Woody Guthrie: Songs and Art * Words and Wisdom

by Nora Guthrie, Robert Santelli

The timely, passionate, and humanely political work of America's greatest folk singer and songwriter is presented through his own words and art – curated by Woody's daughter – in this essential self-portrait, including never-before published lyrics and personal writing, and testimony from contemporary writers and musicians on his powerful relevance today.Woody Guthrie and his passionate social politics are as crucial today as they have ever been. A powerful voice for justice, and the author of more than 3,000 songs (including "This Land is Your Land"), he was also a poet, painter, illustrator, novelist, journal keeper, and profuse letter writer. Curated by his daughter Nora and award-winning music historian Robert Santelli, this fresh, intimate, and beautifully designed book thematically reveals Woody's story through his own personal writings, lyrics, and artwork, urgently bringing his voice to life.Featuring never-before-published lyrics to some of his greatest songs, personal diary entries, doodles, quips and jokes, and piercing insights on his politics and justice, this is an undeniable and important celebration of Woody's vibrant life's work. Created to be enjoyed by all – those interested in folk music or those interested in Woody's thoughts on Life in all its aspects, from Politics and Spirituality, to Love and Family – this book reflects Bob Dylan's thoughts on Woody Guthrie; "You can listen to his songs and learn how to live."ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL SONGWRITERS IN AMERICAN MUSIC Woody Guthrie has had a profound impact on American musicians, writers, politicians (and the everyman who found solace and kinship in Guthrie's writings and political beliefs), who have been shaped by his music and activism – namely the great founding father of songwriting himself, Bob Dylan, for whom he was a mentor. Others who have named Guthrie as a major influence include Bruce Springsteen, Johnny Cash, Pete Seeger, John Mellencamp, Billy Bragg, Joe Strummer, and Jerry Garcia, just to name a few.RARE ARCHIVAL This is Woody's life told primarily in his own words, with never-before published handwritten lyrics, artwork, journals, and much more.WORDS OF WISDOM RELEVANT Woody Guthrie's lyrics and writings carry pointed relevance to our world today – he wrote powerfully about economic inequality, immigration reform, fascism, war, corruption from capitalism gone wild, patriotism, and environmentalism – not to mention spirituality of all kinds, love, and family.EXCLUSIVE Includes new writing about Woody and his music by Chuck D., Ani DiFranco, Douglas Brinkley, Jeff Daniels, Arlo Guthrie, and Rosanne Cash.Perfect • Music lovers• Musicians and artists• Political activists and historians• Fans of Americana

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Biography, Memoir, Poetry, Art

446 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 16, 2021

Reviews

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a scrapbook of Woody’s lyrics and recollections of his life, with lots of photos. It’s a pleasant, easy to explore book that doesn’t get bogged down with details of trips made, concerts given or people met, yet follows the general chronology of his life through his lyrics, photos and recollections. I found that I preferred the work of Woody from the 1930s to the early 1940s. He wrote some powerful lyrics during those years.

Looks like we might be needing more like him today.

[Jay Gabler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paging through this book is both inspiring and discouraging. Inspiring, because of the amount of art and impact the legendary folksinger achieved in his too-short life; discouraging, because his songs about racism and economic oppression remain all too relevant. He literally wrote a protest song against Fred Trump!

I reviewed Woody Guthrie: Songs and Art * Words and Wisdom for The Current.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic book about a legend in all his humanity. Woody Guthrie's daughter Nora Guthrie has overseen his archives for years now, and here she's pulled together many threads -- his letters, handwritten lyrics, art, essays, etc. -- to tell his story in a personal, insightful way.

I read this one to interview Nora -- the story is here: https://www.ocregister.com/2021/11/16...

[Richard Derus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Real Rating: 4.5* of five

The Publisher Says: The timely, passionate, and humanely political work of America's greatest folk singer and songwriter is presented through his own words and art—curated by Woody's daughter—in this essential self-portrait, including never-before published lyrics and personal writing, and testimony from contemporary writers and musicians on his powerful relevance today.

Winner of the Deems Taylor/Virgil Thomson Book Award for Outstanding Pop Music Publication

Woody Guthrie and his passionate social politics are as crucial today as they have ever been. A powerful voice for justice, and the author of more than 3,000 songs (including "This Land is Your Land"), he was also a poet, painter, illustrator, novelist, journal keeper, and profuse letter writer. Curated by his daughter Nora and award-winning music historian Robert Santelli, this fresh, intimate, and beautifully designed book thematically reveals Woody's story through his own personal writings, lyrics, and artwork, urgently bringing his voice to life.

