If I Had a Hammer: Songs of Hope & Struggle

by Pete Seeger

Overview

Pete Seeger's repertoire was not limited to songs with specific sociopolitical goals, and the most familiar versions of his most popular tunes were done for Columbia. Still, it's hard to imagine doing better than this compilation of Folkways recordings (most from the late '50s and '60s) if you want evidence of Seeger's importance and skills as a spokesperson for worthy causes. Dividing into segments addressing "unions and labor," "peace," "civil rights," and "hope," this has the original 1956 versions of "If I Had a Hammer" and "Where Have All the Flowers Gone," along with other tunes identified with Seeger like "We Shall Overcome" and "Turn! Turn! Turn!" (the last from an unreleased tape of unspecified vintage). The liner notes explain the origins of each song, as well as how their structures have evolved over the years; a couple of 1998 tracks show his spirit intact, but his voice (as he himself admits) losing strength. ~ Richie Unterberger

Product Details

Release Date:	05/19/1998
Label:	SMITHSONIAN FOLKWAYS
UPC:	0093074009628

Tracks

1. If I Had a Hammer
2. Banks of Marble
3. Which Side Are You On
4. Casey Jones
5. Talking Union
6. Joe Hill
7. Union Maid
8. Step by Step
9. Solidarity Forever
10. Where Have All the Flowers Gone
11. Talking Atom
12. The Crow on the Cradle
13. Last Night I Had the Strangest Dream
14. Study War No More (Down by the Riverside)
15. Bourgeois Blues
16. River of My People
17. Hold on (Hand on the Plow)
18. We Shall Overcome
19. He Lies in the American Land
20. Well May the World Go
21. Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is a Season)
22. Tomorrow Is a Highway
23. Oh, Had I a Golden Thread
24. We'll All Be A-Doubling
25. Arrange and Rearrange
26. If I Had a Hammer

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Pete Seeger   Primary Artist,Banjo,Vocals
David Amram   Guest Artist,Dombek
Almanac Singers   Guest Artist

Technical Credits

Lead Belly   Composer
Ed McCurdy   Composer
Earl Robinson   Composer
Florence Reece   Composer
Charlie Pilzer   Mastering
Mark Greenberg   Producer,Liner Notes,Compilation Producer
Pete Seeger   Arranger,Composer,Assistant Producer,Editorial Assistant
Pete Reiniger   Sound Supervision
Woody Guthrie   Composer
Anthony Seeger   Production Supervisor
Amy Horowitz   Production Supervisor
Sydney Carter   Composer
Lee Hays   Composer
Anthony Hayes   Composer
Ralph Chaplin   Composer
David Welsh   Composer
Mary Monseur   Production Coordination
Millard Lampell   Composer
Michael Maloney   Production Coordination
Peter Seitel   Editorial Assistant
Les Rice   Composer
Joe Hill   Composer
Vern Partlow   Composer
Alfred Hayes   Composer
Traditional   Composer
Sidney Lee Carter   Composer