GUTHRIE, WOODY

Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (July 14, 1912–October 3, 1967) was arguably the most influential songwriter and performer in twentieth-century American folk music. As the first major artist to combine traditional American folk melodies with lyrics about contemporary political, social, and personal concerns, Guthrie left behind an unparalleled collection of ballads and populist anthems. Both his music and performing style have continued to influence artists long after his death.

Guthrie was born in Okemah, Oklahoma. As a youth, he saw his family disintegrate in a series of personal and financial tragedies. During his adolescent years, he worked odd jobs and learned the guitar in his spare time. When the dust storms of 1935 hit the area, Guthrie took his guitar and drifted, hitchhiked, and hopped freight trains, eventually joining other "Okie" refugees in California. Already a keen observer of the world, Guthrie became radically politicized by what he saw and experienced there. Empathizing with the migrant orchard workers, union organizers, and other victims of greed and social injustice, Guthrie channeled his populist patriotism and moral outrage into songwriting. Singing his plainspoken lyrics in high nasally vocals to the tune of simple chords and melodies derived from traditional Appalachian folk songs, Guthrie established a mythic voice for beaten-down Americans. Radio performances from Los Angeles won Guthrie wide renown, especially with intellectuals and activists associated with the Popular Front and the Communist Party.

In 1939 Guthrie moved to New York City, where he became more active in left-wing politics, writing articles for Communist newspapers and penning some of his best-known songs, including "God Blessed America" (usually known as "This Land Is Your Land"). A passionate antifascist and champion of the Popular Front, Guthrie felt dismayed and conflicted by the Nazi-Soviet nonaggression pact of 1939. But the 1941 German invasion of the Soviet Union removed any doubts that he had about the need for America to enter World War II. Guthrie emblazoned his guitar with the slogan, "This Machine Kills Fascists," and he contributed to the war effort not only with patriotic ballads like "Reuben James," but by serving for two years in the American merchant marine. Upon returning, he resumed his songwriting and toured in the late 1940s with his protégé Pete Seeger and the Almanac Singers. Cold War blacklists and a debilitating affliction with Huntington's chorea limited Guthrie's activities in his later years, but in the 1960s a new generation of songwriters and performers revived both his songs and his spirit with their own contemporary folk music.

A prolific songwriter with far more versatility than his common image suggests, Guthrie's subjects ranged from political corruption and hunger to romantic love and children's songs. But he has always been best known for his Dust Bowl ballads and common-man anthems written in the late 1930s and first recorded in 1940 by folklorist Alan Lomax. These included songs about poverty and deprivation ("Dust Bowl Blues" and "I Ain't Got No Home"), greed and intolerance ("Do Re Mi" and "Vigilante Man"), and odes to mythical heroes and outlaws ("Pretty Boy Floyd" and "Tom Joad"). The first few verses of his most famous composition, commonly known as "This Land Is Your Land," rank among America's most recognizable anthems. Less well known are the rest of the original lyrics, which include reference to the traveling narrator being obstructed by a sign reading "Private Property" and witnessing hungry people waiting outside a relief office.

A figure of towering importance in the history of both folk and popular music, Woody Guthrie helped to revolutionize what songs could mean in American culture. His 1988 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame speaks to a legacy that transcends the boundaries of Depression-era topical songs. The moral authority and personal integrity at the heart of Guthrie's music truly make him a hero for all artists who have aspired to move the conscience and soul of an audience with a song.

See Also: "BALLAD OF PRETTY BOY FLOYD"; MUSIC.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Guthrie, Woody. Bound for Glory. 1943.

Guthrie, Woody. Dust Bowl Ballads (sound recording). 1995.

Klein, Joe. Woody Guthrie: A Life. 1980.

Lomax, Alan, comp., and Pete Seeger, ed. Hard Hitting Songs for Hard Hit People. 1967.

Santelli, Robert, and Emily Davidson, eds. Hard Travelin': The Life and Legacy of Woody Guthrie. 1999.

Woody Guthrie Foundation and Archives. Available at: http://www.woodyguthrie.org

BRADFORD W. WRIGHT