Pete Seeger - "This Land Is Your Land" (Unreleased) [Official Audio]

Hear a previously unreleased live version of Woody Guthrie's folk anthem "This Land Is Your Land," performed by Pete Seeger during a show at the University of Tulsa in 1976. His rendition is part of a six-disc anthology project 'The Smithsonian Folkways Collection,' and it's one of 19 previously unreleased songs in the collection.
'Pete Seeger: The Smithsonian Folkways Collection' released by Smithsonian Folkways on May 3, 2019.
Stream/download/purchase:
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Bandcamp: peteseeger.ban...
During his travels in early 1940, Woody Guthrie kept hearing Kate Smith’s patriotic “God Bless America” played on the jukebox everywhere he went. Listening to the imagery in Irving Berlin’s lyrics, Woody felt the song did not speak to the Americans he knew and the things that he had seen in his travels all over the land. He sat down and wrote his own song, originally called “God Blessed America,” which described his picture of America from “California to the New York Island.” Now known as “This Land Is Your Land,” the song has almost become a secondary national anthem sung by school children all over the country. If you ask someone who Woody Guthrie was and get a blank stare, ask again and say, “This Land Is Your Land.” Then you will hear, “Oh, yeah I know that. He’s the guy who wrote it?” Two of the original verses-which are political commentary about the Great Depression-are often left out when sung today. One verse mentions people waiting in “bread lines”; another refers to a “sign that said private property, on the back side it didn’t say nothing, that side was made for you and me.” What Pete sings here includes those two verses.
Pete Seeger
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[@Danielthegeek42]

To the Veterans begging To the young men dying To the mother's weeping To the players kneeling To all the children still locked in cages This land was made you you and me.

[@doomfrom9077]

This land is all of ours, there is plenty for you and me.

[@flamertheflamingfire1949]

This hits hard

[@scottcog1]

Pete Seeger'IS a national treasure. What a great example Pete was for all of us to follow as regards patriotism, community service and involvement, and solidarity with our fellow citizens.

[@nati7728]

This land is our land, and we can take it back. ✊

[@r.a715]

Form who ?

[@pako5586]

@@r.a715 from the greedy "land" owners that are protected by our corrupt goverment

[@jacksoarlingbrown]

Hell yeah

[@nonyabiz550]

@nati Keep dreaming 😢

[@bjrohner]

When you take it back - will it be yours and will you protect it and care for it. Of course that will make you the greedy land owner.

[@olivermoynihan9804]

What a great guy... and such a genuine voice you can feel his compassion and generosity

[@richiepetason4972]

I wish a modern artist would record this with all the verses for a new anthem for this nation. During this time of uncertainty it would be healing to hear something that could bring together all of those left behind in this unequal and bankrupt society.

[@zoom9826]

Trust me it’s worse now 2020 is just getting worst

[@elizabethchristenson6318]

Avett Brothers Oct 30 2020 kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZquWlpmIZ6uoZ5o

[@richiepetason4972]

@@elizabethchristenson6318 thank you! So appropriate for today.

[@photodocmark]

Right; "This Land is Your Land celebrates the two most important components of any nation-- its land and people. Nothing else matters.

[@SakaraCoyfox]

@@zoom9826 Eh, we had a civil war in the 1860s, Wobblies and other unionists and leftists getting killed by the state just for their politics and/or immigrant status if they were one, likewise for POCs particularly those of African descent, up until pretty much 2021. ...hey, wait a minute!

[@takakocaesar579]

I love how Pete even extend the song to plants and animals. This land belongs to all living beings. Really wholesome

[@TheEntertainmentguro]

I'm glad to finally find the full version

[@tonimorgan4656]

I met Pete at a UU church. He was a humble legend. He and ALL his verses raise our country and our world 🌎.

[@virginiahall6549]

A stirring rendition, and I love the extra verses. This should be our national anthem.

[@buffaloc20]

This is communist music and I love being a commie

[@peterzenewicz329]

Yeh, a Communist song should be our national anthem.

