Alastair Moock tips his cap to Woody Guthrie - A.R.T. 5/16

Children's music, you say? That's not suitable for adults! Well, hold that thought. Johnny Cash made children's music, and Woody Guthrie did too. In fact, you could argue that real folk music should have an appeal to all age groups. After all, little folks are folks too. Guthrie's "Bling Blang" and "Howdi Do" were songs I sung to my kids, and after hearing Moock sing Guthrie's "Mail Myself to You," you might be singing them to yours too.

"I grew up on Pete Seeger, The Weavers, Arlo Guthrie, etc, so I was pretty steeped in Woody's music since I was little," says Moock. "But it was when I read his memoir Bound For Glory in high school that I really fell in deep. His lyrics — and prose — felt somehow intimate in a way that astonished me. He was funny, irreverent, straight-forward, unwilling to give or take b.s. It wasn't until later in my life that I realized how many other people out there felt the same way about Woody – like he was talking directly to them. Reaching people so deeply is a pretty rare talent in any art form, and Woody's still managing to do it nearly 50 years after his death."

The list of amazing musicians who feel the same grows and grows--from Dylan to Springsteen to Billy Bragg, and guys like Jeff Tweedy and Alastair Moock. There must be more to examine in this Guthrie figure than just good old-fashioned friendly folk music. But it might not be obvious at first--and this is where the digging begins.

Watch Moock perform a nice rendition of his original tribute too Woody Guthrie, "Woody's Lament" here:

Alastair Moock
After the 5/16 7:30 Woody Sez performance
A.R.T
Loeb Drama Center
64 Brattle Street
Cambridge, MA 02138