Bakotopia

All > Rants & Raves > Music Reviews
Calling Woody Guthrie
Topics: Folk Music, Bakersfield, Bakotopia, music, Bakotopia.com, Woody Guthrie, Robert Craig III, Arlo Guthrie, Folk Songs
Posted by Bakontributor Mon Jun 23, 2008 12:20:00 PDT
Viewed 177 times
0 responses 1 comment

Calling Woody Guthrie
What happened to the great American folk song?

By: Robert Craig III, Bakotopia.com contributor

When was the last time you remember singing a folk song?

Better yet, when was the last time a song writer wrote a song that actually reflected the way people feel, or told a story that everyone wanted to tell or share?

The last time I can actually remember hearing a good folk song was several years ago when I heard some children practice a familiar song written by a lovable hobo named Woody Guthrie who wrote and sang songs across America. He didn’t write songs to make a lot of money or to become famous.

Guthrie wrote songs about people.


Woody Guthrie

In the process of trying to please those who tried to control him artistically, he lost his family and all dreams of scoring a big record deal. One day he picked up his guitar and walked out of an interview while a nightclub owner was trying to figure out if other people would like the singer/writer as much as he did. Without saying much more than, “Where’s the restroom?” Guthrie hopped a nearby train and started his love affair with America and her people. By the time he finished wandering across America, the entire country was hooked on the catchy song that almost won Congressional approval to become our National Anthem, “This Land is Your Land.”


Arlo Guthrie

This wasn’t the only legacy Guthrie left America - he had a son, Arlo. His wife left with Arlo when Guthrie couldn’t end his love affair with his country. However, Arlo not only found his niche in the recording industry, but left an indelible impression on America with a sad story about a dying trade and lifestyle Americans once had a passion for.

Does it take a folksong writer to remind people what our country is about and why we love it? I sometime wonder if we rely on the leadership of a minstrel, a cunning song writer who can entertain while telling a story and rallying people behind a purpose for a cause. Or do we make a folk song out of the history preserved in a catchy little jingle of rhythm.

When Guthrie wrote and sang his songs at hobo camps along the American railroad and on street corners, he abandoned all hope of becoming famous or rich by singing. But he left America with a song that captured the spirit binding us to an image of the beauty we need to preserve. At one time men and women in America couldn’t help singing “This land was made for you and me.”

When Arlo Guthrie wrote and sang his songs, he rode in on the coattails of the fame his father had created. But no one ever expected he would also capture the feeling of a dying artistic way to see America on the steel rails that once weaved across some of the most beautiful landscapes in America as his father had.

Arlo rode Steve Goodman’s rendition of “The City of New Orleans” into his own destiny as another great folk singer. He sealed it with an overly-long instrumental tale of a would-be draft dodger and a patriotic sense of duty to his country.



Today there are very few songwriters and singers willing to take a chance and tell a story about America for fear they might miss that next great record deal. The song they create or write must fit a mold that some fair weather mariner has determined Americans want to hear.

If a song fits into one genre it can’t be offensive. If the song fits into another genre it has to be offensive. With so much happening so fast in America today I long for a simple musical storyteller. A good catchy folk song is what my heart needs to tell the story about the everyday life of American men and women.

I have to ask just one last question, “Is there anyone left who does something because it’s what he or she wants to do and because it makes him or her happy?”

Also Printed in Bakotopia Magazine issue 31: 6/26/08

Send to a Friend

Report a Violation

Comment From: HANKRAYBLUES

. Here is a true follower of Woody's creed. DR. BLT. You don't have to wait until the sun goes down to get a bang out of your July 4th weekend. I'll be releasing my new July 4th song, Buck's Red, White and Blue Guitar, and Bakesfield's own guitar legend-in-the-making, Hank Ray who plays on several songs from the limited edtion CD, has written one, and co-written another, will join me on the guitar. Maybe I'll even talk him into performing a couple of his own originals. 50% of profits will go towards Buck Owens Wellness Resource center. Find out the details at:Bakersfield Sound Undergroundhttp://www.bakersfieldsound...