[@virginiahall6549]

@@peterzenewicz329 Socialist, not communist.

[@ThatCamel104]

@@peterzenewicz329 Actually, yes.

[@catbeara]

And to think almost all of them are from the original version (except the native American one)!

[@markalexander3659]

FINALLY someone including the rest of the verses

[@belegl.7721]

Great recording with Pete discussing the song and not just singing it! Also, as always, relentlessly trying to shame people into singing along :D

[@voicegirl555]

A Very Happy Belated 100th Birthday to the granddaddy of the folk songs! You were good Mr. Seeger!!! Thank You!!!!

[@mtsantos981]

Funny....I didn’t hear some of these lyrics at the inauguration, I wonder why.

[@alexjohnstone2498]

are you familiar with pete seeger and woody guthrie’s political leanings lol?

[@rdevil5330]

@@alexjohnstone2498 they're both Communist, of course they won't be at the inauguration

[@rdevil5330]

Their songs*

[@em-rc6yc]

@@rdevil5330Seeger was at Obama's, strangely enough

[@albertomoreno-torres7776]

thats because pete seeger couldn't be there to sing it like he did obamas

[@rolandschweiger8678]

what a funny warm hearted version, never heard this one before! thanks. And by the way - i am not American (live in Austria and my native language is German) yet i agree with some of the comments that suggest a new artist should record this (including the extra verses) and turn it into the new Anthem for the USA. in such uncertain times this could really give a fulfilling impulse for people from any social status, age, size, origin etc. the entire song is universal to me, if i heard correctly it goes back to Woody Guthry in the 1930s and the great depression after the stockmarket collapse in 1929? in any case, great version!

[@astridhardt]

Chorus:] This land is your land, This land is my land, From California to the New York Island, From the Redwood Forest to the Gulf Stream waters, This land was made for you and me. As I went walking that ribbon of highway I saw above me that endless skyway, I saw below me that golden valley, This land was made for you and me. I roamed and I rambled, and I followed my footsteps To the sparking sands of her diamond deserts, All around me a voice was sounding, This land was made for you and me. When the sun came shining, then I was strolling, And the wheat fields waving, and the dust clouds rolling, A voice was chanting as the fog was lifting, This land was made for you and me. One bright sunny morning, in the shadow of the steeple, By the relief office I saw my people, As they stood there hungry, I stood there wondering if, This land was made for you and me. Was a big high wall there that tried to stop me, Was a great big sign that said, "Private Property," But on the other side, it didn't say nothing, That side was made for you and me. Nobody living can ever stop me, As I go walking my freedom highway, Nobody living can make me turn back, This land was made for you and me. [Additional verses by Pete Seeger:] Maybe you've been working as hard as you're able, But you've just got crumbs from the rich man's table, And maybe you're thinking, was it truth or fable, That this land was made for you and me. Woodland and grassland and river shoreline, To everything living, even little microbes, Fin, fur, and feather, we're all here together, This land was made for you and me. [And a Native American verse:] This land is your land, but it once was my land, Until we sold you Manhattan Island. You pushed our Nations to the reservations; This land was stole by you from me.

[@henryofskalitz2228]

That last verse is bunk we essentially had war and what happens to the lovers of war. We take their land

[@hwhaht]

@@henryofskalitz2228 it wasn't that simple.

[@davidhutchinson5233]

@@henryofskalitz2228 You missed the meaning....completely.

[@henryofskalitz2228]

@@davidhutchinson5233 uh, no I didn't it's about the native Americans wanting the land back that their ancestors sold or lost in war and expansion of the USA. If it isn't that O "wise one" tell me why instead of just saying it's wrong. You prove nothing that way.

