Description

If I Had a Song is the second volume of Pete Seeger’s original or adapted compositions that were recorded, with rare exception, exclusively for Appleseed by many of his fellow musicians. The first volume, the award-winning 2-CD Where Have All the Flowers Gone set released in 1998, contained new recordings by Bruce Springsteen, Jackson Browne & Bonnie Raitt, Roger McGuinn, Nanci Griffith, Judy Collins, Ani DiFranco, actor-director Tim Robbins and many other musicians and creative artists.

The sixteen selections on If I Had a Song extend the engagingly diverse guest list and wide range of song topics presented on the first volume. A few artists reappear with new contributions (Jackson Browne, this time teamed with Joan Baez for a gorgeous version of “Guantanamera”; Billy Bragg with Eliza Carthy; Kim & Reggie Harris and Magpie), but there are plenty of additional and varied voices represented (as well as Pete’s own, on five selections). Traditional “folkies” and protest singers (Arlo Guthrie, John McCutcheon, Larry Long, Guardabarranco), singer-songwriters (Eric Andersen, Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer, Dar Williams & Toshi Reagon, John Wesley Harding, Kate & Anna McGarrigle, Joel Rafael ), alt.country stars (Steve Earle), pop-rockers (Moxy Früvous), and bluesmen (Corey Harris) all pay their respects to the 82-year-old Pete with imaginative arrangements and song choices. Earle’s grim version of “Walking Down Death Row” has subsequently been used by several organizations opposing the death penalty.

There are songs here that were never previously recorded, and many others that have yet to be reissued on any of Pete’s CDs, only appearing once on long-vanished Seeger LPs. One of the two collaborations between Arlo Guthrie and Pete on If I Had a Song, “66 Highway Blues,” is the first recording of one of the rare co-writing efforts by Seeger and Arlo’s father, Woody Guthrie.

Virtually all of the artists invited to participate in our three-volume tribute to Pete’s songs enthusiastically accepted. Their contributions were recorded in studios across the United States, in Canada, England, Nicaragua, Norway and elsewhere, mirroring Pete’s worldwide impact.

tracklist

1. Jackson Browne & Joan Baez – Guantanamera
2. Billy Bragg & Eliza Carthy – If I Had a Hammer
3. John Wesley Harding & The Minus 5 – Words, Words, Words
4. Steve Earle – Walking Down Death Row
5. Dar Williams & Toshi Reagon – Oh Had I a Golden Thread
6. Arlo Guthrie & Pete Seeger – 66 Highway Blues
7. John Mccutcheon & Corey Harris – Talking Union
8. Moxy Fruvous – Maple Syrup Time
9. Eric Andersen – Snow, Snow
10. Kate & Anna Mcgarrigle – Little Boxes (petites Boites)
11. Joel Rafael Band – Last Train to Nuremberg
12. Guardabarranco – You’ll Sing to Me Too
13. Pete Seeger & Arlo Guthrie – This Old Car
14. Kim And Reggie Harris & Magpie – Old Devil Time
15. Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer – The Emperor is Naked Today-O
16. Larry Long – Well May the World Go