Talk:This Land Is Your Land

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Different Lyrics[edit]

The Woody Guthrie page lists original lyrics quite different from original lyrics mentioned on this page.

  • The version on the Woody Guthrie page are the same lyrics found in the external link to the 1940 manuscript, but the 1945 version quoted in this article is apparently the first published version. Maybe we should merge the info? Silly Dan 00:04, 2005 Feb 2 (UTC)

Added new section titled "Original 1940 lyrics" Rochkind (talk) 16:38, 27 August 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Links and New York Island[edit]

There are a couple of concerns about my recent edits here: First, I added links to Redwood for "Redwood forest", Long Island for "New York Island", and Rocky Mountains for "Canadian mountain" in the Guthrie lyrics, but I'm not sure if those are the most appropriate articles to link.

  • I'm sure "the New York Island" has to mean Manhattan, and I changed it accordingly.--Pharos 22:19, 6 Dec 2004 (UTC)
    • It seems to refer to Staten Island in the 1940 manuscript mentioned above. I'd keep it as Manhattan, though.Silly Dan 00:04, 2005 Feb 2 (UTC)
      • If it refers to Staten Island, why keep it as Manhattan? We were always taught in school that it referred to Long Island, so this really does need to be investigated and sourced. – Beginning 19:23, Feb 10, 2005 (UTC)
  • I would say that he means Manhattan. He says "The New York Island", not "Long Island" or "Staten Island". Manhattan is the County of New York. In the times before Brooklyn and the other boroughs became part of New York City, NYC was considered more of an Island. Also, while I'm sure that he means Manhattan, as I put in, folk songs tend to change over time and place and while he probably meant Manhattan most of the time, he might have sung it to mean Staten Island at times. Fanra 17:57, 22 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]
    • While the area encompassed by New York County indeed does coincide largely with the land mass of Manhattan Island (the county also includes Roosevelt Island, for one), it is, after all, Manhattan Island, not New York Island. So he doesn't sing "Long Island" or "Staten Island;" he also doesn't sing "Manhattan Island," which he easily could, since it has the same number of syllables as the New York island. --anon.68.161.215.251 (talk) 22:53, 10 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]
      • Well, in 1940 Woody was living in the lower east side of Manhattan around the time he wrote the song. But in 1944 when he recorded the song he was living on Mermaid Avenue, Coney Island (an island itself!) Long Island. The specific point of the line, noting the breadth of America, is kind of moot seeing as even long island is not our eastern most point, was maine not made for you and me? I don't think there's a real answer to be found here, maybe the best idea is to just link to New York City. --Dannygutters (talk · contribs)

With regard to Staten Island, which if you look at the original paper version he penned (found this on the internet via a google search. I have posted it to my FB page, as Wikipedia will not let me post the original link, which is from darrylholter.files.wordpress.com. You may see the image I copied from Darrylholter. This is his image and I do not own any copyright. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10214785021951795&set=a.1190799722808&type=3&theater ), it was Staten Island, as originally written. When he came to New York City, he stayed with a couple, don't remember who, and they gave him free food and shelter. They lived in Staten Island. This information was obtained from an NPR show about Woody Guthrie. As I recall, he stayed with this couple, who were his well known (as entertainers I believe) friends, staying a two weeks or so before he moved on. Epotereiko (talk) 01:10, 21 October 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Canadian Lyrics[edit]

Secondly, I don't know the origin of the Canadian lyrics -- hopefully my excerpt isn't a copyright violation. Silly Dan 00:54, 2004 Nov 15 (UTC)

  • Added the attribution. Silly Dan 23:53, 2005 Jan 15 (UTC)

Canadian lyrics by The Travellors .in 1955. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2605:8D80:404:4A0:19D:A080:3B49:A965 (talk) 20:45, 30 June 2019 (UTC)[reply]

Original Lyrics[edit]

