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VOICE ONE:
I’m Mary Tillotson.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Steve Ember with the VOA Special English program, PEOPLEIN AMERICA. Today, we complete our story about songwriter and singerWoody Guthrie.
VOICE ONE:
Woody Guthrie grew up in Oklahomaand Texas during the nineteen-twenties. A short time later, manyfarms in these states failed. Extreme dry weather ruined the soil.This area became known as the Dust Bowl.
Like many people, Woody left for California to find work.However, many people could only find work on farms gathering fruitor other crops. These workers often lived in camps with poorconditions.
Woody visited these farm worker camps. He played his guitar andsang songs he wrote that described the conditions at the camp he wasvisiting.
VOICE TWO:
Labor union organizers in California found Woody Guthrie usefulto their cause. They urged him to go to New York City to makerecordings of his songs.
Woody liked the idea and left California for New York City innineteen-forty. There he met Alan Lomax, an expert on America’straditional music. Lomax worked for the United States Library ofCongress in Washington, D.C. He collected and recorded traditionalAmerican folk music. When he heard Woody sing, Lomax knew he hadfound a true singer of American folk music.
VOICE ONE:
Alan Lomax recorded many of Woody’s songs for the Library ofCongress. He also helped Woody find work in New York. One companyagreed to record some of Woody’s songs. The record he made wascalled “Dust Bowl Ballads.” The songs told stories of people who hadlost their land. Many music critics praised Woody and the songs hewrote.
Lomax also helped Woody get a job with CBS Radio. He sang andplayed folk music on a radio program that was broadcast across theUnited States.
VOICE TWO:
Woody and several other musicians joined together to writepolitical protest songs. One of these was Pete Seeger. Woody wroteperformed with a group called the Almanac Singers. Later, somemembers of the group formed the folk singing group called theWeavers.
It was during this time in New York that Woody wrote what becamehis most famous song, “This Land is Your Land.” He described thebeauty and richness of America that he had seen during his travels.He believed America should be a place that belongs to rich and poorpeople alike. The first version of his song expressed opposition toprivate property.
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VOICE ONE:
In nineteen-forty-one, the Interior Department asked WoodyGuthrie to write songs supporting the building of the Bonneville Damon the Columbia River in Washington state. He wrote twenty-six songsin a month. The best known of these is “Roll On Columbia.”
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VOICE TWO:
Woody Guthrie wrote a book about his early life in Oklahoma andTexas. It was published in nineteen-forty-three. He called it “Boundfor Glory.” He described his childhood, and the pain of watching hismother slowly becoming insane. He also wrote about his travels andthe needy people he saw in many parts of America. One book criticwrote: “Someday, people are going to wake up and realize that WoodyGuthrie and his songs are a national treasure, like the Yellowstoneor Yosemite parks.”
VOICE ONE:
During World War Two, Woody joined America’s Merchant Marine. TheMerchant Marine transported soldiers and supplies across theAtlantic Ocean to Europe. Later, Woody served in the Army. Hereturned to New York when the war ended.
Woody’s wife had left him a few years earlier. Innineteen-forty-five, he married Marjorie Mazia. She was a dancerwith the Martha Graham dance group. Woody and Marjorie had adaughter named Cathy Ann. In nineteen-fifty, Woody began writingsongs for children. These became very popular. Here is one called”Riding in My Car.” It shows his sense of fun and humor.
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VOICE TWO:
One day, while Woody and Marjorie were away, a fire started intheir house. Their daughter Cathy Ann was severely burned. She diedthe next day. Woody was crushed by her death. He remembered how hissister had died the same way. He was never the same after Cathy Anndied. He had trouble earning money. He began drinking alcohol. Woodyand Marjorie had several more children after Cathy Ann’s death. Buttheir marriage ended.
Woody Guthrie began noting something strange about himself. Hefound that the words he wrote often did not make sense. And he hadsudden attacks of uncontrollable shaking. In nineteen-fifty-two,doctors confirmed his worst fears. He had Huntington’s Chorea, thesame disease of the brain and nervous system that had killed hismother. Woody Guthrie was forty years old.
VOICE ONE:
There was no treatment for the disease. His condition got worse.In nineteen-fifty-four, Woody Guthrie traveled one more time acrossAmerica. He wanted to see the places where he had lived and theworkers’ camps where he had sung. Old friends had troublerecognizing him. Instead of a young man full of life, they saw anold man who could not speak clearly or control his shaking.
Finally, he entered a hospital because he could no longer carefor himself. But while he seemed to be forgotten, his music was not.By the late nineteen-fifties, folk music became popular again in theUnited States. More Americans began listening and playing the songsof Woody Guthrie.
Young folk singers, like Bob Dylan, came to New York to visitWoody in the hospital. Dylan and others copied the way Woody sangand played the guitar. And like Woody, they wrote protest songs thatcalled for social and political justice.
VOICE TWO:
Woody Guthrie remained in the hospital until he died innineteen-sixty-seven. His family and friends visited him each week.In the last years of his life, Woody could hardly speak. But hisfamily and friends knew he still believed in the causes he had sungand written about all his life. They knew this because when theysang his songs, Woody’s eyes would become brighter and his defiantspirit would shine through.
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VOICE ONE:
This VOA Special English program was written by Shelley Gollust.It was produced by Paul Thompson. I’m Mary Tillotson.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Steve Ember. Join us again next week for another PEOPLEIN AMERICA program on the Voice of America.