- Born
- 14 July 1912, Okemah, Oklahoma, United States
- First work
- 1940: Dust Bowl Ballads
- Peak
- 1940 to 1948 (estimated)
- Last work
- 1956: Songs to Grow on for Mother and Child
- Died
- 3 October 1967, New York City, United States; aged 55; illness
Woody Guthrie
Music: songwriter, singer, guitarist, United States
Woody Guthrie was an influential American folk singer and songwriter whose topical ballads chronicled the struggles of the working class, Dust Bowl migrants, and trade unionists. Travelling with displaced families to California during the Great Depression, he crafted hundreds of songs on an acoustic guitar famously inscribed with the slogan This Machine Kills Fascists. His straightforward melodies, plain-spoken poetry, and commitment to social justice laid the foundations for the 1960s American folk music revival, profoundly impacting figures such as Bob Dylan. Hospitalised for many years due to the effects of Huntington's disease, Guthrie spent his final chapter in New York City, where he passed away in 1967.
Who else was born on 14 July or who died on 3 October.
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Signature works
- Dust Bowl Ballads album1940
- Do Re Mi song1940
- This Land Is Your Land song1944
- Pastures of Plenty song1947
- Deportee (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos) song1948
- Songs to Grow on for Mother and Child album1956
Honours
- Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, 1999
- Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, 1988
Groups: Almanac Singers, Folkways Records.