According to the best available information, the song, as written by Woody did include the "no tresspassing" and "relief office lyrics". Both Arlo Guthrie and the Woody Guthrie Foundation list this version on their official websites. I removed some of the previous author's comments about alleged original publishing (listed as both as 1940 and 1945) as I can find no references to support this. I have been told that these last two verses were (and still are) often struck from publishings of the the song on objection by an editor offended by Woody's political sentiments. However, I have yet to find any solid documentation of these rumors so I will not add them to the article unless I can find a reference or two.--DrFunkenstien 04:52, 9 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

The "no trespassing" verse is included on volume 1 of the Asch Recordings, so I don't see how there can be any controversy as to its authenticity.
"Was a big high wall there that tried to stop me,
sign was painted, said 'Private Property',
but on the backside it didn't say nothing
This land was made for you and me." ~track 14
¯\(°_o)/¯—Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.197.119.41 (talk • contribs)
The original handwritten manuscript is reprinted in Elizabeth Partridge, This Land Was Made for You and Me: The Life & Songs of Woody Guthrie (New York: Viking, 2002), 85. It contains the two less know verses. I was going to upload a scanned copy to the Commons, but I'm not sure about its copyright status.--Dbolton (talk) 00:45, 17 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Google Search[edit]

  • Its rather odd that this page comes up first in a search for "wikipeadia". Perhaps it needs be slightly more polished, if this is a common result?

jib jab?[edit]

couldn't the jib jab lyrics go on thier own page? woody guthrie is probably spinning in his grave.

I doubt he is spinning - chuckling if anything. It's folk music and changing the words as needed is part of the process. But still I agree - they need their own page, though at the moment they are of equal importance 20 years from now they will be less significant while woody will endure.

I agree with the original poster in that if the full lyrics of the parody are to be in the Wikipedia they belong on the JibJab page. But more concerningly they are copyrighted and seem to be in excess of fair use here, as they are quoted in full without any real commentary on the lyrics, whereas in the context of the analysis here the Woody Guthrie lyrics are probably fair use. So I have taken out the parody lyrics. If you think they should be put back in, please put in on a JibJab related page—and at a minimum ensure that it is fair use by only using a small excerpt or by providing more analysis—although I think there would be little marginal informative value to such analysis. NTK 08:37, 7 Jan 2005 (UTC)
A note in followup, actually the Woody Guthrie lyrics do not need to be fair use at all, since they have been established to be in the public domain, whereas the parody is clearly copyrighted and following Wikipedia convention probably should not be quoted in full. In any event if you disagree with actions please discuss that here. I do think that the brief mention of the JibJab parody here is appropriate, but not the whole transcript. NTK 08:39, 7 Jan 2005 (UTC)
Speaking of lyrics, should the Canadian version be going on the page? Its an American patriotic song, not Canadian. 68.239.239.47 04:31, 12 Jan 2005 (UTC)
Well, I think they should be there (I wouldn't have added them otherwise). And with those lyrics, it is a Canadian patriotic song (just as God Save The Queen becomes My Country, 'Tis of Thee or the national anthem of Liechtenstein).Silly Dan 22:37, 2005 Jan 15 (UTC)
Re: Jib jab? Exactly what I was thinking. The parodies, The Simpsons lyrics, all should go to their own page - this is a great song and deserves better. Todd 12:58, 30 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I have the Irish version of the song on tape - it's fun to listen to :) PMA 10:26, 3 Feb 2005 (UTC)

Can anyone tell me how this is a "patriotic" song? besides the fact that it's been misused and abused by American patriots?

