An excellent documentary from PBS about Pete Seeger. American Masters: The Power of Song.

Part 1 is above. Here are Part 2 and Part 3.

If I Had a Hammer (Pete Seeger and Lee Hays)

Written in 1949, this song, also known as The Hammer Song, was first recorded by The Weavers. It did not achieve popular success probably because the world was not ready for such overt political commentary in their music. It did much better when covered by Peter, Paul and Mary in 1962, when it reached the Top 10.

Later recordings include versions by Trini Lopez (1963), Leonard Nimoy (1968), Debbie Reynolds and Sam Cooke. It has been translated into many languages, including a French version, Si j'avais un marteau, by Claude François (1963), a watered-down Italian version, Datemi un martello, by Rita Pavone (1963), a Chilean version, El Martillo, by Víctor Jara (1969) cover and one from Nicaragua, Dame Aquel Martillo, by Hernaldo Zúñiga, (1991).

It became an anthem of the American Civil Rights movement and was also used in church services.

This video shows excerpts from some of the many versions recorded. And here's a nice cover by YouTube's Jack Marti.

Here is my rendition. You can see the lyrics here.

My Dirty Stream

Pete Seeger's album God Bless The Grass (1966) was probably the first to deal with environmental issues. It featured several songs by Malvina Reynolds and included this song by Pete Seeger himself. It is also known as The Hudson River Song.

Here is a recording of Pete Seeger singing it, and here is my rendition.

Here are the lyrics.

Turn! Turn! Turn!

The full title of this song is Turn! Turn! Turn! (to Everything There is a Season). It is adapted entirely from the the Book of Ecclesiastes except for the last line. Though it was written in the 1950s Seeger did not record it until 1962, on his album, The Bitter and the Sweet."

Here is Pete Seeger talking about how he wrote the song. Here is Judy Collins on Pete Seeger's 1960s television show and by Nina Simone. It was also a big hit for The Byrds.

Here is my rendition of the song and here are the lyrics.

This song inspired me to write Vanity of Vanities, based on the same part of the Bible.

Waist Deep In The Big Muddy

Pete Seeger wrote this song in 1967 about an incident during the second world war. Quite coincidentally, the USA was currently fighting an undeclared war in Vietnam, and people seemed to think this song had something to do with that situation.

For example, Seeger sangthe song on the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour in 1967, but it was edited out as CBS objected to the blacklisted Seeger's reference to the "big fool" who insists on leading his men deeper and deeper into the mud, thinking people might interpret that as a reference to the president. "Nervous Nellie," was actually a phrase that President Johnston had applied to people advocating a quick end to the war or, as LBJ put it, who wanted to "cut and run."

The following year CBS relented, after intensive publicity by the Smothers Brothers about what had happened, and allowed Seeger to sing it on the Comedy Hour in 1968 as the finale in a medley of anti-war songs - and then axed this popular show shortly after - though this may have had nothing to do with Seeger's appearance.

Even though this song was not about Vietnam it did remind people of the pointlessness of sending young men to die in an unwinnable war. Of course, the USA has learned from their past mistakes and now only fight wars they know they can win - such as the War on Terrorism and the War on Drugs.

Here is Pete Seeger singing the song, and here is the whole medley from the Smothers Brothers show.

Here is a video of my cover and here are the lyrics.

Where Have All the Flowers Gone?

Pete Seeger wrote the first three verses of this song in1961, after reading the following lines from a Cossack folk song, mentioned in Mikhail Sholokhov's 1934 novel And Quiet Flows the Don: "Where are the flowers, the girls have plucked them. Where are the girls, they've all taken husbands. Where are the men, they're all in the army." The last two verses were added later by Joe Hickerson to make a cyclic song.

The song has been recorded many times, including versions by The Kingston Trio (1961), Marlene Dietrich in French (1982), English and German, Harry Belafonte (1966), Peter, Paul and Mary, Joan Baez and Dolly Parton (2005).

My rendition is here and the lyrics are here.