Pete Seeger and Lee Hays teamed with Fred Hellerman and Ronnie Gilbert to create the Weavers at the end of 1948. Faithful to their original arrangements, Work o' the Weavers offers a rousing 2-act program of 40+ songs and narrative that celebrates their timeless music and timely message. Drawing from many sources including international music and traditional ballads, work songs and sea chanteys, lullabies and hymns, and the songs of Woody Guthrie and Leadbelly, the Weavers presented folk music with a freshness and exuberance that had never before been heard, leading to a string of hits including Tzena Tzena, On Top Of Old Smoky, Wimoweh, So Long, It's Been Good To Know Yuh and Goodnight Irene. Songs such as these have become part of our collective consciousness. Blacklisted during the McCarthy era for their political beliefs, and driven from the stage at the height of their popularity, the Weavers reunited in 1955 with a Carnegie Hall concert, and persevered long enough to kindle the 'folk boom' of the '50s and '60s, giving heart to a generation and providing the foundation upon which virtually every subsequent folk performer would build. These 16 songs represent the heart of the Work o' the Weavers' program.
"Four wonderful people who've picked up where the Weavers left off. Fantastic!"
--Pete Seeger
"You really do sound like the Weavers!"
--Ronnie Gilbert
"This faithfully arranged and sung tribute...rings with such rousing familiarity. Work o' the Weavers traces the quartet's long trajectory with nearly as much fidelity as admiration, so much so that there are moments when you may find yourself thinking that the group's original members are all within range of the microphone."
--Mike Joyce, The Washington Post
"(Their) harmony, individual voices, and instrument choice remain amazingly true to the original Weaver sound. Quite enjoyable."
--Sing Out! Magazine
"A Tale Of Musical Courage"
--Billboard Magazine
"Resurrects the joyful harmonies of the Weavers' original recordings."
--Dirty Linen Magazine
"Really well done, the vocal blend quite good and you captured the spirit of the original group."
--Frank Hamilton, former Weaver
“The modern age of folk music did not start in 1958 with The Kingston Trio, but a decade earlier with The Weavers. Unfortunately, their blacklisting and disbanding at the peak of their success in the McCarthy era made them both legendary and mostly unknown musically even to those who grew up during the early 60s folk revival. Although Pete Seeger and Ronnie Gilbert continued with solo careers, the music of the Weavers was left mostly to 'Goodnight Irene' and 'Tzena, Tzena. Tzena.' Work 'o The Weavers, Live in Concert, brings back the sound, style, the feel of a real Weavers' concert, and in narrative, the story behind the group. Nothing replaces the original, but if you want to understand the music, where it came from, and the debt the folk revival of the 60s and the subsequent folk-rock revolution owe them, this is the place to start.”
--Yuki Arken, online reviewer
"I just loved your show in a million ways. You really have a great energy and spirit. This could be a long running, historical, entertaining, enlightening show that could run for years. Brilliant."
--Christine Lavin, Singer-songwriter/baton twirler
"The quartet's deliverance of The Weavers' tribute/story feels totally authentic. It's just a delight from beginning to end."
--Eddie O'Strange, Town & Country Radio, New Zealand
"The CD is fantastic! Not only are the memories it evokes so precious and stirring, the music is powerfully and beautifully rendered by the four of you and gets this non-singer a-singin'. I can't turn it off!"
--Amy Bookbinder, Northampton MA
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