Almanac Singers

The Almanac Singers lasted for barely a year and only left behind three dozen songs, and their work was at least as controversial as it was popular. But they were among the very first folk music groups organized for political purposes to record, and their lineup -- Pete Seeger, Lee Hays, Woody Guthrie, and Millard Lampell -- was a virtual "who's who" of topical and popular folk music for the next 20 years. They were the group where Seeger first hooked up officially with Hays, as well as the first direct link in the careers of Seeger, Hays, and Guthrie, and their influence lingers more than 50 years after they disbanded. The Almanac Singers had their start in 1940, when Pete Seeger, Lee Hays, and Millard Lampell first got together. Seeger and Hays had already been singing together at various left-wing political functions, and Lampell -- who was Hays' roommate -- began listening to them in their apartment, where Seeger frequently stayed. The trio started out informally, as Lampell joined the duo. The trio performed at fund-raising parties for different political groups, and their music proved extremely popular -- they had an earthy, unpretentious approach to songs, and their deliberate "hillbilly" image fooled prospective audiences, who had no idea what they were in for. Following their rousing performance at the American Youth Congress meeting in Washington, D.C., in February of 1941, where they regaled the delegates -- mostly pacifists and leftists -- with anti-Roosevelt and anti-war songs, the Almanac Singers were a going concern. Seeger, Hays, and Lampell were not only master songsmiths, but were equally adept at modifying traditional songs, grafting on lyrics that referred to issues of the day, including the mistreatment of workers and the supposed neglect of the...