[@jaridprahl7491]

​@@henryofskalitz2228You make it sound as if the Native Tribes and the U.S. were equal powers fighting organized wars over disputed territory like in Europe. In reality the "Indian Wars" (which covers nearly a century of conflicts all across North America with hundreds of different, independent tribes) followed a very consistent pattern. 1) American settlers would push into new territory and begin establishing settlements in what was previously Native land. 2) Tensions would increase due to treatment of Natives in the surrounding territory as they slowly see their land taken without consent. 3) Eventually, an incident occurs where a U.S. settler gets attacked or killed (usually due to provocation of the Natives) and the federal government uses that as an excuse to send the Army in. At this point, the tribal leaders had one of two options. They could either, A) agree to a new treaty that forced them to move to a new location (sometimes selling their land for much less than its value and sometimes getting nothing for it at all) or B) attempt to fight with the U.S. Army and inevitably lose, often resulting in the deaths of many civilians and forced relocation anyway. Let's not forget that these forced relocations were subject to terrible atrocities committed by U.S. Soldiers that resulted most often in the death of children and women rather than any "combatants". To add insult to injury, nearly every treaty that we signed with the various Native Tribes would eventually be broken as the U.S. continued to expand westward. The only reason there are still reservations in existence is because they were put on land that was deemed too "worthless" to bother with, though even that can change in the event that gold or other resources are discovered. Fun fact: much of the land in reservations today is still held by the federal government, primarily in trusts. While it would be logistically impossible for us to simply give back ownership of all the land this country has stolen or pay reparations for the proper value of the land (same goes for Canada), the least we can do is acknowledge what happened. Every nation has its dark parts of history and understanding them is critical to understanding the modern day issues that arise across the globe.

[@2feetfirstroundtree]

Love his music... As a 12 th generation Skidi Pawnee { that's Wolf ) i personally his last version.

[@jeanpierrezutter587]

Thank you very much for this version of This Land is Your Land by Pete Seeger !!

[@davemiller1161]

They say "relief office" is controversial. The "wall" really pissed people off. I'm grateful Pete remembered Native people.

[@hahdgabfhbsjcnsncnnsdbbzbs]

They are from Siberia, they are not even native here..

[@TylerGarland-bc2is]

@@hahdgabfhbsjcnsncnnsdbbzbs They were here before Europeans, though. With that logic, nobody is native to anywhere except sahel Africa. Is that your point? Fuckin racist

[@praetai5461]

@@hahdgabfhbsjcnsncnnsdbbzbs technically we're all from africa

[@loganhaynes9176]

@@hahdgabfhbsjcnsncnnsdbbzbs trumpeter, they were the first to come here, and until multiple millennia later the Vikings landed, were the only homo Sapiens to be here.

[@Archiva1-k2o]

@@praetai5461 We are all from Earth. Created by God to be stewards of this planet. This planet is your planet; this planet is my planet! This planet was made for you and me.

[@MargaretKnaus]

I saw this quiet and gentle soul in Birmingham, Mi, I was sixteen. It felt like a friend who had just stopped in. Just like us. It was comforting and really good.

[@hobbygamer6220]

More Pete please !

[@BinALA]

TIME TO UNITE FOLKS

[@teresathompson6555]

Great song for the new year.

[@lauragoblin]

Bellissima!!!! Grazie! Grazie Pete!!

[@jm1979mx]

To the natives listening, this land is your land, not any other man, with the hand of authority, from sea to shining sea, that's the way it's going back to be, simply free. for the meek will inherit the earth. God the father is love. not domination.

[@TseringBawa]

Love it, w have this version Tibetan too, adapted in early 1980’s

[@37kj12]

Is there any links to this?

[@evelynphipps610]

America, Tibet, Germany, Syria. Names are just names and borders are just lines. We're all kin

[@1201alarm]

Thank you, Smithsonian. Vital work.

[@TheRealGovika]

Whatever political party this is, I want it in. "Folksy Socialist" or whatever idc, I want to be part of it.

[@Iwsssimuou]

I know many have been taught to be scared of the word, but this is what American Communism was. Seeger was an outspoken lifelong communist.

[@CameronFraleyMusic]

Join the democratic socialists of America or an American communist movement

[@CollinMcLean]

The IWW. We're not so much a party as we are a trade union for ALL workers.

[@GojiriArboris]

this land is my land, this land is your land!

