Arlo Guthrie
Folk | 2008Arlo Guthrie was born in Coney Island, Brooklyn, in 1947. He is the eldest son of singer/writer/philosopher Woody Guthrie and Marjorie Mazia Guthrie, a professional dancer with the Martha Graham Company. He grew up surrounded by dancers and musicians, including Pete Seeger, Ronnie Gilbert, Fred Hellerman and Lee Hays (The Weavers), Leadbelly, Cisco Houston, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Sonny Terry, and Brownie McGee, all of whom were significant influences on his musical career. Guthrie gave his first public performance at age 13 and quickly became involved in the music that was shaping the world during the 1960s. Guthrie’s career exploded in 1967 with the release of “Alice’s Restaurant.” The epic story-song premiered at the Newport Folk Festival and helped foster a new commitment to social consciousness and activism. Guthrie went on to star in the story-song’s 1969 Hollywood film version, Alice’s Restaurant, which was directed by Arthur Penn. With songs like “Alice’s Restaurant” too long for radio airplay and “Coming into Los Angeles” banned from many radio stations (but a favorite at the 1969 Woodstock Festival), Guthrie never had a “hit” in the usual sense, preferring to march to the beat of his own drum. Over the last five decades, he has toured throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.