--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But I decline to say who has ever…" description: "\"But I decline to say who has ever listened to them, who has written them, or other people who have sung them.\" — Pete Seeger" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/pete-seeger-1942_aggravation_but-i-decline-to-say-who-has-ever-listen_3228146.png" --- # But I decline to say who has ever listened to them, who… ![“But I decline to say who has ever listened to them, who has written them, or other people who have sung them.” quote by Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/pete-seeger-1942_aggravation_but-i-decline-to-say-who-has-ever-listen_3228146.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/pete-seeger-1942_aggravation_but-i-decline-to-say-who-has-ever-listen_3228146.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/pete-seeger-1942_aggravation_but-i-decline-to-say-who-has-ever-listen_3228146.png) > “But I decline to say who has ever listened to them, who has written them, or other people who have sung them.” [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker questions the relevance of knowing the creators of songs, implying that the music itself matters more than its authorship. **In simple terms:** Music's value lies beyond who wrote it. Key Takeaway Focus on the song's message, not its author. Themes music authorship artistic value Mood curious analytical Type commentary philosophical When to use this quote - listening to music - songwriting - education - media consumption Key Concepts cultural criticism intellectual property Questions to Reflect On - How does knowing a song's origin affect your appreciation? - Should creators be recognized? A Different Perspective It may dismiss the importance of credit and cultural context. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aggravation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aggravation/) [Decline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decline/) [Decline Say](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decline-say-6096271/) [Listened Written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/listened-written-6096270/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People Sung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-sung-925825/) [Say Listened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/say-listened-3706137/) [Written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/written/) [Written People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/written-people-370215/) ## Related quotes > [My parents were into The Mills Brothers, Perry Como, Ella Fitzgerald, Bing Crosby, Sarah Vaughn, and all those people sung the most wonderful songs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-murray/my-parents-were-into-the-mills-brothers-perry-como-ella-fitzgerald/) [Anne Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-murray/) > [Even as a young girl, if I had something to say, I was always listened to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-lee-o-donnell/even-as-a-young-girl-if-i-had-something-to-say-i-was-always-listened/) [Jamie-Lee O'Donnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-lee-o-donnell/) > [I’d been listening to men talk since I arrived in New York City. That’s what men like to do. Talk. Profess like experts. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-kushner/i-d-been-listening-to-men-talk-since-i-arrived-in-new-york-city-that/) [Rachel Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-kushner/) > [I decline to discuss, under compulsion, where I have sung, and who has sung my songs, and who else has sung with me, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/i-decline-to-discuss-under-compulsion-where-i-have-sung-and-who-has/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [Most books about Stanley Kubrick were written by people who never met him and gathered information from articles written by others who didn't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-harlan/most-books-about-stanley-kubrick-were-written-by-people-who-never-met/) [Jan Harlan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-harlan/) > [People no longer write letters. Lacking the leisure, and, for the most part, the ability, they dictate dispatches, and scribble messages. When you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-chandler-harris/people-no-longer-write-letters-lacking-the-leisure-and-for-the-most/) [Joel Chandler Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-chandler-harris/) > [I can't complain that I've had a public all through my writing life, but people don't quite know what I've written. People don't read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bennett/i-can-t-complain-that-i-ve-had-a-public-all-through-my-writing-life/) [Alan Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bennett/) > [Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bible/neither-be-ye-idolaters-as-were-some-of-them-as-it-is-written-the/) [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bible/) > ['Glee' is produced with three people and written by three people. In my mind, I don't believe there's any other show on television that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-reilly/glee-is-produced-with-three-people-and-written-by-three-people-in-my/) [Kevin Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-reilly/) > [There have been plenty of things that I've written that other people haven't cared about, but it hasn't stopped me from being a writer.