Happy Birthday, Woody Guthrie! (born July 14th, 1912 In Okemah, Oklahoma)

Happy Birthday, Woody Guthrie! (born July 14th, 1912 in Okemah, Oklahoma)

Photos by Eric Schaal for LIFE magazine, 1943, New York City

“I am out to sing songs that will prove to you that this is your world,” Guthrie once said, “no matter what color, what size you are, how you are built. I am out to sing the songs that make you take pride in yourself and in your work.”

In honor of Black History Month, we'd like to share our copy of Let Me Live (1937), by Angelo Herndon.

Angelo Herndon (1913-1997) was a coal miner and labor organizer who worked across racial lines. After an attempt to organize black and white industrial workers in Atlanta in 1932, Herndon was arrested and convicted of insurrection. The prosecution case pointed to his possession of communist literature (all of which could be found at a public library), which were found in his hotel room.

Herndon was eventually sentenced to 18 to 20 years of hard labor, but his conviction was overturned by the state appeals court and he was released on bail. On April 26th, 1937, a narrow majority of the Supreme Court ruled in his favor, ruling Georgia's insurrection statute as unconstitutional.

Let Me Live, Herndon's autobiography written during his time in prison, tells the story of his arrest and times in court but also describes his early life up until that point.

This first edition copy features an inscription from Herndon to Thomas Mooney, a noted political activist and labor leader who was controversially imprisoned. When Herndon was out on bail awaiting appeals, he visited Mooney in prison and conducted an interview, which was published in Labor Defender in January, 1935.

To view more about this book and other materials to celebrate Black History Month, visit our digital exhibit, Law and the Struggle for Racial Justice.

Leadbelly-The Bourgeois Blues

I Ain't Marching Anymore - Phil Ochs

taken from Rainbow Quest TV show, 1965

Portland Town

Song of The Day

"Salty Dog Blues" Mississippi John Hurt, 1965 (?)

Salty dog Blues is a song that had existed comfortably in the public domain in the early 1900s (I couldn't find any research of it being a traditional song however) until it was first recorded in 1924 by Papa Charlie Jackson. Which was.. adapted for Broadway?

The Interesting thing about this song is its versatility. It has been performed in a plethora of related but distinct genres. Like:

Bluegrass (Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, 1967) Blues (Clara Smith 1926) Country 1 (Morris brothers 1937) Country 2 (Johnny Cash 2000) Jazz 1 (Freddie Keppard's Jazz Cardinals 1926) Jazz 2 (Pat Hawes 2000)

The meaning of salty dog in this context is unclear. It could be a sexual innuendo, a term for a sailor who has been at sea for too long, or even a local beverage, maybe even a combination of all 3.

I like Mississippi John Hurt's cover the best, his voice is very relaxing and soothing which adds another layer to the fun song.