[@Bob-k8p]

Hearing that Edward Norton playing Pete Seeger in the dylan biopic brought me here 🔥

[@SallieRabe-e6p]

Fabulous person

[@hunterthelion9352]

PEACE...PERIOD

[@yorkiemom6144]

Yet, they'll tell you they don't believe in censoring

[@Patronwillis]

For real! It's way harder than one would think to find the full version! They censored the OG Woody guthrie version on spotify

[@TGiona]

@@Patronwillis Yeah, but i believe that this exact song is in spotify, so all's good

[@Patronwillis]

@@TGiona the one closest one I could find on spotify had the no trespassing verse, but not the welfare office verse. I could just be missing out though!

[@russj.5296]

@Jeri Trezac its all for money and public image my friend. If many Americans respected those verses, and were not so ignorant, then the companies would do whatever makes them the most money (allowing the verses) and better PR.

[@michaelholtz340]

Pete❤️

[@scooter2873]

How in the heck did pete's hard times in the mill wind up hawking Volvo's!!???!!!? Pete is spinning in his grave!

[@CollinMcLean]

Because capitalism spares nothing...

[@cybersee9966]

This is toe tapping music!

[@The_Swinn]

In the squares of the city in the shadow of the steeple near the welfare office I saw my people and they were hungry and I was whistling this land was made for you and me....

[@AndrewTalgatov45]

This land is your land, this land is my land from Palestina to mother Russia from south Africa to North America this world was made for you and me

[@hunterthelion9352]

Sovereign and free to all

[@alansouzacruz970]

👏😎 legend

[@cavramau]

I love the smithy.

[@jumpkickman1993]

Woody Guthrie never stated in his original lyrics that that sign with a private property painted on its other side of it was made for you and me. the correct lyrics are "I'm beginning to wonder if this land was really made for you and me."

[@robertlepper5460]

Your claim I dispute. The version on Asch Recordings Vol 1 track 14 includes the line about private property

[@jumpkickman1993]

@@robertlepper5460 the entire song is pretty much socialist. He is Talking about the welfare office and private property doesn't really mix. Why do you think the other side of the sign "didn't say nothing"?

[@hawks9142]

I've heard him sing it before what do you mean

[@connorvessely4333]

1:59 2:39

[@AndrewTalgatov45]

I hate living on stolen land 😢 from north America to Palestine the world shall be free

[@czechmate-f6y]

If you think about it, all land was stolen, which shows how greedy we are

[@justinamenta7241]

Land isn't stolen...it's fought for and bought. Maybe the people that lost it were greedy? Dorks

[@morrisizing]

When you say Palestine you are using the name given to the area by Roman's that stole it which is quite ironic. Just since Caanonite & Isrealite kingdoms the land there has been 'stolen' by a smorgasbord of empires Neo-Assyrians, Neo-Babalonian, back to the Isrealites, Achaemenid Persian Empire, the Greeks, the romans, Byzantines, Rashidun Caliphate (1st Muslim invasion) and building of the mosque on temple mount, Crusaders, Ayyubid and Mamluk empires, Ottoman Empire, British Empire as a protectorate, then Isreal, Jordan (Judea & Sumeria including East Jerusalem) & Egypt (Gazza) after the 1947 conflict, then Isreal (and kind of the PLO), then Isreal (kind of the PLO & Kind of Hamas after Isreal with drew from Gaza). Given it's position lots of Empire have held it and it was one of the 1st area held by Muslim expansionism that saw them press into Africa, Europe and the Indian subcontinent.

[@kjferguson1944]

And how what he just means fuck all ​@@czechmate-f6yto each his own.

[@jranimations5955]

While I don’t trust communism in practice I surely don’t believe that the government should allow these companies and monopolies to continue their destructive behavior. I don’t believe capitalism is the problem but rather the lack of rules in such. Either way this song gets the point across in a beautiful way.

[@johnc206]

Question is whether gov't by We The People should contain, and set rules for, the economy, or the other way around.

[@nolanwilson5652]

Left libertarianism is better

[@WouldntULikeToKnow.]

