--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A folk song is what's wrong and how to…" description: "\"A folk song is what's wrong and how to fix it or it could be who's hungry and where their mouth is or who's out of work and where the job is or who's b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07b/woody-guthrie-11022_broke_a-folk-song-is-what-s-wrong-and-how-to-f_1376059.jpg" --- # A folk song is what's wrong and how to fix it or it could… ![“A folk song is what's wrong and how to fix it or it could be who's hungry and where their mouth is or who's out of work and where the job is or who's broke and where the money is or who's carrying a gun and where the peace is.” quote by Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07b/woody-guthrie-11022_broke_a-folk-song-is-what-s-wrong-and-how-to-f_1376059.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07b/woody-guthrie-11022_broke_a-folk-song-is-what-s-wrong-and-how-to-f_1376059.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07b/woody-guthrie-11022_broke_a-folk-song-is-what-s-wrong-and-how-to-f_1376059.jpg) > “A folk song is what's wrong and how to fix it or it could be who's hungry and where their mouth is or who's out of work and where the job is or who's broke and where the money is or who's carrying a gun and where the peace is.” [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) ## 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 expose societal problems and suggest solutions, highlighting hunger, unemployment, poverty, and violence. **In simple terms:** Songs reveal social issues and possible fixes. Key Takeaway Listen to music to understand and address social . Themes social justice poverty violence employment Mood hopeful urgent Type inspirational political When to use this quote - community meetings - policy advocacy - education programs Key Concepts folk music activism storytelling Questions to Reflect On - What actions can follow from hearing these verses? - How can art inspire concrete change? A Different Perspective Music alone may not change systemic issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Broke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/broke/) [Fix Hungry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fix-hungry-4752489/) [Folk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folk/) [Folk Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folk-song-402072/) [Folk songs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folk-songs/) [Folks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folks/) [Gun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gun/) [Hungry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hungry/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Mouths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mouths/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [Song Wrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song-wrong-3214664/) ## Related quotes > [Today's folk song is rock and roll. Although it happened to emanate from America, that's not really important in the end because we wrote…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennon/today-s-folk-song-is-rock-and-roll-although-it-happened-to-emanate/) [John Lennon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennon/) > [Certain songs are almost like folk songs, which I love. I love folk music, and if you listen to 'Live Bullet,' there's 'Jody Girl,'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-seger/certain-songs-are-almost-like-folk-songs-which-i-love-i-love-folk/) [Bob Seger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-seger/) > [“Hah!" said Granny Weatherwax. "I should just say it is a folk song! I knows all about folk songs. Hah! You think you're listenin'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/hah-said-granny-weatherwax-i-should-just-say-it-is-a-folk-song-i/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Alan Lomax is the person who I think should be given major credit for what has been called the "Folk Song Revival." My father…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/alan-lomax-is-the-person-who-i-think-should-be-given-major-credit-for/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [I was working for Alan Lomax in the Library of Congress folk song archive, and starting to realize what a wealth of different kinds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/i-was-working-for-alan-lomax-in-the-library-of-congress-folk-song/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [Folk songs are evasive-the truth about life, and life is more or less a lie, but then again that's exactly the way we want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/folk-songs-are-evasive-the-truth-about-life-and-life-is-more-or-less/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [I used to go to the school folk club with my songs when I was only 13 or so and say "this is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-knopfler/i-used-to-go-to-the-school-folk-club-with-my-songs-when-i-was-only-13/) [Mark Knopfler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-knopfler/) > [The whole trouble with a folk song is that once you have played it through there is nothing much you can do except play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/constant-lambert/the-whole-trouble-with-a-folk-song-is-that-once-you-have-played-it/) [Constant Lambert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/constant-lambert/) > [If it was never new and it never gets old, then it's a folk song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-isaac/if-it-was-never-new-and-it-never-gets-old-then-it-s-a-folk-song/) [Oscar Isaac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-isaac/) > [It's like a little folk song. I think it might've been Harry Belafonte or someone like that who did it. And "Merry Christmas, Everybody"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lowe/it-s-like-a-little-folk-song-i-think-it-might-ve-been-harry-belafonte/) [Nick Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lowe/) > [In