It is not a particularly patriotic song. I was taught that the song was written about the Great Depression and all of that stuff. If it was really written in 1940, could someone please provide a reference? I was under the impression that it was written well before then.
There's a link to what is called the original 1940 manuscript. Can you recall any source that gave you your impression? - DavidWBrooks 14:18, 23 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The "patriotic song" banner should definitely be removed. The song was written as a response to "God Bless America" and has nothing to do with "patriotism." As a lifelong socialist, Woody Guthrie would not have considered himself a "patriot" but a man looking out for the people, regardless of which nation they inhabited. Akulaalfa 06:29, 5 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Socialists are patriots too. -- Samuel Wantman 06:46, 5 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Regardless of what Guthrie intended, the song has become a de-facto "unofficial national anthem" for a portion of the American population, just as "God Bless America" has done for another portion. Singing it says something along the lines of "I love America, but that doesn't mean I love all the stuff the establishment says I have to love." - DavidWBrooks 13:08, 5 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]
The song may have been abused by certain parties and twisted into a song about "patriotism," but that does not change the fact that it has nothing to do with nationalism. Socialists are not patriots--socialists view patriotism and nationalism as archaic ways of dividing people. "Anthem," definitely--"national," definitely not. Akulaalfa 18:33, 5 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Again, regardless of how Guthrie or other people regard the song, it *is* regarded as an unofficial national anthem by a huge number of people. This article should reflect that. - DavidWBrooks 23:32, 5 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Is there any reason to mention this JibJab parody twice in the article? "Modern usage" should be sufficient, the "there is also" part in the parody section is not needed. Maybe move it to parody, but the upper part is clearly better written. Ulkomaalainen 15:28, 13 October 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Copyright status[edit]

Hello, Is "This land is your land" copyrighted & if so who owns the copyright? Also do you know if it is licenced under a GDFL compatible licence? The reason I ask is because we have it on wikisource & it has been proposed for deletion as a [Land is Your Land copyright violation.] AllanHainey 12:36, 13 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The aftermath of the JibJab copyright fiasco was the discovery that the tune was never under copyright as that had been taken from the Carter Family[[1]] and the lyrics copyright from 1945 had never been renwed [[2]]. In addition Guthrie at on time appended a copyright notice to the song that read: "This song is Copyrighted in U.S., under Seal of Copyright # 154085, for a period of 28 years, and anybody caught singin’ it without our permission, will be mighty good friends of ourn, cause we don’t give a dern. Publish it. Write it. Sing it. Swing to it. Yodel it. We wrote it, that’s all we wanted to do." ~~Brother William 2nd May 2006 23:03(UTC)
Yeah, i think it's quite ridiculous that jibjab would be sued, copyright or not, since parody is protected. -User:Nathew
No, it's just ironic that they would be sued by the company that allegedly owned a song against the "evil" of private property.

The Guthrie song is not a parody so that reference above is not relevant. As with all vocal music, there are two aspects to the question of copyright - the music and the lyrics. The music is a variation of a folk tune, and thus resides in the public domain. The lyrics, on the other hand, were definitely written by Guthrie. Notwithstanding he was a socialist who may not have believed in such things, the lyrics would have come under protection of the Copyright Act, 1976, whose effects were retroactive to 1900 - except works for which copyright protection had already expired. However, by the time the Act was passed in 1976, the song had become so upbiquitous, in both domestic and international versions (Canadian, British, Irish, Scottish, Australian, etc.), that it might have become too commonly known and used to qualify for copyright protection. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:645:C300:C1C:61BB:A9D3:225:727 (talk) 04:02, 29 September 2018 (UTC)[reply]

This land is made by you and me[edit]

Along FDR's "Nation of immigrants", I believe that this song is not restrictive. On PBS "American Experience" and "Sesame Street", Pete Seeger singing along with children and Peter, Paul and Mary with chorists, it's a welcome song of being together.

Takima 12:01, 4 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Trying to find history about this land is your land[edit]

What is the real story of Tis Land is your land?

Here's my understanding, "This Land is Your Land" is left-wing protest song written as a counter to self-infatuated, pro-establishment songs like "God Bless America". It's aim was to express a new kind of patriotism, a patriotism with almost socialist values, that emphasised the common identity of the Amerian people aswell as protesting against the selfish and unpatriotic nature of private property and the disgraceful conditions many Americans were forced to live under. Considering all this, it's really quite sickening to hear Republicans misusing a song written by a socialist to express his socialist convictions.Nwe 09:57, 14 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Traditional Song?[edit]

According to the 2005 boxed set, "This Machine Kills Fascists", this is a traditional song and was arranged by Woody Guthrie (i.e. not actually written by him). Does anyone know if this is accurate, and should the page be updated to reflect this? Adam McMaster 09:02, 6 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

