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Peter Seeger advertising Volvo?


Boyd

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I don't think I've ever seen / noticed the commercial.   Being pretty familiar with Pete Seeger's  voice/style - it would have gotten my attention if I had.   For the 10 million who HAVE seen and heard it -   I'm guessing 9 million 'tuned out'.   Of the others -  I'd guess less than a few hundred took the time to research it and find out who was on the sound track.  Usually it is a nobody - and nobody bothers.   But - the fact remains, if a couple of hundred discovered a whole new 'genre'  -  with the door opened by the Godfather of the Seeger Family -  it was worth it.  Otherwise,  that music would still be sitting on a dusty shelf,  only recognizable by the Baby Boomers who were in the middle of the Folk Revival.    I'm ecstatic every time  a GOOD song gets 'air time'.  

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31 minutes ago, joy gillian said:

I'd like to add that this Pete Seeger song being included in a Volvo commercial wasn't what bothered me. 

What did was hearing this iconic song on Fox News during Tucker Carlson's show. I don't think this is what Pete would have wanted.

I agree.


QM aka “Jazzman” Jeff

 

Edited by QuestionMark
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3 hours ago, joy gillian said:

I'd like to add that this Pete Seeger song being included in a Volvo commercial wasn't what bothered me. 

What did was hearing this iconic song on Fox News during Tucker Carlson's show. I don't think this is what Pete would have wanted.

 

Well, he was a Socialist - so you’re probably right.  

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  • 4 weeks later...

Pete Seeger was a lover of all mankind & very modest.  He would never tell anyone what brand of car to buy.  That said the world needs much more of his music now so there are benefits for his music to be heard by more people.   Pete taught me to write songs; please click   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWwvc2PXGNg

Carl Tilchen

Singer/Songwriter 

 

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12 hours ago, Carl Tilchen said:

Pete Seeger was a lover of all mankind & very modest.  He would never tell anyone what brand of car to buy.  That said the world needs much more of his music now so there are benefits for his music to be heard by more people.   Pete taught me to write songs; please click   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWwvc2PXGNg

Carl Tilchen

Singer/Songwriter 

Hey Carl and welcome - enjoyed your performance. It's quite funny and tells it as it is. 

You sure spelled a song with C -  Am - D7 - G - Em - A7. Wonder if you ever made a word out of E B G D A E 

       Have fun

 

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18 minutes ago, Larry S. said:

Not to condemn Volvo but knowing Pete Seeger's life he's probably turning over in his grave. 

You mean the old folky is rolling. Well, Volvo actually means I roll, so there's some sense there. .                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Yet I begin to believe they should have used W. Guthrie's Car Car instead. 

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  • 2 weeks later...

When I heard this the first time, I knew who  was singing.  Surprised, but who knows, maybe Seeger used to drive a Volvo?  Anyway, the commercial’s story is annoying because the driver’s house is on what looks to be a busy street (just missing being hit by a fast moving truck), but presumably he knows the street is dangerous so why the he** hasn’t he trimmed back that huge view-blocking hedge? He’s such a cool Dad, but can’t get his hands dirty with the hedge trimmer?  Blechhhh! 

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  • 4 weeks later...

This is a disgrace, the people whom mad this commercial have no idea what this song is about, Pete would be rolling over in his grave if he knew how it was being used, the rich yippies who would buy this car can not understand the hardship of working in a coal mine, it especially disturbing because these cars are now made by "slave labor" in China!

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Please make it stop! I no longer care if Pete would have objected to it being used, I’m just SICK OF HEARING IT 50 TIMES A DAY WHILE I’M WATCHING THE NEWS! Enough, Volvo! Make a new damn commercial!

Edited by Pajmo
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1 hour ago, fortyearspickn said:

Amusing how we've gotten a whole bunch of new, one time posters criticizing Volvo and praising Pete Seeger.   Almost like some little social media group ran a search and found this thread.  The question is - are they Seeger Lovers or Volvo Haters?  

Relevant observation and good question.  🧐  Would personally have liked to hear more from Carl Tilchen. 

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2 hours ago, fortyearspickn said:

Almost like some little social media group ran a search and found this thread. 

 

Well, I started this thread and I'm not from "some little social media group" (whatever that is). I was doing the dishes when the commercial came on in the other room and I thought "cool - Pete Seeger", so I went and checked to see what it was. I was literally shocked to see the video that accompanied that song. I'm guessing that others may have just done a search when they first saw this commercial - if you type "seeger volvo" into Google, this thread is the first thing that comes up! Why would you need to be a member of a "little social media group" to do that kind of search? I don't hate Volvo, but that song is really not appropriate for one of their commercials.

BTW, I didn't notice until later that I named the thread "Peter Seeger"... ugh, that was a typo, should have been "Pete Seeger" but I couldn't change it. 🙂

Edited by Boyd
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1 hour ago, Boyd said:

 

Well, I started this thread and I'm not from "some little social media group" (whatever that is). I was doing the dishes when the commercial came on in the other room and I thought "cool - Pete Seeger", so I went and checked to see what it was. I was literally shocked to see the video that accompanied that song. I'm guessing that others may have just done a search when they first saw this commercial - if you type "seeger volvo" into Google, this thread is the first thing that comes up! Why would you need to be a member of a "little social media group" to do that kind of search? I don't hate Volvo, but that song is really not appropriate for one of their commercials.

BTW, I didn't notice until later that I named the thread "Peter Seeger"... ugh, that was a typo, should have been "Pete Seeger" but I couldn't change it. 🙂

If you actually read what I actually wrote - that there were a lot of brand new first time posters here  (15 on my count) and they must belong to some little social media group  you'd probably have realized you weren't being personally, indirectly criticized. I thought it unusual and merely pointed it out.   Woke Trolls seem to infest other sites - so I thought it was noteworthy.  Because it hardly if ever happens we get something like that here. (Here, being 'some little social media group'. )    Your suggestion that there are random people who are going around googling 'seeger volvo' so they can join and post one line comments on sites against volvo is equally depressing.    And, IMHO it is not for us to say what kind of song is 'appropriate' for a car commercial.  That's up to the people who own the car company.    There's a fine line between saying you don't like something and declaring it 'inappropriate'.  Opens the door to all sorts of judgmental thinking.  😀 

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  • 4 weeks later...
4 hours ago, Gwendyl said:

It is a traditional ballad.  The first known recording is by Lester Smallwood in 1928.  It is in the public domain - literally free for all.

 

3 hours ago, Gwendyl said:

 Traditional ballad, author unknown, but the Pete Seeger estate, or whomever owns the rights to his recordings, would defiitely have been paid for it's use.  He's probably rolling in his grave.

Good and important info ^ thx 

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Em7 doing the work here to keep things in check- you love to see it.  I dont think many real friends of Pete Seeger will be too  broken up about it- the guy welcomed everyone into his circle regardless of stripe and led by example. I'm guessing he'd be a little confused and maybe find it funny that people are getting so worked up about something on television. 

I agree that the biggest impact this will have is that, along with sea shanty tiktok,  a few young folks have been exposed to more smithsonian folkways songs than they ever otherwise would, and some will dive in. I remember a few years back Dylan's cover of Rocks and Gravel was used in a Jeep commercial and I got hooked on the gaslight tapes and double drop D for about a month after.

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