Awards

• Winner of The Deems Taylor/Virgil Thomson Book Award for Outstanding Pop Music Publication 2022

Overview

America's greatest folk singer and songwriter, philosopher, political analyst, and man-of-the-people, Woody Guthrie and his passionate social politics and deep humanity are as crucial in the America of today as they were in the turbulent 1930s and 1940s. He wrote well over 3,000 songs (including 'This Land is Your Land'), yet he was also a poet, painter, illustrator, novelist, journal keeper, and great letter writer. This fresh, intimate, and beautifully designed book tells Woody's story largely through his own personal writing, lyrics, and artwork, bringing his voice urgently to life. Woody's essential self portrait, carefully-curated by Woody's daughter Nora and award-winning music historian Robert Santelli, is supplemented with contributions by Chuck D., Ani DiFranco, Douglas Brinkley, Arlo Guthrie, and others. Featuring never-before-published handwritten lyrics to some of his greatest songs, personal diary entries, doodles, jokes, and piercing insights on politics and justice, this is an undeniable and important celebration of Woody's powerful life's work.

Full Product Details

9781797211787

Table of Contents

Reviews

""It's an especially fitting time to revisit this late 2021 collection of writing, art, and ephemera from American folk singer Woody Guthrie, whose music permeated social movements that fought against oppression and economic inequality through the 1960s and into today. Featured nuggets, thoughtfully curated by his daughter Nora Guthrie, include paintings he created of his own song lyrics, doodles and illustrations, and shots of his iconic 'This machine kills fascists' guitar.""--Hyperallergic Best Music Books of 2021 ""Edited with love and precision by Guthrie's daughter Nora and scholar Robert Santelli, Songs and Art * Words and Wisdom takes a 360-degree look at a fascinating American life and a profoundly influential artist."" --The Current """"Like the greatest works by or about any genuine icon, Songs and Art--Words and Wisdom should move the reader to delve (back) into not only this man's work, but that of the artists he inspired. Without much other multi-media documentation of the Oklahoman's life and work...such projects as this are indispensable in reaffirming that Woody Guthrie, the man and the artist are one and the same--he is, a figure deserving true reverence and admiration."" -- All About Jazz ""An astonishing, and very illuminating, collection of Guthrie's lyrics -- some of them never-before-published -- his personal diary entries, his doodles and other artwork, his quips and jokes, and his insight into politics and justice."" --No Depression ""If you only know Woody Guthrie as a Dylan influence, or as the guy whose guitar said THIS MACHINE KILLS FASCISTS (""it means just what it says too,"" wrote Woody about the motto), this new book will open your eyes to a complex, incredibly brave voice."" --The Current (Minn. Public Radio) ""The book is a delightful visual feast, featuring scads of rare vintage photos, copious examples of Guthrie's own drawings and sketches, excerpts from diaries and day planners, dozens of reproductions of typed and handwritten letters, lyrics, and poems that let us into his life and his mind in ways that neither his own fascinating autobiography, Bound for Glory, nor conventional posthumous biographies did."" -- Acoustic Guitar magazine ""This book is an essential document (and gift) for a time when America is once again fighting for its democratic life...Guthrie is more relevant now than ever."" --The Daily Heller ""This book may introduce Guthrie to a new generation seeking to sound off on the present condition of the American Spirit."" --Minneapolis Star Tribune ""This is an undeniable and important celebration of Woody's vibrant life's work."" -- Eric Alper ""Through Nora's careful, mindful curation, we get to see that not only was Guthrie an exquisite songwriter, but also a committed citizen, a consumed intellectual, a well-rounded artist of all forms, and a remarkable man fascinated by the culture and dynamics of a certain era of the 20th Century."" -- Folk Alley ""What a wealth of information, entertainment, education, photography, artwork and surprises galore between the hard-covers of this gem of a gorgeous coffee-table book, a book, like the Bible, meant to be studied and repeatedly referred to, rather than simply read."" --The Jersey Sound

This is an undeniable and important celebration of Woody's vibrant life's work. -- Eric Alper Through Nora's careful, mindful curation, we get to see that not only was Guthrie an exquisite songwriter, but also a committed citizen, a consumed intellectual, a well-rounded artist of all forms, and a remarkable man fascinated by the culture and dynamics of a certain era of the 20th Century. -- Folk Alley