First I've ever heard of it. He owned the copyright. - DavidWBrooks 10:09, 6 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Interestingly, I have a record containing a cover of "This Land Is Your Land" from 1963, "Trini Lopez At PJ's." It lists the song's authors as "Boone-Gold" and the publishing is "Chappell & Co., Inc. ASCAP. Anybody know who these mysterious Boone & Gold people are, who claim to have written the song? What's the story there? - Nick McGaw, 17 June 2007

"In modern times..."[edit]

In this article, someone wrote: "In modern times, the first verse is often sung as:" and then proceeds to list the lyrics to the Canadian version of the song, not a modernized American version, which they seem to think it is. I'm an American, but when I was in elementary school in the mid 1980s, I remember our music teacher telling us that there was a Canadian version of the song, and those are the lyrics. The places mentioned in the verse obviously refer to Canada, not the United States. 66.251.84.28 17:21, 20 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]

  • The Canadian version is listed later in the article anyway: I'm removing that "in modern times" bit. —Silly Dan (talk) 23:36, 20 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Patriotic Music?[edit]

Woody Guthrie did not intend this to be a patriotic song. It is a protest song. This should be taken out. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 66.195.9.71 (talk) 19:59, 18 March 2007 (UTC).[reply]

What should be taken out? The article is quite clear about Guthrie's intentions. - DavidWBrooks 20:35, 18 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • It depends on what you mean by patriotic. According to Patriotism, it can mean, "Patriotism covers such attitudes as: pride in its achievements and culture, the desire to preserve its character and the basis of the culture, and identification with other members of the nation". Woody Guthrie was patriotic in his way, which differs from the mainstream way but is quite valid. Also, despite what he might have wished, the song has become a patriotic song, witness it being used by G.H.W. Bush. I would guess that Guthrie would have protested strongly against him using it. Fanra 17:50, 22 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]

No he wouldn't, why else would he write: "This song is Copyrighted in U.S., under Seal of Copyright # 154085, for a period of 28 years, and anybody caught singin it without our permission, will be mighty good friends of ourn, cause we don't give a dern. Publish it. Write it. Sing it. Swing to it. Yodel it. We wrote it, that's all we wanted to do." —Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.68.155.56 (talk) 11:01, 30 August 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Popular Parody[edit]

A popular parody among schoolchildren is

This land is my land


This land ain't your land
I got a shotgun
And you don't got one
I'll blow your head
If you don't go away


This land was made just for me

I heard Pete Seeger sing this verse at a children's concert at my elementarty school in Brooklyn NY in the mid 1960s. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.228.240.57 (talk • contribs) 18:40, 24 May 2007

I attended elementary school in Los Angeles in the 1970s, and everyone knew that version well. (Our version began "This land is my land, and only my land", but was otherwise identical to yours.) If you sang it on the other side of the country a decade earlier, that suggests that this parody may have been extremely widespread.
Perhaps it should be mentioned in the article? I did a quick internet search to see if I could learn its source. This parody appears on the internet in many places (including at least two people who claim they wrote it in the 1980s -- which is obviously false). But I didn't find anything reliable. — Lawrence King (talk) 06:24, 13 December 2009 (UTC)[reply]
It was in the article at one point, when we were swimming in parodies and unofficial versions, and if I recall correctly was removed as part of a clean-up. It really needs some sort of good source, or else it will open the parody floodgates. - DavidWBrooks (talk) 13:36, 13 December 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Whose land?[edit]

