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Letter To the Library of Congress
By Woody Guthrie
Dear Library of Congress
I just got the copy of my song book that you printed up. I got a carbon copy, and about a third carbon at that, but it is pretty fair, so I guess that’s all right. I just sort of wanted to write and say that it is about the neatest thing that ever had my name on it.
I want to sort of thank you and Alan Lomax for copying it. But you kept the original.
I would like to kiss it good bye while I’m at it. Is it handy there for congressmen and senators to come in and sing? I hope they bring their fiddles and guitars around and
hit off a few of the most radical tunes. They are awful easy to sing, and you can sing them drunk or sober, it dont matter, just a matter of personal choice. I tried them both ways. The senators, too. You can elect just about as good a one one way or the other. I’d like for them to specialy learn to sing #56, Looking for that New Deal Now, which is a good one for the boys to recollect once in a while between poker games and, #134, That Gal Of Mine Made a Horse Collar outta Me .. only you leave out the gal and put in a representative. 158 is the Capitol City Cyclone which shows where a big high wind got a loose and tore up jack, it cut down everything in the country, this song aint a prophecy, inasmuch as it is just something that goes on all of the time. They can sing this one
sort of in unison, if they aint union men, they can get around in some alley and hum
it to their self while nobody aint a looking. This is a sure nuff classy job of printing up this book, and it was done by the PWA, I dont guess the senators knew what was going on, or the president either, or they would of left off the copying of these books, and cut my original book down by about half. Thank goodness we got it through. True as the average. Woody
key ideas and deTails
Guthrie mentions his song “Looking for That New Deal Now.” Based on the title and what he says in the letter, what inferences can you make about the subject and tone of the song?
key ideas and deTails
How does Guthrie think the president and members of Congress feel about him and his music? How can you tell?
Close Reading Workshop 5 • Close Reading of Informational Texts in Social Studies/History 15
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