Ronnie Gilbert: A Radical Life in Song

Ronnie Gilbert had a long and colorful career as a singer, actor, playwright, therapist, and independent woman. Her lifelong work for political and social change was central to her role as a performer. Raised in Depression-era New York City by leftist, working-class, secular Jewish parents, Gilbert is best known as a member of the Weavers, the quartet of the 1950s and '60s that survived the blacklist and helped popularize folk music in America. Her joyous contralto and vibrant stage presence enriched the celebrated group and propelled Gilbert into a second singing career with Holly Near in the 1980s and '90s. As an actor, Gilbert explored developmental theater with Joseph Chaikin and Peter Brook and wrote and performed in ensemble and solo productions across the United States and Canada.

Ronnie Gilbert brings the political, artistic, and social issues of the era alive through song lyrics and personal stories, traversing sixty years of collaborations in life and art that span the folk revival, the Cold War blacklist, primal therapy, the back-to-the-land movement, and a rich, multigenerational family story. Much more than a memoir, Ronnie Gilbert is a unique and engaging historical document for readers interested in music, theater, American politics, the women's movement, and left-wing activism.

"Ronnie Gilbert's life and new book are brilliant, inspirational, exuberant. She has brought me hope for fifty-five years now with no end in sight." Anne Lamott, author of Help, Thanks, Wow

"A passionate life, boldly lived by a social and artistic rebel. Brava!" Joan Steinau Lester, author of Fire in My Soul: Eleanor Holmes Norton

"Ronnie Gilbert was living history, and I'm so grateful she wrote this book. My only regret is that she didn't live to see it published, but knowing her, the journey was the thing." Janis Ian, Grammy Award winner and writer of Society's Child

Ronnie Gilbert was a founding member of the Weavers, along with Pete Seeger, Lee Hays, and Fred Hellerman. She became a performer and an activist on behalf of social change in the late 1940s. Her credits include the book and stage presentation Face to Face with the Most Dangerous Woman in America, detailing the life and work of Mother Jones; Legacy, a play based on the writings of Studs Terkel; and many recordings with the Weavers, Holly Near, and others.

List of Illustrations

Foreword by Holly Near

Acknowledgments

 

1. Songs Are Dangerous

2. Family

3. Making My Own Way

4. The Weavers

5. Moving On

6. Theater

7. Heading West

8. British Columbia

9. The Winter Project

10. The Weavers’ Last Concert

11. Women’s Music

12. Women in Black

13. Learning to Be Old

 

Index