When I hear the song I always think of the Native Americans the land was stolen from. Does no else find it an embarrassing song? I can imagine Nazi children singing it to each other in Poland after it was cleared of Slavs. There is something latently unpleasant about the song that is brought out in the other versions. Littlest Plum 23:26, 10 November 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, some people can find unpleasant undertones in almost anything. - DavidWBrooks 13:11, 11 November 2007 (UTC)[reply]
This is a very interesting point, and I don't wish to dismiss it so cynically as DavidWBrooks did.
Gurthrie, in his Library of Congress recordings (which I happen to be currently listening to) spoke at some length about how he made it a point (as/since a young man? something like that) to befriend "Indians and colored boys" (while playing hookie from school).
Anyway, his point was that the idea that a land belongs to anyone but those who live there is a lie. That point could perhaps be seen as retroactively sympathetic to the indigenous people who lost their land, but I don't think that was really the idea. Guthry was a socialist: this song is about the future, not the past: it's about the end of ownership itself. (P.S. eye <3 Woody!) --MQDuck 06:09, 28 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]
folk singer Fred Holstein adds a verse to this song from the POV of american indians. I think mqduck is correct here in that the song is a hopeful anthem for the future commenting on equality, rather than a possessive claim of the land itself. I don't think folks in Woody's genneration really had much of a native american sensitivity so retroactively it sounds somewhat inhumane.--Dannygutters (talk · contribs)
I once asked a high school class about this song, and the only student who hadn't been taught it in elementary school was from Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo. —JerryFriedman (Talk) 06:08, 16 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]
Is Fred Holstein's verse this one?
This land is your land, but it once was my land,
Until we sold you Manhattan Island.
You pushed our Nations to the reservations;
This land was stole by you from me.
From http://www.peteseeger.net/thisland.htm . It doesn't give an author. —JerryFriedman (Talk) 06:14, 16 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Far from making a "very interesting point", MQDuck, LittlestPlum merely expressed his very personal and subjective (and uncommon arguably for a good reason) POV of the song's lyrics, and more importantly, expressed it in an inappropriate venue. It maybe be some 5 years on now, but since no one else ever bothered to point it out, I figured I'd go ahead and mention this fact...if at least as a reminder to any future posters intending to spew their personal ideologies here, in a discussion page reserved for matters of article editing. Plus, being as LittlestP appears to be Australian, I doubt if he ever has any reason to be "always thinking about "Native Americans". Give me a break. The questionable authenticity of his motives is a larger reason why I feel the post needs to be called out. 66.233.214.191 (talk) 22:38, 4 June 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Actually, I came to this page precisely to weigh the point brought up by Littlest Plum and understand this song more deeply. I have always felt that same bother, (and I am also not natively from the USA,) and I wanted to illuminate it and work on it. The point brought forth by LP is only to further the study of this song, and there is nothing wrong in sharing and exploring it. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Queenred (talk • contribs) 21:13, 4 October 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Freedom Highway verse[edit]

Many songbooks include the freedom highway verse, and this verse was sung in many of the later covers. Arlo claims Woody taught it to him. In fact, this is an original Woody Guthrie verse as it appears in one of his many self published song books. The song (as "This Land") appears in the April 1945 songbook "Book One: Ten Songs." Here are the lyrics including the freedom highway verse.


CHORUS: THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND THIS LAND IS MY LAND.
FROM THE REDWOOD FOREST TO THE NEW YORK ISLAND
THE CANADIAN MOUNTAIN TO THE GULF STREAM WATERS
THIS LAND IS MADE FOR YOU AND ME.

AS I GO WALKING THIS RIBBON OF HIGHWAY
I SEE ABOVE ME THIS ENDLESS SKYWAY
AND ALL AROUND ME THE WIND KEEPS SAYING:
THIS LAND IS MADE FOR YOU AND ME.

I ROAM AND I RAMBLE AND I FOLLOW MY FOOTSTEPS
TILL I COME TO THE SANDS OF HER MINERAL DESERT
THE MIST IS LIFTING AND THE VOICE IS SAYING:
THIS LAND IS MADE FOR YOU AND ME.

WHERE THE WIND IS BLOWING I GO A STROLLING
THE WHEAT FIELD WAVING AND THE DUST A ROLLING
THE FOG IS LIFTING AND THE WIND IS SAYING
THIS LAND IS MADE FOR YOU AND ME.

