(Associated Press photo: Mark Constantini)
Peter "Pete" Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American folk singer and activist. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, he also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of the Weavers, most 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, he re-emerged on the public scene as a prominent singer of protest music in support of international disarmament, civil rights, counterculture and environmental causes. (Click here for full Wikipedia article)
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A good song reminds us what we're fighting for.
According to my definition of God, I'm not an atheist. Because I think God is everything. Whenever I open my eyes, I'm looking at God. Whenever I'm listening to something, I'm listening to God.
Being generous in spirit is a wonderful way to live.
Education is when you read the fine print. Experience is what you get if you don't.
For victory brings power and prestige
And the children of the
children of the fighters take all for
granted and in turn oppress.
(lyric
from Perchance to Win)
I have sung in hobo jungles, and I have sung for the Rockefellers, and I am proud that I have never refused to sing for anybody. I have sung for Americans of every political persuasion, and I am proud that I never refuse to sing to an audience, no matter what religion or color of their skin, or situation in life.
I keep reminding people that an editorial in rhyme is not a song. A good song makes you laugh, it makes you cry, it makes you think.
I say 'the hell with it' every night around 9:30 then get up the next morning. Besides, if you sing for children, you can't really say there's no hope.
I'm against big things. I think the world is going to be saved by millions of small things. Too many things can go wrong when they get big.
I've never sung anywhere without giving the people listening to me a chance to join in- as a kid, as a lefty, as a man touring the U.S.A. and the world, as an oldster. I guess it's kind of a religion with me. Participation. That's what's going to save the human race.
If it can't be reduced, reused, repaired, rebuilt, refurbished, refinished, resold, recycled or composted, then it should be restricted, redesigned or removed from production.
If there is still a human race here in a hundred years, I think it will be thanks to music.
If there's something wrong, speak up!
It's a very important thing to learn to talk to people you disagree with.
My head, my life is full of grand ideas which never have worked out.
Not everybody has to sing the melody.
Once upon a time, wasn't singing a part of everyday life as much as talking, physical exercise, and religion?
Songs are funny things. They can slip across borders. Proliferate in prisons. Penetrate hard shells. I always believed that the right song at the right moment could change history.
Songs won't save the planet, but neither will books or speeches.
Technology will save us if it doesn’t wipe us out first.
The good and bad are all tangled up together. American popular music is loved around the world because of its African rhythm. But that wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for slavery.
The key to the future of the world, is finding the optimistic stories and letting them be known.
The world will be saved when people realize we all have to pitch in. You can't just pay your money and hope that someone else will do the job right.
There is hardly anything bad in the world that doesn't have something good connected to it.
Use the brains God gave you. If we use the brains God gave us, there will still be a human race here after years, but if all we do is say, God will you please save the human race? Won't you please send me to heaven? And this world comes to hell.
We all go to different churches or no churches, we have different favorite foods, different ways of making love, different ways of doing all sorts of things, but there we’re all singing together. Gives you hope.
When you play the 12-string guitar, you spend half your life tuning the instrument and the other half playing it out of tune.
You know, a song can mean a thousand different things to a thousand different people, and when people ask me what does this song mean, I say whatever it means to you it means.
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A marvelous conversation with Pete Seeger.
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YouTube video: "R.I.P Pete"
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YouTube video: Pete Seeger talks about the loss of his wife.
Categories: Pete Seeger, Quotes of the day
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