CD PICK OF THE WEEK: PETE SEEGER – ” AT 89″
Back in 1997, Pete Seeger received a standing ovation at the Grammy Award Ceremony when the 1996 Paul Winter produced CD “Pete” was named Best Traditional Folk Album of 1996. At the time many people were thinking this might be the last studio recording that Pete would be involved in. Pete himself was concerned about his voice and he was limiting his concert appearances.When Pete said that he did not feel his voice was not what it used to be to meet standards expected by audiences, Arlo Guthrie reminded him that the hearing of his audience was not what it used to be either!
The past 12 years have seen a number of extraordinary Pete Seeger projects, many of them made possible thanks to the extraordinary vision of Jim Musselman of Appleseed Records. Jim, an activist attorney who had worked for Ralph Nader, started the record label in a large part due to the inspiration from Pete Seeger, as a way of affecting social change through music. The first release on Appleseed was “Where Have All the Flowers Gone”, a 2-CD set that featured multiple artists recording the songs of Pete Seeger. Soon, Appleseed release additional volumes – a total of 5 CD’s featuring contemporary and traditional artists sharing Pete’s music. In the true spirit fo Pete Seeger, over $100,000 has been donated to various charities for social change through proceeds of the recordings. One of the musical participants in the project, a New Jersey guy named Springsteen, would eventually record an entire CD of music learned from Seeger’s repertoire, and the Boss would tour the globe with his “Seeger Sessions” band.
Which leads us to 2008. Appleseed has released their latest CD – “At 89”, a stunning collection of songs, Pete Seeger introductions and stories, and a wealth of guest appearances that culminate in a recording that plays as a suite – recognizing Pete Seeger and his work at age 89.
David Bernz has done an outstanding job of producing this CD. The sequencing and editing have created an opus that shares the life and credos of Pete Seeger. While much of the music is made by Pete, he is joined by many of his musical friends from the Hudson River. David Bernz and his group Work O’ The Weavers, a quartet that carries on the tradition of the legendary folk music group, are featured prominently in the recording as are artists such as the Walkwabout Clearwater Chorus, the Hudson River Sloop Singers, After Hours Quartet and Sara Milonovich among others. The sense of community is abundantly present in the CD, much as it has been for decades for those who attended a Pete Seeger concert.
There are a few songs that casual fans will quickly recognize, such as “Waist Deep in the Big Muddy” and “Tzena Tzena Tzena” (with some new lyrics in Arabic!) but it is the songs that you might not have heard before that really shine on this CD.
One of my favorite pieces is “Fat Little Baby” which Pete sings with various members of Work O’ The Weavers. Pete wrote the song in 1982 and David Bernz added two verses around 1992 plus a final verse from both Pete and David. The song is about the hopes and dreams, and fears, that run through a parent’s mind as they hold a precious infant.
The songs and stories on “At 89” weave together to create a unique sampler of the many messages important to the story of Pete Seeger. Songs of the environment, the peace movement, and songs of hope for the future – if we do our jobs to insure a future. It can be done.
The stories that Pete tells between songs often give us insight into the creation. The Zero Waste Commission from the city of Berkely, California served to inspire a song about recycling – or redesigning if something cannot be reused. While it was written a few years ago, it is timeless.
The last full song on the CD, sung by a chorus singing with Pete, is “If This World Survives”. The lyrics were written in 1972 by the late Malvina Reynolds with music from Pete:
If this world survives
And every other day I think it might
In good part it will be
Because of the great souls in our community.
When I interviewed Pete last year, he mentioned that he believes the world
has a 50-50 chance of still being around in 100 years. If we can put our hopes into action, we can insure the future.
The last verse of “Fat Little Baby”, written by Pete and David Bernz, struck me hard as I listened to this recording:
Someday, we will be saying so long
Someday, it’ll be time for me to move on
No more discussions over a glass of beer
No more generation gaps appear
And then, oh then, oh then, oh then
You’ll wish you had your dear sweet papa
In your arms again
I’m hoping that we will continue to amaze us for many more years to come. What we should recognize is the powerful gift that Pete has been giving us for so many years – the tools for each and everyone of us to create our own art AND to make a positive change in the world. More than anything else, Pete Seeger has been a teacher to several generations, and with the new recording of “At 89”, we have another chapter to take hold of our hearts and minds.
Notes: The lyrics and photos posted here can be found on the Appleseed Recordings website – www.appleseedrec.com .
Pete will be performing at the Paramus Bandshell in Paramus, NJ on Tuesday August 26th at 6:00pm.
Work O’ The Weavers will perform at the Hurdy Gurdy Folk Music Club at the Fair Lawn Community Center on Saturday December 6th at 8:00pm. Tickets are now on sale through the website – http://www.hurdygurdyfolk.org/.