NOBODY LIVING CAN EVER STOP ME
AS I GO WALKING MY FREEDOM HIGHWAY
NOBODY LIVING CAN MAKE ME TURN BACK
THIS LAND IS MADE FOR YOU AND ME.

Facsimile, Typed out version

Keep in mind that Woody probably never sang the same song the same way twice anyway.

--Parsa (talk) 16:00, 4 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

"some sources claim"[edit]

I changed this verbiage at the top to "one source erroneously claims." I thought the previous rendering, "However, some sources claim" contradicted the sentence above. But what I really should have done, and didn't do, was to go and find the sheet music and compare it (or find recordings of both Carter Family songs, and determine the truth myself by ear.

I guess I'm saying that I took a guess. I'm changing it back. Alan Canon (talk) 20:24, 10 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I have made a more conservative edit, revising "some sources claim" to "one source claims." It is an improvement to the article, because it is more verifiably accurate. It also "takes the curse off" the seeming contradiction of the paragraph's lead sentence. I think the average reader's experience of reading will be improved.

Wow, I just had a discussion with myself on a Wikipedia Talk page. Do I need to get a life, or what? Alan Canon (talk) 20:28, 10 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

two verses?[edit]

A section of this article is called "Confirmation of two other verses" (which I just changed from "other two"—I imagine it's short for "the other two", but "two other" seems a lot more natural). However, that section now deals with three or four verses: two versions of "trespassing", "freedom highway", and "relief office". If the section confirms that Guthrie wrote all of them, the number should probably be changed. Also, it says, "A 1945 pamphlet which omitted the last two verses has caused some question as to whether the original song did in fact contain the full text. The original manuscript confirms both of these verses." But it's not clear which are "the last two verses". The last two mentioned in this section? —JerryFriedman (Talk) 06:04, 16 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Kill off all the other versions?[edit]

The number of other national/racial/ethnic altneratives is getting awfully long; somebody adds a new one every couple of weeks. (It's pretty easy to make your own version, I guess.) It's in danger of turning into a miscellany list, if it hasn't done so already.

I think we could kill them all and just write a paragraph or two saying that many variations have been written using other geographic sites, expressing solidarity for countries, etc. Does anybody else agree? Disagree? (I am going to kill the Waterboys version, since we have a couple other Irish ones already) - DavidWBrooks 22:13, 4 February 2009 (UTC)

Any info on his financial life[edit]

Is there any info on his financial life? Did he give concerts? Work as a singer through a corporation? Record & sell his songs? Did he live & die poor? Stars4change (talk) 05:40, 16 May 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I'm sure he died without a possession in the world, gave away all his records for free, and only ever gave free concerts. Otherwise he would have been a hypocrite. Hanxu9 (talk) 19:04, 18 July 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Indian lyrics[edit]

Where are the lyrics for the "Indian" version from? I grew up in India and I have never heard this version. If no can come up with a citation I suggest deleting this part. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Cdeuskar (talk • contribs) 05:41, 12 July 2009 (UTC)[reply]

This Land is your Land, This Land is my Land,

From the Himalayas down to Cape Comorin.

From Bombay city to old Calcutta,

This Land is made for you and me.

Children's Variation[edit]

A common variation on this when I was about 10 years old, my school mates would sing the following: this land is my land, it isn't your land From California to the New York Island From the Redwood Forest to the Gulf Stream waters This land was made for only me.

and so on with verses about various amounts of violence to be used in typical childlike fashion. The other variations on this song listed on this page I am less familiar with. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.203.157.85 (talk) 04:21, 20 August 2009 (UTC)[reply]

This Land Is Your Land quoted by George McGovern[edit]

I read the article but I didn't see any mention of George McGovern quoting this song when he accepted the Democratic nomination for president in 1972. Should this be added somewhere?

