Pete Seeger in a COMMERCIAL?????

I'm no fan of most (not all) of what Pete Seeger stood for, but I have to side with the concept of artistic integrity here. If it is known or can be reasonably inferred that an artist would not want his works, including covers of traditional or public domain songs, used in certain ways, then the proper course of action is Don't Do It. But ultimately it's the survivors' call and if they believe it's useful to the record label or other enterprises they are involved with, then I guess that's that.

 

George, welcome to my second home. We've known each other for a while now.
I don't want to cause Tinya any grief. Those were my thoughts as I tried to find out what was going on.
I don't want to see Pete become a commodity, but I am questioning my place in saying anything.

 

Interesting... I can't imagine what you could possibly disagree with. I'm curious, which ideas do you disagree with? I'm not asking to debate you, I'm just kind of baffled because I think he was a reasonable guy with good ideas (although his reaction to Dylan going electric seemed a bit close-minded).

 

I encourage us not to discuss the merits of Pete's politics, which will get this thread closed quick.

Unless Pete instructed his family otherwise, it is disappointing that they have chosen to license his work for ads in a way he himself would not have done. He quit the Weavers over their doing a cigarette ad. Not that tax prep is the same as cigarettes, but I can't think of anything he lent his name to other than causes he personally believed in.

 

Just an FYI,Jackson Hewitt rents space in Wal-Marts and,with the tag about a Wal-Mart discount,they are in an agreement a bit deeper than in the past,but it probably is still a leased deal and J-H is not a subsidiary of Wal-Mart.J-H openly solicits for franchisees to open a kiosk inside of Wal-Mart,so J-H collects fees from the franchisee and in turn Wal-Mart collects fees from J-H for the rental space.A franchisee can choose from opening up an office on the corner of 2nd & DUCK! in a low income neighborhood or choose a place where,according to J-H's website,commerce of up to 40,000 transactions a week are taking place near the kiosk,emphasizing that prospective francisees "do the math".Wal-Mart employees also recieve a discount for choosing J-H.As for ethics,I'll leave that up to anyone able to do some online investigating.But know that this relationship is similar to the fast-food restaurants typically found inside a Wal-Mart and the numerous third party vendors that service parts of the store,keeping Wal-Mart's payroll even lower since it needs less help from "associates".I don't shop in Wally World,but know that it is almost impossible not to be doing some kind of commerce from companies that directly benefit from their relationship with Wal-Mart.

 

Pete meet Woody
The North Face: Your Land

 

I was also upset when I heard the commercial. With all Walmart has done to destroy this nation. I joined this forum just to get answers and hear from other like minded individuals. Thanks for all the info.
Laurie H (luluht)

 

I'm not left wing. That's all I'll say, as per forum rules. It's probably all I need to say to answer.

 

Left or right wing, no one can say Pete was not a man of integrity. Or that he wouldn't stand by his convictions.

 

Sorry, but there should have been NO angst on your part to begin with. You incorrectly assumed his family would "never have permitted this" without seeking out the facts. There's nothing wrong with using a song in a commercial, assuming all proper channels and permission are sought and granted. In this specific case, Folkways will receive "quite a bit of money" which will allow them to continue releasing important American music in the future. Feeling Pete's loss as personally as you do, still doesn't grant you the right to rant, especially since his heirs allowed his song to be used. It's a shame that you feel a commercial featuring a Pete Seeger song goes against everything you learned from the man. If I'm correct, Pete profited by his songs for decades. As he well should. Do you really think he'd be against the use of a non-original performance that would help Folkways? Ron

PS Don't be surprised if more Pete songs are heard in the future. Tinya says her family has turned down "most of them." Which may be interpreted that at least a "few" songs may be heard in the future.

