Recorded in late summer of 1981,
Precious Friend, the second of
Arlo Guthrie and
Pete Seeger's live collaborations, is pretty much what you would expect.
Seeger is his usual folksy self, leading the crowd through a series of folk tunes ranging from the traditional African chant "Wimoweh (Mbube)" to
Harry Chapin's "Circles," while
Guthrie mixes his warm counterculture storytelling with selections of old ragtime, gospel, and folk. And while
Seeger's singalongs and
Guthrie's raps can wear a bit thin after a while, there are some genuine moments of both energy and hominess that are quite nice. Listening to
Pete Seeger is kind of like hearing a museum piece, which in his case is fine. On the other hand, tracks such as
Guthrie's cover of
Tom Paxton's "I'm Changing My Name to Chrysler" and especially "Neutron Bomb" have lost much of their initial charm with time. He's more successful with time-tested material such as the 1920s ragtime of "Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone," as well as
Blind Blake's "Run, Come See Jerusalem" and a trio of tunes by his father. Still, it's
Seeger's homage to his friend and fellow
Weaver,
Lee Hays, who had recently passed away, that is the album's true highlight. Included along with
the Weavers hits "Kisses Sweeter Than Wine" and "If I Had a Hammer" (co-written by
Seeger and
Hays) are a couple of wonderful
Hays originals -- the old union number "Raggedy, Raggedy" and the morbidly funny "In Dead Earnest," written shortly before his death.
Seeger and
Guthrie's sense of tradition may be warm and inviting in a live setting, but mixing a little more of what made
Guthrie's late-'70s work special with the folksier material would have made for a better recording. ~ Brett Hartenbach