Woody Guthrie's New Year's Resolutions

New Year’s resolutions for 1942 by the “Dust Bowl Troubador”

01.03.13 | By: Maryam

They don’t make songsters quite like they used to. Case in point: American folk singer-songwriter, Woody Guthrie. Nicknamed the "Dust Bowl Troubadour", Guthrie’s climb to the status of legend began with songs written during the Great Depression, a time the musician spent travelling with migrant workers and picking up their traditional folk and blues songs.

Guthrie wrote and composed thousands of ballads, folk songs, and political anthems over the course of his lifetime, and his influence continues to reign strong. The godfather of the folk revival movement of the late 50s and early 60s, Guthrie was a major source of influence for folk figurehead Bob Dylan, as well as later musicians Bruce Springsteen, Joe Strummer (of The Clash), and Jeff Tweedy (of Wilco), to name a few. Last year marked Guthrie’s 100th birthday, so with the recent end to a year’s worth of centennial celebration (which included festivals, lectures, tributes, and exhibitions, etc.), here are Guthrie’s New Year’s resolutions for 1942. It seems Guthrie could compose bits of wisdom outside of songs, too. Take a tip from Guthrie, and keep resolutions simple, reasonable, and worth while.

Happy Belated Birthday to Woody Guthrie, and Happy New Year to you.