--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Songs are funny things. They can slip…" description: "\"Songs are funny things. They can slip across borders. Proliferate in prisons. Penetrate hard shells. I always believed that the right song at the right..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/50e/pete-seeger-1942_always-believe_songs-are-funny-things-they-can-slip-acr_2520061.png" --- # Songs are funny things. They can slip across borders… ![“Songs are funny things. They can slip across borders. Proliferate in prisons. Penetrate hard shells. I always believed that the right song at the right moment could change history.” quote by Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/50e/pete-seeger-1942_always-believe_songs-are-funny-things-they-can-slip-acr_2520061.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/50e/pete-seeger-1942_always-believe_songs-are-funny-things-they-can-slip-acr_2520061.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/50e/pete-seeger-1942_always-believe_songs-are-funny-things-they-can-slip-acr_2520061.png) > “Songs are funny things. They can slip across borders. Proliferate in prisons. Penetrate hard shells. I always believed that the right song at the right moment could change history.” [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. Songs can cross cultural and physical boundaries, influencing societies and even altering historical events when timed right. **In simple terms:** Music can cross borders and affect history. Key Takeaway Use music strategically to inspire change. Themes culture influence history music Mood hopeful reflective Type inspirational political When to use this quote - protest movements - political rallies - prison rehabilitation - cross‑cultural festivals Key Concepts memetics social impact cultural diffusion Questions to Reflect On - How can you choose a song to inspire a specific change? - What risks arise when music is used politically? A Different Perspective Songs may be co‑opted for propaganda, limiting authentic impact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Borders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/borders/) [Funny things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny-things/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison/) [Right moment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-moment/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [Songs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/songs/) ## Related quotes > [There are a lot of aspects of filmmaking that I love, but one of my favorites is in post, finding the right song for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-prince-bythewood/there-are-a-lot-of-aspects-of-filmmaking-that-i-love-but-one-of-my/) [Gina Prince-Bythewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-prince-bythewood/) > [“Not many songs can fend off evil. But the right song with the right voice can be a weapon; anyone who's listened to music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/not-many-songs-can-fend-off-evil-but-the-right-song-with-the-right/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [Fashion and music have always played off each other and certainly do for me; I love both so much. But there are definitely those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harley-viera-newton/fashion-and-music-have-always-played-off-each-other-and-certainly-do/) [Harley Viera-Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harley-viera-newton/) > [If I've got a talent, it's for picking the right song at the right time for the right audience. And I can always get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/if-i-ve-got-a-talent-it-s-for-picking-the-right-song-at-the-right-2/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [If I've got a talent, it's for picking the right song at the right time for the right audience. And I can always seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/if-i-ve-got-a-talent-it-s-for-picking-the-right-song-at-the-right/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [All I want to do is write songs about funny characters I made up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-borland/all-i-want-to-do-is-write-songs-about-funny-characters-i-made-up/) [Wes Borland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-borland/) > [I think that it's so powerful for me to go see someone like Bridget Everett at Joe's Pub and watch her weave her songs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-hanna/i-think-that-it-s-so-powerful-for-me-to-go-see-someone-like-bridget/) [Kathleen Hanna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-hanna/) > [Songs are funny... They bring back memories, They tell stories, They remind us of people and They can save people's life. Yeah without music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/songs-are-funny-they-bring-back-memories-they-tell-stories-they/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Slim Shady is just the evil thoughts that come into my head. Things I shouldn't be thinking about. Not to be gimmicky, but people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eminem/slim-shady-is-just-the-evil-thoughts-that-come-into-my-head-things-i/) [Eminem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eminem/) > [People love fact-based songs, which is a very funny idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flansburgh/people-love-fact-based-songs-which-is-a-very-funny-idea/) [John Flansburgh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flansburgh/) > [“But, like Shakespeare, I too am often occupied with the pursuit of my creative endeavors and dealing with all aspects of life's mundane matters.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/but-like-shakespeare-i-too-am-often-occupied-with-the-pursuit-of-my/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [There's a lot of people I'd love to work with at some point, but I think the song has to be the right thing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-aldean/there-s-a-lot-of-people-i-d-love-to-work-with-at-some-point-but-i/) [Jason Aldean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-aldean/) > [Everybody loves a good Christmas song if you do it right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-carpenter/everybody-loves-a-good-christmas-song-if-you-do-it-right/) [Sabrina Carpenter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-carpenter/) > [I can write a song, but can't un-right my wrongs. I guess you live and learn, learn when the love is gone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-can-write-a-song-but-can-t-un-right-my-wrongs-i-guess-you-live-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“He was right. The annoying Disney song was right. The universe was too fucking small.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nenia-campbell/he-was-right-the-annoying-disney-song-was-right-the-universe-was-too/) [Nenia Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nenia-campbell/) ## 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 Always believe quotes > [I always believed that photography was subjective, interpretive and certainly did not represent the truth, but I did think that its status as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-ritchin/i-always-believed-that-photography-was-subjective-interpretive-and/) [Fred Ritchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-ritchin/) > [I've always believed that humans are good at heart. 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I always believed in equality, but there's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindy-west/the-messaging-campaign-that-stigmatized-the-term-feminist-definitely/) [Lindy West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindy-west/) > [I have always believed that anybody with a little guts and the desire to apply himself can make it, can make anything he wants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shoemaker/i-have-always-believed-that-anybody-with-a-little-guts-and-the-desire/) [Bill Shoemaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shoemaker/) > [So like any football or basketball coach, you always always believe you're going to win.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/so-like-any-football-or-basketball-coach-you-always-always-believe/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [I've always believed that a good twist is one that, when it is presented to the audience, half of them say, 'I saw that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damon-lindelof/i-ve-always-believed-that-a-good-twist-is-one-that-when-it-is/) [Damon Lindelof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damon-lindelof/) > [We hate guys who date more than one woman at a time. I've always believed that what's unacceptable in one sex should, by definition,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/candace-bushnell/we-hate-guys-who-date-more-than-one-woman-at-a-time-i-ve-always/) [Candace Bushnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/candace-bushnell/) > [Just always believe in yourself. "Champions adjust." It's a line I learned from Billie Jean King, and sometimes your dream adjusts. Be willing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/venus-williams/just-always-believe-in-yourself-champions-adjust-it-s-a-line-i/) [Venus Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/venus-williams/) > [The hardest thing to get is true emotion. I always believe you need to earn that with the audience. 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