Yahoo LAUNCHCAST Song Of The Day-The Weavers

Artist:The Weavers

Song:Goodnight Irene

Album:The Best Of The Decca Years

If one looks at The Weavers today, they seem very quaint and dated. But The Weavers were very instrumental in popularizing folk music and setting the table for those who came after such as The Kingston Trio. Of course there was also the controversy about their politics. The Weavers were formed in Nov. 1948 by Pete Seeger (born May 3, 1919 in New York City), Lee Hays (born Mar. 14, 1914 in Little Rock, AR), Fred Hellerman (born May 13, 1927 in Brooklyn, NY) and Ronnie Gilbert (born Sept. 7, 1926 in New York City). Seeger & Hays had worked together previously in the early 40s folk group The Alamanac Singers. The two were already involved in various political causes. Hays suggested forming a new group to Seeger and they chose Hellerman & Gilbert from singers who used to gather in Seeger's home. The Weavers struggled at first but got their big break when Max Gordon offered them a week at his Village Vanguard jazz club. They did so well that Gordon extended the engagement over the winter of 1949. They got the attention of Decca Records arranger producer Gordon Jenkins and they were signed. Their first single Tzena Tzena Tzena reached #2 on the charts and the second single Goodnight Irene reached #1. The Weavers succeeded in popularizing Leadbelly, a folk singer who had died the previous year after toiling in obscurity. The problem with The Weavers music was Jenkins' use of strings really dates the music badly. But this is what had to be done to sell the music at that time. Of course it was inevitable that The Weavers left wing politics would get them into trouble and they were off TV by the end of 1950 and Decca had to drop them because they couldn't release any of their records. But they continued to pay them. The Weavers split up in 1953 but then reformed in 1955 for a reunion concert and signed with Vanguard Records. The political thing is weird because The Weavers music wasn't outwardly political. There were very odd things happening in the US at that time. The blacklist seems so silly now. Seeger eventually left The Weavers to go solo. Hays kept the group going for several years. He died in 1981. Hellerman was a music teacher and Gilbert continues to perform today. The Weavers laid a lot of the ground work for the folk boom to come after them. Here's The Weavers performing Goodnight Irene in 1949.