Canadian patriotic song[edit]

I've added Category:Canadian patriotic songs as this is a highly notable, and still popular, patriotic tune in Canada, noting in my edit comment there are more Canadian-version verses; I'll see if I can find them. I note the objections above in some section about its inclusion; but where else to put it? - "This Land Is Your Land (Canada)" or "This Land Is Your Land (Canadian version) seems unnecessary, especially given this is originally a Woody Guthrie song and not traditional; perhaps the Cdn patriotic song category could go on the redirect....It's so ingrained in Canadian education that it's sometimes assumed it's Canadian in origin (certainly the Travellers' lyrics are); Red River Valley is in the opposite direction, originally a tune of Metis exile, the expulsion/resettlement after the US annexation of the region from the 1818 Treaty giving most of it to the US....but that's another matter, just a side-comment. Maybe taht redlink I just made could be a redirect to the section on this article containing the Canadian version?Skookum1 (talk) 21:39, 1 December 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Ludlow copyright[edit]

I find the Ludlow copyright to be suspicious to begin with, because of its date (1956, just around when Woody Guthrie was hospitalized at Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital for Huntington's disease). Did Ludlow, Inc., take advantage of this psychiatric malady to coerce Guthrie into giving them publication rights? If so, it might have been bad form to go about copyrighting the song in the first place, as it might not have been what Guthrie would've wanted before taking ill. — Rickyrab | Talk 03:54, 7 December 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Communism[edit]

In the article is this:

Guthrie varied the lyrics over time, sometimes including more overtly political verses in line with his sympathetic views of communism,[2] than appear in recordings or publications.

The reference is this: Spivey, Christine A. This Land is Your land, This Land is My Land: Folk Music, Communism, and the Red Scare as a Part of the American Landscape. The Student Historical Journal 1996–1997, Loyola University New Orleans, 1996.

The reference does not prove that Woodie Guthrie had "sympathetic views of communism". Therefore, that claim should be removed from the article. --Timeshifter (talk) 04:13, 25 February 2012 (UTC)[reply]

From that article "A year before Guthrie had 'joined hands' with the C.P." However it might be better just to say left wing.--Salix (talk): 08:30, 25 February 2012 (UTC)[reply]
The reference in that article for that is:
Page 164. Guthrie, Woody. Pastures of Plenty: A Self-Portrait (New York, 1990).
http://books.google.com/books?id=SXZ969sJ53oC
http://books.google.com/books?id=SXZ969sJ53oC&q=joined+hands - pulls up page 164.
Sounds like Popular Front stuff to me.
The last part of the sentence in the Wikipedia article should be removed, and that leaves this:
Guthrie varied the lyrics over time, sometimes including more overtly political verses.
Anything else at this point is speculation. The 2 references, and many other articles, shows he worked with various progressive, unionist, liberal, socialist, and communist groups. --Timeshifter (talk) 03:37, 26 February 2012 (UTC)[reply]
Agreed. Communist had a different meaning back in the 1930s than the exclusively-extremist form it does today. It's more akin to "progressive" these days. Hanxu9 (talk) 19:08, 18 July 2012 (UTC)[reply]
Disagree. You are completely off-base. Guthrie did not publicly say he was a Communist Party member, but he wrote for the party newspaper and made U-turns in 1939 (to be anti-war) and 1941 (to be pro-war again) in sync with Communist policy, and he frequently expressed admiration for Joseph Stalin. See the Wikipedia Woody Guthrie article . This is not in dispute. See the Klein bio or the JSTOR "Woody Guthrie's `Union War'", Will Kaufman, Hungarian Journal of English and American Studies (HJEAS), Spring-Fall 2010,

Vol. 16, No. 1/2, pp. 109-124, http://www.jstor.com/stable/43921756. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Editeur24 (talk • contribs) 19:24, 20 January 2021 (UTC)[reply]

50-State Version[edit]

I remember hearing a modified, fifty state version in the 1960s:

... From Blue Hawaii to the New York island,
From Mount McKinley to the Gulf Stream waters ...

Doesn't quite work that way, does it? WHPratt (talk) 19:34, 11 April 2013 (UTC)[reply]

External links modified[edit]

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External links modified[edit]

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I have just modified one external link on This Land Is Your Land. Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:

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Cheers.—InternetArchiveBot (Report bug) 01:23, 15 December 2017 (UTC)[reply]

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