthusiastically as this gentle man does, and has for many years.
I have been looking for that perfect album (I know, CD) for years that held the songs that he sang and has become a part of music history (In my humble opinion, of course!) . Those were the songs that touched me over and over again through the years and have yet to find their way into one perfect album - you know, that one definitive album you want to put on and sing along with at the top of my voice.
In my opinion music is to be sung, and in groups we can all get brave and really raise our voices, it can be almost downright liberating! The best example I have of this kind of experience happens when a large group of non-singers stands at any sporting event and sing our national anthem - together! During the singing sometimes you can catch the enthusiasm, energy and animation that many only save for singing alone in the shower. People like Pete often simply know how the gift needed to ignite that spark of music in people - he certainly does that for me!
Since many of his old albums have been reissued on compact disk recently I have begin my search for that one perfect compilation with all those song memories wrapped up on that one circular piece of silver. I have yet to find it! The one that has come the closest turned out to be a badly recorded disk and even though it held all those songs it failed to light that passion for personal I have so longed to reignite.
So now I have finally entered the 21st century through my own personal growth in the technology area. I actually now hold the key to the perfect album! I can download the songs I always wanted much like I always wanted to do way back in the sixties and seventies!! I can do this because I have an MP3 player and of course a computer!
My wonderful Shuffle will soon hold all the songs I love and I will be able to hear and more importantly - sing along whenever I choose to click that little play button.
Isn't the age of the MP3 player grand?!
Christi I didn't know that he sang the original version of Which Side Are You On. I really love that song.I love his banjo playing. Thanks for this wonderful reminder how music can really change our lives.
ReplyDeleteThe album has really been a casualty of the digital age. It's hey day was the vinyl era. I have a satellite radio that I listen to: I like the variety and surprises, but the downside is that I don't reconnect with the albums anymore, let alone listen to new ones.
ReplyDeleteBax,
ReplyDeletePete Seeger sang and wrote so many songs! He stood for so much and so many with that banjo of his over the years. His music told me that even if no one hears our music, our own music is what we've got to tell the world about. Okay, I may be too poetic there but I really feel that way.
Robert,
I still have albums of all kinds! I don't have a player for them, but I loathe to give them up since each is important to me. I do have a WiFi clock radio which is my morning alarm clock, too. But the music that was so much a part of my life even when my kids who are in their late 20s and 30s is tied up in albums! I miss that since some of the more obscure ones aren't being translated into CDs these days...for me that is sad.
I have a Pete Seeger album and book about learning to play 5-string banjo, which I did passably well in the early seventies. I didn't keep it up, and when the banjo got broken while moving, I didn't replace it. But I always keep the book and album just in case. :)
ReplyDeleteYou can buy a turntable that plugs into the USB port on your computer and play your records. I don't know how much they cost though.
Chris,
ReplyDeleteThat is a wonderful idea!! I love the sound of those old records.
I'm still such a folkie and Pete is definitely my favorite artist from that time in the 50s and 60s. Funny how some types of music stick with you over the years.
What a great idea, I love satellite radio however, having them all at your convenience to play (on the computer) which I'm on all the time, is a great way to mellow out and yes sing as well at the top of my lungs...it's fun..
ReplyDeleteThanks for the idea...
Dorothy from grammology
Pete Seeger has been a 'folk fixture' of America my entire life. He's been so democratic, he's been 'underground' (!) throughout various parts of his long career.
ReplyDeleteHis is the populist USA that merits attention, not the angry kind. I'm hearing him in my head right now.