Woody Guthrie

woody-guthrie-nywts photo by photo by Al Aumuller/Library of Congress

American Singer and Songwriter • 1912 – 1967 • American Folk Music • Protest Songs

Fast Facts

• Woody Guthrie, full name Woodrow Wilson Guthrie, was born in Okemah, Oklahoma in 1912. 
• His father and mother were both musically inclined, teaching Guthrie a variety of music including Western, Native American, and Scottish folk songs. 
• Over the course of his lifetime, Woody Guthrie wrote over 3,000 songs!
• Over the span of just a few years, Woody’s town went through both an economic boom followed by an economic decline, shaping many of Woody’s views on life. 
• Woody Guthrie was not just a musician, but a talented artist, with a passion for painting and drawing.
• The Great Depression affected the Guthrie family, and Woody had to begin heading west in search of work, sparking his love for traveling on the open road. 
• Woody’s first music job was performing traditional and original music on a local radio station in California, where he began to develop a reputation for making social commentaries and criticisms through music. 
• Woody Guthrie viewed himself as an outsider, and wanted to use his music as a way to give a voice to the  voiceless. 
• During the 1940s in New York City, Woody Guthrie collaborated with a group of folk singers called The Almanac Singers, who wrote music to advocate for a variety of social and political causes, such as unions, anti-fascism, and peace. 
• In addition to his many songs and lyrics, Woody Guthrie wrote two novels.