Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Pete Seeger, 1919 - 2014

Folk music legend Peter Seeger has passed away at the age of 94.  With the possible exceptions of Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan, no other artist has had the ranging influence on folk music as Pete Seeger.  Composing such iconic songs as "Turn, Turn, Turn," "If I Had A Hammer," and "Where Have All The Flowers Gone," Seeger's music spoke to generations of Americans looking for meaning in their music.  He supported labor rights in the '30s and '40s, stood up to the McCarthy witch hunt in the '50s, and marched for civil rights and against the war in Vietnam in the '60s.  Seeger was also a prominent environmental activist, lending support to clean water causes and environmental preservation for nearly 50 years.  Here's the New York Times' article on the music icon.  Rest in peace.