Featuring never-before-published lyrics to some of his greatest songs, personal diary entries, doodles, quips and jokes, and piercing insights on his politics and justice, this is an undeniable and important celebration of Woody's vibrant life's work. Created to be enjoyed by all – those interested in folk music or those interested in Woody's thoughts on Life in all its aspects, from Politics and Spirituality, to Love and Family – this book reflects Bob Dylan's thoughts on Woody Guthrie; "You can listen to his songs and learn how to live."

ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL SONGWRITERS IN AMERICAN MUSIC HISTORY: Woody Guthrie has had a profound impact on American musicians, writers, politicians (and the everyman who found solace and kinship in Guthrie's writings and political beliefs), who have been shaped by his music and activism—namely the great founding father of songwriting himself, Bob Dylan, for whom he was a mentor. Others who have named Guthrie as a major influence include Bruce Springsteen, Johnny Cash, Pete Seeger, John Mellencamp, Billy Bragg, Joe Strummer, and Jerry Garcia, just to name a few.

RARE ARCHIVAL MATERIAL: This is Woody's life told primarily in his own words, with never-before published handwritten lyrics, artwork, journals, and much more.

WORDS OF WISDOM RELEVANT TODAY: Woody Guthrie's lyrics and writings carry pointed relevance to our world today—he wrote powerfully about economic inequality, immigration reform, fascism, war, corruption from capitalism gone wild, patriotism, and environmentalism—not to mention spirituality of all kinds, love, and family.

EXCLUSIVE CONTRIBUTORS: Includes new writing about Woody and his music by Chuck D., Ani DiFranco, Douglas Brinkley, Jeff Daniels, Arlo Guthrie, and Rosanne Cash.

Perfect for:
Music lovers
Musicians and artists
Political activists and historians
Fans of Americana

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.

My Review: Famously a leftist, and a lifelong supporter of the dignity of the average working person, Woody Guthrie sang his beliefs into our ears. Everyone my age, regardless of your parents' politics, grew up with his music. Unless you ran away and hid, you got to know what it was he stood for, and what price he paid for standing up to a world even then being retaken by the least and the lowest after the giant reorganization of the New Deal.

Bright and beautiful.

The thrust of this book couldn't be more important than it is today: A reminder that a public personality, a musician no less, stood up against the craptastic capitalist excesses that have bedeviled the US since forever, wrote about it, never once shut up in pursuit of bringing his beliefs out into the public mind, no matter what the consequences.

A role model for today, for me, for so many younger and such few as are older than me.


We need many more Woody Guthrie-adjacent celebritries in today's world.

Absolutely great #Booksgiving gift for your sad, disheartened old uncle, your frustrated college student who follows David Hogg of the Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, or your ownself, as you contend with the knowledge that forty percent of the world seems to be made up of unrecalcitrant jackasses.

[snorwick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow... wow wow wow.

I'm obsessed with this book -- the cartoons and the paintings and the songs and the stories and Woody Guthrie, the man himself.

Everything we consume makes us different somehow as it passes through, but it's usually hard to notice. Every once in a while you stop to take stock and, oh, I guess I'm not all the same as I was before. A little softer, a little wider. New hair and sympathies where you didn't have them last you checked. Other patches thinning. You see you've let go of things you never thought you'd lose and now you're squeezing tight to things you never thought you'd have.

Then there's the rare occasion where you get to watch it happen. You get to feel something working on you and mixing you all up, putting ideas into you that you hadn't thought to think yet. This can happen for better or for worse, of course. This one seems for better.

I spent a lot of hours with this book, soaking up the art and the artist as best I could. My head was all over the place, and I was running back and forth between his notes and mine. A few nights, I lost track of time and was screwed up the next day from not enough sleep. I'm sad to finish it, to bring it back to the library. If I can, I'll get a copy for my own stacks but, either way --

thanks Woody for what you made, and for what you changed.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

There have been many collections of Woody's songs, writings and scribblings, but none to compare to this oversized, overstuffed collection. In one of the last items collected here, he writes "Instead of having a book of fifty or a hundred of my best songs and best ballads why not let the book be a story about the mood of the man?". That's just what Nora Guthrie and Robert Santelli have done with this handsome volume.

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of images of Woody Guthrie's writings and songs. Some articles by other folks and a little bit of explanatory material. There is a fairly large section about Woody's marriage to Marjorie, but although it says he was married three times and she was his second wife there is nothing about his third marriage.

[Sean O'Brien · Rating 5 out of 5]

Startling immediate. Relevant to economic hardships of today. Moving and fun at the same time.

[Merilee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting self portrait of his amazing life. Most of his handwritten songs, notes, and drawings did not come through on the kindle which was a disappointment.

[Francis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh Woody.
It’s been good to know yuh