This
print
reflects the format of the Woody Guthrie painting it is
based upon. The print is on18x24 paper and will be signed
and numbered just below the bottom border of the printed
area… allowing the purchaser to choose between a
standard(more affordable) 18×24 frame, or trimming
the excess paper below the signature and custom framing
the print. Cropping the image to more closely suit the
18×24 proportion compromised the composition.
Woody
Guthrie (1912-1967) was an American folk singer and songwriter
best known for the song “This Land Is Your Land”
frequently sung in American schools. Though the song is
used patriotically, it was originally intended as as a
“power to the people” themed anthem, and had
its more controversial verses edited out. Full original
lyrics below. Guthrie grew up in Oklahoma during the dust
bowl and the depression which gave him empathy toward
farmers and working class people in general. Guthrie was
given the nickname “The Dust Bowl Troubadour”
and wrote many songs championing workers, unions, outlaws,
farmers, and the downtrodden. When Woody performed he
often had the slogan “This Machine Kills Fascists”
emblazoned across his guitar. If Steinbeck’s “The
Grapes of Wrath” was the literary embodiment off
the struggles of the era, Guthrie’s songs were the
musical equivalent. Guthrie was blacklisted during the
McCarthy era for his left leaning views. Woody Guthrie’s
influence can be felt in the tradition of social justice
in music ranging from Pete Seeger, to Johnny Cash, to
Bob Dylan, to Jimi Hendrix, to Neil Young, to Joe Strummer(who’s
original nickname was Woody”). In my MAYDAY art
show, Guthrie was an essential inclusion for his tremendous
influence on so many of my favorite musicians who have
combined entertainment and social commentary. Proceeds
from this print go to the Woody Guthrie Foundation. The
painting and print are based on a photograph by Sid Grossman.
-Shepard
Woody
Guthrie’s original lyrics to “This Land is
Your Land”:
stanzas 4, 5, and 6 are usually censored out, but are
essential
to conveying the full meaning of Woody’s song.
This
Land Is Your Land
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 water
This land was made for you and me
As
I was walkin’, that ribbon of highway
I saw above me, that endless skyway
I saw below me, that golden valley
I said this land was made for you and me
I’ve
roamed and rambled and I followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sand of her diamond desert
And all around me, a voice was sounding:
This land was made for you and me
Down
in the city, in the shadow of the steeple
By the relief office, I saw my people
As they stood there hungry I stood there whistling:
This land was made for you and me
As
I went walking, I saw a sign there
And on that sign it said “Private Property”
But on the other side it didn’t say nothin’
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, cuz
This land was made for you and me
The
sun came shining, and I was strolling
And the wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling
As the fog was lifting, a voice was chanting:
This land was made for you and me
–
Woody Guthrie
Aug 26, 2010 - Issue 390
is
published every Thursday
