Nevertheless, they resumed performing and recording following a summer layoff. This marked the beginning of the blacklisting of the group for its political views. The Weavers were set to become regulars on a summer replacement television program when Seeger was cited in the publication Red Channels: Communist Influence on Radio and Television in June and the contract was canceled. “Tzena Tzena Tzena” hit the Top Ten in July, while “Goodnight Irene” topped the charts for months, starting in August the disc reportedly sold about two million copies. They signed to Decca Records and their single “Tzena Tzena Tzena” (music by Issachor Miron, revised by Julius Grossman, English lyrics by Mitchell Parish)/“Goodnight Irene” (music and lyrics by Lead Belly), credited to Gordon Jenkins and His Orch. The Weavers were on the verge of disbanding in December 1949 when they auditioned at the Village Vanguard in N.Y Booked into the club for two weeks at the end of the year, they were extended for six months. In December they recorded a second single, “The Hammer Song” (later known as “If I Had a Hammer” music by Pete Seeger, lyrics by Lee Hays)/“Banks of Marble” (music and lyrics by Les Rice) for Hootenanny Records. In September 1949 they made their first recordings for the independent Charter Records label, which released the single “Wasn’t That a Time” (music and lyrics by Lee Hays)/“Dig My Grave” (traditional Bahamian folk hymn). They played at benefits and on local radio during 1949, initially as the No-Name Quartet, then took their name from the 1892 German play The Weavers by Gerhart Hauptmann. They first performed together at a benefit for People’s Songs in November 1948. Seeger and Hays were former members of The Almanac Singers they became involved with Gilbert and Hellerman through their work with People’s Songs, an organization that promoted the performance of topical folk music in support of left-wing causes. Their most successful recordings were the singles “Goodnight Irene” /“Tzena Tzena Tzena,” “On Top of Old Smoky,” and “So Long (It’s Been Good to Know Yuh)” and their album The Weavers at Carnegie Hall They adapted folk songs from many different countries into their own vibrant style, popularizing a wide range of music, as well as performed the songs of such American folk predecessors as Lead Belly and Woody Guthrie they also wrote their own material. Thus, they are a direct influence on such subsequent groups as The Kingston Trio and Peter, Paul and Mary, as well as on the overall folk revival of the late 1950s and early 1960s. The Weavers were the first broadly popular group of contemporary urban folk musicians and singers. Membership:originally, Pete Seeger, ten., bjo., gtr. The Weavers introduced many folk revival standards to new audiences.Weavers, The, American folk-music group. Because of this, some folk song fans criticized them for watering down their beliefs and commercializing their singing style.Įncouraging sing-alongs in their concerts, sometimes Seeger would shout out the lyrics in advance of each line. The Weavers first big hit was in 1950 with Lead Belly‘s “ Goodnight, Irene“, backed with the 1941 song “ Tzena, Tzena, Tzena“, which also became a best-seller.ĭuring the Great Red Scare of the early 1950s, their manager advised the group not to sing their most explicitly political songs and to avoid performing at “progressive” venues and events. The Weavers were formed in 1948 by Ronnie Gilbert, Lee Hays, Fred Hellerman, and Pete Seeger. The group took its name from Die Weber a play written by Gerhart Hauptmann in 1892 that depicted the uprising of the Silesian weavers in 1844. Their style inspired the commercial folk music boom that followed them in the 1950s and 1960s. The Weavers were an American folk quartet from Greenwich Village in New York City who sang traditional folk songs from around the world, as well as blues, gospel music, children’s songs, labor songs, and American ballads.
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