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-o-malley/there-have-been-plenty-of-things-that-i-ve-written-that-other-people/) [Mike O'Malley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-o-malley/) > [I've definitely written people e-mails telling them I've loved their stories, but that seems more like a professional journalist thing to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/i-ve-definitely-written-people-e-mails-telling-them-i-ve-loved-their/) [Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/) > [There was a time when history was written by a few people, the winners. Now, history is written by all of us all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-mccormack/there-was-a-time-when-history-was-written-by-a-few-people-the-winners/) [Eric McCormack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-mccormack/) > [It is very annoying - things have been written by people who didn't know me at all or Princess Diana. They were written by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hasnat-khan/it-is-very-annoying-things-have-been-written-by-people-who-didn-t/) [Hasnat Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hasnat-khan/) > [Most science fiction seemed to be written for people who already liked science fiction; I wanted to write stories for anyone, anywhere, living at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/most-science-fiction-seemed-to-be-written-for-people-who-already/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [I think that if you look at all of the books that have ever been written about people working in the White House, they're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alyssa-mastromonaco/i-think-that-if-you-look-at-all-of-the-books-that-have-ever-been/) [Alyssa Mastromonaco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alyssa-mastromonaco/) ## More by Pete Seeger > [Honest songs aren't written for money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/honest-songs-aren-t-written-for-money/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [My father, Charles Seeger, got me into the Communist movement. He backed out around '38. I drifted out in the 50's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/my-father-charles-seeger-got-me-into-the-communist-movement-he-backed/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [In the sixties, during the Vietnam war, when anarchists and pacifists and socialists, Democrats and Republicans, decent-hearted Americans, all recoiled with horror at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/in-the-sixties-during-the-vietnam-war-when-anarchists-and-pacifists/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [Now somebody will ask me, Pete, how can you prove these songs really make a difference? And I have to confess I can't prove…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/now-somebody-will-ask-me-pete-how-can-you-prove-these-songs-really/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [The truth is a rabbit in a bramble patch. All you can do is circle around and say it's somewhere in there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/the-truth-is-a-rabbit-in-a-bramble-patch-all-you-can-do-is-circle/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [I was about 16 years old years when my father took me to a square dance festival in North Carolina. For the first time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/i-was-about-16-years-old-years-when-my-father-took-me-to-a-square/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [It was Rachel Carson's famous book 'Silent Spring' that got me involved with the environment. I read it in The New Yorker, in installments.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/it-was-rachel-carson-s-famous-book-silent-spring-that-got-me-involved/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [When you play the 12-string guitar, you spend half your life tuning the instrument and the other half playing it out of tune.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/when-you-play-the-12-string-guitar-you-spend-half-your-life-tuning/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [Folks out in the country couldn't afford to pay for anybody else to make music. They had to make their own. So the peasantry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/folks-out-in-the-country-couldn-t-afford-to-pay-for-anybody-else-to/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [If there's something wrong, speak up!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/if-there-s-something-wrong-speak-up/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [This world is so full of hypocrisy, the only way you can be honest is to be a hermit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/this-world-is-so-full-of-hypocrisy-the-only-way-you-can-be-honest-is/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [There is a big, beautiful world that could be destroyed by selfishness and foolishness. We musicians have it within our power to help save…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/there-is-a-big-beautiful-world-that-could-be-destroyed-by-selfishness/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [And the people in the houses All went to the University And they got put in boxes Little boxes all the same, Little boxes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/and-the-people-in-the-houses-all-went-to-the-university-and-they-got/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [A good song reminds us what we're fighting for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/a-good-song-reminds-us-what-we-re-fighting-for/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [Most conservatives just want to turn back the clock to a time before the income tax - 100 years or so. I would like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/most-conservatives-just-want-to-turn-back-the-clock-to-a-time-before/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) [Explore all 196 Pete Seeger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) ## More Aggravation quotes > [As the first Member of Congress from western Washington to serve on the House Agriculture Committee in over 50 years, I am proud to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-larsen/as-the-first-member-of-congress-from-western-washington-to-serve-on/) [Rick Larsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-larsen/) > [I really never felt any tremendous aggravation or