US President Obama has paid tribute to the American
folk singer and activist Pete Seeger, who has died
following a short illness at the age of 94.
"Once called 'America's tuning fork', Pete Seeger
believed deeply in the power of song," said Mr Obama.
"But more importantly, he believed in the power of
community.
"To stand up for what's right, speak out against what's
wrong, and move this country closer to the America he
knew we could be."
Seeger died at New York hospital, his grandson said.
His songs included Turn! Turn! Turn! and If I Had A
Hammer.
In 2009, he was at a gala concert in the US capital
ahead of President Obama's inauguration as president.
In his tribute, the president praised Seeger's activism.
"Over the years, Pete used his voice - and his hammer -
to strike blows for worker's rights and civil rights; world
peace and environmental conservation. And he always
invited us to sing along.
"For reminding us where we come from and showing us
where we need to go, we will always be grateful to Pete
Seeger. Michelle and I send our thoughts and prayers to
Pete's family and all those who loved him," he added.
Seeger gained fame in The Weavers, formed in 1948, and
continued to perform in his own right in a career
spanning six decades.
President Obama said "we will always be grateful to
Pete Seeger"
Renowned for his protest songs, Seeger was blacklisted
by the US Government in the 1950s for his leftist
stance.
Denied broadcast exposure, Seeger toured US college
campuses spreading his music and ethos, later calling
this the "most important job of my career".
He was quizzed by the Un-American Activities
Committee in 1955 over whether he had sung for
Communists, replying that he "greatly resented" the
implication that his work made him any less American.
Seeger was charged with contempt of Congress, but the
sentence was overturned on appeal.
He returned to TV in the late 1960s but had a protest
song about the Vietnam War cut from broadcast.
British singer and left-wing activist Billy Bragg who
performed with Seeger on several occasions called the
singer "hugely encouraging".
"He was a very gentle man and intensely optimistic," he
told the BBC. "He believed in humanity and the power of
music to make a difference, not to change to the world.
"I performed at his 90th birthday and the fire was still
there."
Seeger (l) performed at a rally for detente in 1975
Seeger became a standard bearer for political causes
from nuclear disarmament to the Occupy Wall Street
movement in 2011.
In 2009, he was at a gala concert in the US capital
ahead of Barack Obama's inauguration as president.
His predecessor Bill Clinton hailed the musician as "an
inconvenient artist who dared to sing things as he saw
them.''
Other songs that he co-wrote included Where Have All
The Flowers Gone, while he was credited with making
We Shall Overcome an anthem of resistance.
Turn! Turn! Turn! was made into a number one hit by
The Byrds in 1965, and covered by a multitude of other
artists including Dolly Parton and Chris de Burgh.
Joan Baez and Bruce Springsteen honoured Seeger on
his 90th birthday
Seeger's influence continued down the decades, with his
induction into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in
1996, and he won a Grammy award in 1997 for best
traditional folk album, Pete.
He won a further two Grammys - another for best
traditional folk album in 2008 for At 89 and best
children's album in 2010.
He was a nominee at Sunday night's ceremony in the
spoken word category.
He was due to be honoured with the first Woody Guthrie
Prize next month, given to an artist emulating the spirit
of the musician's work.
Mark Radcliffe, host of BBC Radio 2's Folk show, paid
tribute, saying: "Pete Seeger repeatedly put his career,
his reputation and his personal security on the line so
that he could play his significant musical part in
campaigns for civil rights, environmental awareness and
peace.
"He leaves behind a canon of songs that are both
essential and true, and his contribution to folk music
will be felt far into the future."
Seeger performed with
Guthrie in his early years,
and went on to have an
effect on the protest
music of later artists
including Bruce
Springsteen and Joan
Baez.
In 2006, Springsteen
recorded an album of
songs originally sung by
Seeger.
On his 90th birthday,
Seeger was feted by
artists including
Springsteen, Eddie
Vedder and Dave Matthews in New York's Madison
Square Garden.
Springsteen called him "a living archive of America's
music and conscience, a testament of the power of song
and culture to nudge history along".
His other musical output included albums for children,
while appeared on screen several times as well.
A reunion concert with The Weavers in 1980 was made
into a documentary, while an early appearance was in
To hear My Banjo Play in 1946.
The band, who had a number one hit with Good Night,
Irene in the early 1950s, went their separate ways soon
afterwards.
Seeger's wife Toshi, a film-maker and activist, died
aged 91 in July 2013. They leave three children.
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