American folk singer and social activist (1919–2014)
Pete Seeger
Seeger playing the banjo in 1955
Background information
Birth name
Peter Seeger
Born
(1919-05-03)May 3, 1919 New York City, U.S.
Died
January 27, 2014(2014-01-27) (aged 94) New York City, U.S.
Genres
American folk music
protest music
Americana
Occupation(s)
Musician
songwriter
social activist
Instrument(s)
Vocals
banjo
guitar
Discography
Pete Seeger discography
Years active
1939–2014
Labels
Folkways
Columbia/CBS
Vanguard
Verve
Sony Kids' Music/SME
Military career
Branch
United States Army
Years of service
1942–1945
Rank
Corporal
Unit
United States Army Band
Battles/wars
World War II
Awards
American Campaign Medal
Asiatic–Pacific Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal
Musical artist
Peter Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American folk singer and social activist. He was a fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, and had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of The Weavers, notably their recording of Lead Belly's "Goodnight, Irene," which topped the charts for 13 weeks in 1950. Members of the Weavers were blacklisted during the McCarthy Era. In the 1960s, Seeger re-emerged on the public scene as a prominent singer of protest music in support of international disarmament, civil rights, counterculture, workers' rights, and environmental causes.
A prolific songwriter, his best-known songs include "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?" (with additional lyrics by Joe Hickerson), "If I Had a Hammer (The Hammer Song)" (with Lee Hays of the Weavers), "Kisses Sweeter Than Wine" (also with Hays), and "Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is a Season)", which have been recorded by many artists both in and outside the folk revival movement. "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 and Mary (1962) and Trini Lopez (1963) while The Byrds had a number one hit with "Turn! Turn! Turn!" in 1965.
Seeger was one of the folk singers responsible for popularizing the spiritual "We Shall Overcome" (also recorded by Joan Baez and many other singer-activists), which became the acknowledged anthem of the civil rights movement, soon after folk singer and activist Guy Carawan introduced it at the founding meeting of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) in 1960. In the PBS American Masters episode "Pete Seeger: The Power of Song", Seeger said it was he who changed the lyric from the traditional "We will overcome" to the more singable "We shall overcome".
Committee (SNCC) in 1960. In the PBS American Masters episode "PeteSeeger: The Power of Song", Seeger said it was he who changed the lyric from the traditional...
Award-winning documentary PeteSeeger: The Power of Song, released through PBS in 2007. In 1966, Seeger and her husband, folk-singer PeteSeeger, co-founded the...
discography of PeteSeeger, an American folk singer, consists of 52 studio albums, 23 compilation albums, 22 live albums, and 31 singles. Seeger's musical career...
Greenwich Village area of New York City originally consisting of Lee Hays, PeteSeeger, Ronnie Gilbert, and Fred Hellerman. Founded in 1948, the group sang...
musicologist; he was also the uncle of folk musicians PeteSeeger, Peggy Seeger, and Mike Seeger. He is lauded for the poem "I Have a Rendezvous with Death"...
formed in November 1948 by PeteSeeger, Lee Hays, Fred Hellerman, and Ronnie Gilbert of People's Songs, of which Seeger had been president and Hays executive...
folk singers PeteSeeger (1919–2014), Peggy Seeger (b. 1935), and Mike Seeger (1933–2009); and brother of the World War I poet Alan Seeger (1888–1916)...
mouth harp, mandolin, dobro, jaw harp, and pan pipes. Seeger, a half-brother of PeteSeeger, produced more than 30 documentary recordings, and performed...
ailing Woody Guthrie. He is embraced by the New York folk scene (Guthrie, PeteSeeger, Joan Baez and others) who recognize his talent. He finds gigs in downtown...
Sharp and Karpeles (1917), in References below), and the version by PeteSeeger that greatly popularized the song in modern times (see below) is also...
Cash, Bruce Springsteen, Robert Hunter, Harry Chapin, John Mellencamp, PeteSeeger, Andy Irvine, Joe Strummer, Billy Bragg, Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Jeff...
international hit. The song has notably been covered or interpreted by PeteSeeger, Celia Cruz, Compay Segundo and Wyclef Jean. The music for the song is...
organizers). She taught it to many others, including People's Songs director PeteSeeger, who included it in his repertoire, as did many other activist singers...
"If I Had a Hammer (The Hammer Song)" is a protest song written by PeteSeeger and Lee Hays. It was written in 1949 in support of the Progressive movement...
Administration. One of her brothers was Mike Seeger, and PeteSeeger was her half-brother. Poet Alan Seeger was her uncle. One of her first recordings was...
activist, wife of PeteSeeger; 4 children Peter Seeger (1944–1945), died while Pete was deployed overseas Daniel Seeger Mika Seeger American ceramic artist;...
Browne, Leonard Cohen, Woody Guthrie, Violeta Parra, the Rolling Stones, PeteSeeger, Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder, Bob Marley, and many others. She was one...
founder George Wein, music manager Albert Grossman, and folk singers PeteSeeger, Theodore Bikel, and Oscar Brand. It was one of the first modern music...
who emerged from the 1940s to the early 1960s included Woody Guthrie, PeteSeeger, Phil Ochs, Joan Baez, and Bob Dylan. The mid-1960s through the early...
Global Information