7
recordings held by the Archive of American Folk Song in the Library of Congress. As
Seeger’s confidence and musical skills grew, Lomax invited him to participate on his
CBS radio show. In March 1940 Seeger met balladeer Woody Guthrie at a New York
fundraiser for displaced migrant workers.
In January 1941 Seeger, Lee Hays and Millard Lampell formed theAlmanac Singers,
performing folk songs and incisive topical songs at meetings, private functions, and
labor rallies. Singing in natural, unaffected voices and driven by Seeger’s clawhammer
banjo, the Almanacs fused the essence and excitement of rural Southern string bands
with the passion of labor songs and the dry, clever wit of NewYork’s cabaret entertainers.
This appealing music hybrid defined the sound and style of the American folk revival,
and their records inspired a generation of young musicians. During the group’s brief
existence, the Almanac Singers’ revolving roster included Woody Guthrie, Brownie
McGhee, Sonny Terry, Josh White, Bess Lomax Hawes and Agnes ‘Sis’ Cunningham.
While serving in the army during World War II, Seeger envisioned a national
movement unifying songwriters, performers, choral leaders and labor unions into a
force for political and social change. After returning to New York in fall 1945, Seeger
formed People’s Songs. Initially drawing upon members of New York’s leftist folk,
theatrical and literary scenes, the organization soon opened offices in Los Angeles,
Chicago and Cleveland. Two years after its founding, 2,000 folk music enthusiasts
attended People’s Songs’ first national convention in New York.