What a wealth of information, entertainment, education, photography, artwork and surprises galore between the hard-covers of this gem of a gorgeous coffee-table book, a book, like the Bible, meant to be studied and repeatedly referred to, rather than simply read. -The Jersey Sound Best Music Books of 2021 Edited with love and precision by Guthrie's daughter Nora and scholar Robert Santelli, Songs and Art * Words and Wisdom takes a 360-degree look at a fascinating American life and a profoundly influential artist. -The Current Like the greatest works by or about any genuine icon, Songs and Art-Words and Wisdom should move the reader to delve (back) into not only this man's work, but that of the artists he inspired. Without much other multi-media documentation of the Oklahoman's life and work.such projects as this are indispensable in reaffirming that Woody Guthrie, the man and the artist are one and the same-he is, a figure deserving true reverence and admiration. - All About Jazz An astonishing, and very illuminating, collection of Guthrie's lyrics - some of them never-before-published - his personal diary entries, his doodles and other artwork, his quips and jokes, and his insight into politics and justice. -No Depression If you only know Woody Guthrie as a Dylan influence, or as the guy whose guitar said THIS MACHINE KILLS FASCISTS ( it means just what it says too, wrote Woody about the motto), this new book will open your eyes to a complex, incredibly brave voice. -The Current (Minn. Public Radio) This book is an essential document (and gift) for a time when America is once again fighting for its democratic life...Guthrie is more relevant now than ever. --The Daily Heller This book may introduce Guthrie to a new generation seeking to sound off on the present condition of the American Spirit. --Minneapolis Star Tribune This is an undeniable and important celebration of Woody's vibrant life's work. -- Eric Alper Through Nora's careful, mindful curation, we get to see that not only was Guthrie an exquisite songwriter, but also a committed citizen, a consumed intellectual, a well-rounded artist of all forms, and a remarkable man fascinated by the culture and dynamics of a certain era of the 20th Century. -- Folk Alley

An astonishing, and very illuminating, collection of Guthrie's lyrics - some of them never-before-published - his personal diary entries, his doodles and other artwork, his quips and jokes, and his insight into politics and justice. -No Depression If you only know Woody Guthrie as a Dylan influence, or as the guy whose guitar said THIS MACHINE KILLS FASCISTS ( it means just what it says too, wrote Woody about the motto), this new book will open your eyes to a complex, incredibly brave voice. -The Current (Minn. Public Radio) This book is an essential document (and gift) for a time when America is once again fighting for its democratic life...Guthrie is more relevant now than ever. --The Daily Heller This book may introduce Guthrie to a new generation seeking to sound off on the present condition of the American Spirit. --Minneapolis Star Tribune This is an undeniable and important celebration of Woody's vibrant life's work. -- Eric Alper Through Nora's careful, mindful curation, we get to see that not only was Guthrie an exquisite songwriter, but also a committed citizen, a consumed intellectual, a well-rounded artist of all forms, and a remarkable man fascinated by the culture and dynamics of a certain era of the 20th Century. -- Folk Alley

If you only know Woody Guthrie as a Dylan influence, or as the guy whose guitar said THIS MACHINE KILLS FASCISTS ( it means just what it says too, wrote Woody about the motto), this new book will open your eyes to a complex, incredibly brave voice. -The Current (Minn. Public Radio) This book is an essential document (and gift) for a time when America is once again fighting for its democratic life...Guthrie is more relevant now than ever. --The Daily Heller This book may introduce Guthrie to a new generation seeking to sound off on the present condition of the American Spirit. --Minneapolis Star Tribune This is an undeniable and important celebration of Woody's vibrant life's work. -- Eric Alper Through Nora's careful, mindful curation, we get to see that not only was Guthrie an exquisite songwriter, but also a committed citizen, a consumed intellectual, a well-rounded artist of all forms, and a remarkable man fascinated by the culture and dynamics of a certain era of the 20th Century. -- Folk Alley

Author Information

Robert Santelli is the Founding Executive Director of the GRAMMY Museum in Los Angeles and the author of more than a dozen books on American music. He also developed the Tulsa-based Woody Guthrie Center with Nora Guthrie and was VP of Education and Public Programs at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland. Nora Guthrie is the daughter of Woody Guthrie and president of Woody Guthrie Publications. She served as president of the Woody Guthrie Foundation for over 30 years, founded the Woody Guthrie Archive in 1992, and the Woody Guthrie Center in Tulsa, OK in 2013. She is the executive producer of numerous Grammy award winning albums recording hundreds of her father's previously unknown lyrics. She lives in NY State.

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