 

Where do I begin? How about this is an aberration? That this does indeed fly in the face of what Pete has said and done his entire career. The only ads that Pete ever did were for clean water and conservation. In other words, public service ads. I have been in contact with Tinya Seeger in the last 48 hours, and not only did she understand my feelings, she expected to hear about it. If not from me, then from another of our extended family(and THAT group numbers in the thousands). I know much more about Pete than most from 30 years of association with Pete, Toshi, and many of his contemporaries. My brother and sister-in-law were Pete's transportation in and around southern Michigan. With Pete I was not a fan boy, I was a friend who followed his footsteps.

Here is what Tinya wrote me last night:
"I would have been alarmed if no one said anything. Of course you should care, and thanks for caring."

In other words, I was just the first to be upset that said something. That usually doesn't happen. My only regret was that I might have upset Tinya, but that did not happen. She understands exactly why those of us that have been aligned with Pete would be upset. I am sure I will hear more details in time.

 

Is your perception of 'I Heard It Through the Grapevine' so shallow that it's violated by dancing raisins?
~Pete Townsend

I sympathize with your sentiment OP. But its just a commercial. Pete's legacy will outlive this. Any thought that his legacy is damaged by a silly commercial, is an insult to his legacy. I'm sorry to those of you still mourning Pete. Living in upstate New York, Pete was always a part of the music and political scene. I know he was against big government and pro-environment. I don't know a lot about JH, but I know that they prepare tax returns for individuals. Technically, a company that seeks to help taxpayers keep more of their money, is in fact standing up to big government. I think it'd be a lot different it was an add for a Natural Gas/Oil Company... Pete would've had little reason to dislike JH.

 

But its a fact that he had a problem with Wal Mart. Big problems that are pretty obvious why.

 

Again I know little about JH. And not as much about Pete as you... but are you really comparing JH to Walmart? A Walmart commercial would be on par with a natural gas/oil company. Because Walmart is disastrous to the environment. I'm not aware of JH posing any harm to the environment, or being anti civil liberty.

 

And friend, try to understand I'm on your side! I don't love my beloved songs showing up in commercials for billion dollar companies. But I'm trying to give some advice to a friend who is upset. You still have energy, energy to do what's right. Just like Pete did, at 90+ years old! I think if Pete were here he would laugh about the commercial and remind you there are bigger fish to fry!

Use that energy, and anger if necessary, to get behind the causes Pete believed in.

 

The ads push JH in conjunction with Wal Mart. They are virulently anti union. Pete would not laugh it off.

 

I didn't see the add, so I apologize if my advice was misguided. I think Wal-Mart and its... focus on cheaper, imported goods... would be against the things I know Pete stood for. Your outrage is warranted. But the add is out there, its over. What isn't over, are the issues of hydrofracking for natural gas, building pipelines through the heart of America to bring crude oil, stamping out coal, growing renewable energy and a shift towards sustainable farming. These are all things the Pete Seeger I was familiar with would get involved in.

 

But we are not the EU....

 

The recording is still under copyright.

 

Also, do you think he'd be against the working man having reasonable access to tax assistance?

 

Perhaps not, but federal programs like VITA as well as other publicly-funded community organizations also provide free or low-cost tax preparation services to people with working incomes.

 

Issue of whether Pete's family should have allowed use of his recording in an ad is interesting.

Issue of what he would think or people here think of Walmart and tax preparation assistance is not.

 

A very important point.Many of these low income tax returns are so easy,the IRS even calls one of them...EZNote,though, many household don't qualify for them. Meanwhile,H&R Block average charge is $141.Liberty is $191.Jackson Hewitt,well,they don't disclose.Taking the low end Block average and saddle that to an income of $20,000 and that's a big bite to the week's take home pay of $207.
Is any of this interesting?Nope,boring as all get up.It's just that virtually every household in the US has to jump through the tax return hoop in the next three months. Fear,ignorance and convenience are all reasons why someone chooses a franchise tax preparer.
So the next time you hear Ol' Pete singing about working "all the live long day" on job that can pay a living wage and how that came to be,while many of the taxpayers coming into a franchise tax preparer do not earn that wage,know who pays for that ad.