separation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chita-rivera/i-really-never-felt-any-tremendous-aggravation-or-separation/) [Chita Rivera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chita-rivera/) > [It is time to end the discrimination against people who need treatment for chemical addiction. It is time for Congress to deal with our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-ramstad/it-is-time-to-end-the-discrimination-against-people-who-need/) [Jim Ramstad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-ramstad/) > [Mothers ... would do anything to steer their daughter the right way. It is frustrating beyond measure for them when a daughter screams, 'You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-flanagan/mothers-would-do-anything-to-steer-their-daughter-the-right-way-it-is/) [Caitlin Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-flanagan/) > [Holidays are in no sense an alternative to the congestion and bustle of the cities and work. Quite the contrary. People look to escape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baudrillard/holidays-are-in-no-sense-an-alternative-to-the-congestion-and-bustle/) [Jean Baudrillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baudrillard/) > [Nobody wanted to touch Decline III when they found out what it was about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penelope-spheeris/nobody-wanted-to-touch-decline-iii-when-they-found-out-what-it-was/) [Penelope Spheeris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penelope-spheeris/) > [I consider my mom and all my sisters my friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexa-vega/i-consider-my-mom-and-all-my-sisters-my-friends/) [Alexa Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexa-vega/) > [Well, for starters, we have to do more to create demand for new technologies that can reduce our dependence on foreign oil and environmental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherwood-boehlert/well-for-starters-we-have-to-do-more-to-create-demand-for-new/) [Sherwood Boehlert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherwood-boehlert/) > [By failing to keep their end of the bargain, the Bush administration would allow New Jersey projects to deteriorate and make New Jersey highways…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-menendez/by-failing-to-keep-their-end-of-the-bargain-the-bush-administration/) [Bob Menendez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-menendez/) > [The first Decline I did was out of sheer love and appreciation for the music. In 1977, it was more about bands, because punk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penelope-spheeris/the-first-decline-i-did-was-out-of-sheer-love-and-appreciation-for/) [Penelope Spheeris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penelope-spheeris/) > [ON the decline of the Roman power, about five centuries after Christ, the countries of Northern Europe were left almost destitute of a national…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bulfinch/on-the-decline-of-the-roman-power-about-five-centuries-after-christ/) [Thomas Bulfinch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bulfinch/) > [“He is being nibbled to death by ducks. --More Later, Less the Same”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-tate/he-is-being-nibbled-to-death-by-ducks-more-later-less-the-same/) [James Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-tate/) > [I suspect the psychological pressure associated with that crisis caused the first mental blackout I had ever suffered. It contributed to a deterioration in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamisese-mara/i-suspect-the-psychological-pressure-associated-with-that-crisis/) [Kamisese Mara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamisese-mara/) > [So if waiting is an aggravation, it is at least partly because we do not like being reminded of our limits. We like doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/so-if-waiting-is-an-aggravation-it-is-at-least-partly-because-we-do/) [Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/) > [What you feel spiritually. I think a lot of that has to do with it. If you have no spiritual life, chances are everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-ditka/what-you-feel-spiritually-i-think-a-lot-of-that-has-to-do-with-it-if/) [Mike Ditka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-ditka/) [Browse all 144 Aggravation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aggravation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "But I decline to say who has ever listened to them, who has written them, or other people who have sung them.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Pete Seeger" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/but-i-decline-to-say-who-has-ever-listened-to-them-who-has-written/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Aggravation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/but-i-decline-to-say-who-has-ever-listened-to-them-who-has-written/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/pete-seeger-1942_aggravation_but-i-decline-to-say-who-has-ever-listen_3228146.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/pete-seeger-1942_aggravation_but-i-decline-to-say-who-has-ever-listen_3228146.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/pete-seeger-1942_aggravation_but-i-decline-to-say-who-has-ever-listen_3228146.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“But I decline to say who has ever listened to them, who has written them, or other people who have sung them.” — Pete Seeger", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Pete Seeger", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "But I decline to say who...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/but-i-decline-to-say-who-has-ever-listened-to-them-who-has-written/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/but-i-decline-to-say-who-has-ever-listened-to-them-who-has-written/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```