@@nolanwilson5652 libertarianism is terrible

[@comeanomalocaris8267]

דומײַ

[@pako5586]

@@nolanwilson5652 gotta specify the left liberals... Not the low taxing, issue dodging, corrupt right "libertarians"?

[@nathanhamilton4907]

Community.

[@alexr6705]

I love how the communist lyrics got censored out so it could become a nationalist song, removing so much of the meaning. I love America, I love capitalism!

[@MESSI-fx1ob]

Alex R fuck America fuck capitalism have some class consciousness and realize that borders are a joke and you’ve stole this land from the natives wake up ur a sheep

[@GrimSleepy]

@@MESSI-fx1ob You show me any piece of land which isn't stained in the blood of the current owner's predecessor. It's a natural thing to kill/pillage/war over land. Land is the resource which contains all other resources. Why do you think the Timber Wolf, the Grizzly Bear, or the Lioness is territorial? I'm not trying to defend the fascists, but I do fly the Gadsden Flag.

[@MESSI-fx1ob]

Mark Compton we agree every country has a been bad some worse than others but that has do with if they had power or not. That’s why I don’t believe in nation states empires kingdoms. I’m an anarcho communist I want people to have the most fuffiling lives possible cause we only have this once

[@GrimSleepy]

@@MESSI-fx1ob Well now you're basically asking us to become a Type I Civilization, we've a ways to go for that I'm afraid.

[@alexr6705]

HIIIPOWER 000 I’m an anarchist with little comedic skill, my dude. Sarcasm exists for a reason.

[@buffalosoldiermusicandart]

TRuth

[@rptopmbv]

No, every inch of the land belongs to the aboriginals who are the the owners of the land.

[@faithsmith294]

That's what the verse at 3:43 to 4:02 and the story at 4:03 to 4:35 are about though

[@ThatCamel104]

Nobody owns land. All land, all the Earth, is free for all to use as they need.

[@lindawick455]

All land has changed who habitates it since humans evolved. There is no end to how land changes hands. And how the predecessor population is treated varies. And it is easy to lose sight of history. How indigenous people were treated during colonial times has been bad throughout the world. Human nature is a bitch.

[@therainbowlyon9980]

I don't think you understood the meaning of the song lmao

[@pako5586]

Listen as an anarchist no one owns land. But if you wanna play by that rule the natives before them owned it.. And before that and then before that.. In short if you want to own land you better have the god damn, tech, political power, and economic strength to own that land. Sucks to say but most if not all of that was destroyed by foreign plagues. That being said if land is to be owned the price is blood and europeans obviously made sure the natives bled out :) so maybe we just forget that bs and live here together

[@europa_bambaataa]

white people clapping on the downbeat, smh. something tells me these people hated hippies

[@isd4154]

What????

[@tyaz6556]

What?

[@toadfromthat90smariotvshow93]

@@tyaz6556 @ISD Usually gospel/jazz songs are "clapped" in the 2 and 4 times, the people in the recording are clapping in the 1 and 3 (or "downbeat"), which gives something of an awkward feeling and may show the lack of familiarity of the people who were there with the musical style, hence the "hating hippies".

[@venatortheanimefan4526]

@@toadfromthat90smariotvshow93 not being familiar with a culture doesn't mean you hate it.

[@Guyboy2003]

They were literally socialists and union men who fought facists and striked with civil rights protesters.They were progressive. You know the things that sjw white liberals like yourself think they are

[@scotthime6928]

LOL. The Battle Hymn of the Repugnant.

[@ApotropaicV]

Seems like that’s Gene Autry.

[@jumpkickman1993]

Woody Guthrie never stated in his original lyrics that that sign with a private property painted on its other side of it was made for you and me. the correct lyrics are "I'm beginning to wonder if this land was really made for you and me."

[@reggietheanarchistrat8805]

he likes to put little edits of phrasing in some of his song

[@avvarhil]

I personally believe Woody's version was a bit more pessimistic while Pete's is more hopeful, kind of like "This land belongs to everyone, not just them."

[@greatwhiteshark4931]

Woody was also a communist.