Folk legend Pete Seeger (1919-), born in New York, taught the world about life with his music and helped popularize the folk genre along with his friend, Woody Guthrie.

"Everybody’s got a right to their opinions. You have a right to your opinion and I’ve got a right to mine, Period," said the five-string banjo player. With a lifetime commitment to the environment, peace, and justice, his songs are rich with history, humor, and advocacy with rousing sing-along choruses.

"An artist, any kind of artist, is also a citizen and has a citizen's responsibilities," Seeger once said.

Upon Seeger's 1996 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, actor Harry Belafonte said, "If they ever decide to put a fifth face on Mount Rushmore, I would nominate Pete Seeger. He is one of the great sons of this country."

Blacklisted in the 1950s for his protest songs and unable to sign with a major record label, Seeger's heartfelt songs were covered by others in 1962. Peter, Paul, and Mary hit it big with his labor song, If I Had A Hammer, and the Kingston Trio scored with the antiwar tune Where Have All The Flowers Gone.

"We got to get over the idea that if you’re not reaching millions, you’re a failure... We can be quite small and still be something," said the man who always believed in the power of music to bring about social change and played at rallies to support Martin Luther King, Jr. and others.

"The artist in ancient times inspired, entertained, and educated," he said. "Modern artists have an additional responsibility-- to encourage others to be artists."

Struggle and Live!