a way it's the emotional feeling that you get in a good rock song or folk song, there's just nothing that rivals that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryce-dessner/in-a-way-it-s-the-emotional-feeling-that-you-get-in-a-good-rock-song/) [Bryce Dessner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryce-dessner/) > [Cornelius Cardew's folk songs were very, very literal, and they were just about workers smashing their chains. It was like reading Das Kapital over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-maclean/cornelius-cardew-s-folk-songs-were-very-very-literal-and-they-were/) [Alasdair MacLean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-maclean/) > [A song stylist is, like, to take an old folk song like "Delia's Gone" and do a modern white man's version of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-cash/a-song-stylist-is-like-to-take-an-old-folk-song-like-delia-s-gone-and/) [Johnny Cash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-cash/) > [One of the songs that stayed in my head that I really considered a lot was an old folk song called 'John Brown' -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-tarantino/one-of-the-songs-that-stayed-in-my-head-that-i-really-considered-a/) [Quentin Tarantino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-tarantino/) > [Every week, Dennis Day sang an old Irish folk song. And next day in the fields, I'd be singing that song if I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-cash/every-week-dennis-day-sang-an-old-irish-folk-song-and-next-day-in-the/) [Johnny Cash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-cash/) ## More by Woody Guthrie > [I better quit my talking 'cause I told you all I know But please remember, pardner, wherever you may go The people are building…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/i-better-quit-my-talking-cause-i-told-you-all-i-know-but-please/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [I worked in your orchards of peaches and prunes. I slept on the ground in the light of the moon. On the edge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/i-worked-in-your-orchards-of-peaches-and-prunes-i-slept-on-the-ground/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [“I hate a song that makes you think that you are not any good. I hate a song that makes you think that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/i-hate-a-song-that-makes-you-think-that-you-are-not-any-good-i-hate-a/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [This land is your land, this land is my land, From California to the New York Island. From the redwood forest to the Gulf…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/this-land-is-your-land-this-land-is-my-land-from-california-to-the/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [The note of hope is the only note that can help us or save us from falling to the bottom of the heap of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/the-note-of-hope-is-the-only-note-that-can-help-us-or-save-us-from/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [Do Re Mi California is a garden of Eden, a paradise to live in or see, But believe it or not, you won't find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/do-re-mi-california-is-a-garden-of-eden-a-paradise-to-live-in-or-see/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [I know the police cause you trouble They cause trouble everywhere But when you die and go to heaven You find no policeman there](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/i-know-the-police-cause-you-trouble-they-cause-trouble-everywhere-but/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [As I went walking I saw a sign there And on the sign it said "No Trespassing." But on the other side it didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/as-i-went-walking-i-saw-a-sign-there-and-on-the-sign-it-said-no/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [My eyes has been my camera taking pictures of the world and my songs has been my messages that I tried to scatter across…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/my-eyes-has-been-my-camera-taking-pictures-of-the-world-and-my-songs/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [“Anyone who uses more than two chords is just showing off.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/anyone-who-uses-more-than-two-chords-is-just-showing-off/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [All you can write is what you see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/all-you-can-write-is-what-you-see/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [“You will never find peace with these fascists You'll never find friends such as we So remember that valley of Jarama And the people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/you-will-never-find-peace-with-these-fascists-you-ll-never-find/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [This machine kills fascists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/this-machine-kills-fascists/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [If you want to learn something, just steal it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/if-you-want-to-learn-something-just-steal-it/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [I love a good man outside the law, just as much as I hate a bad man inside the law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/i-love-a-good-man-outside-the-law-just-as-much-as-i-hate-a-bad-man/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) [Explore all 62 Woody Guthrie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) ## More Broke quotes > [I rap when I'm rich. 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I just have to keep trying to find what I'm looking for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-addison-allen/nothing-is-really-broke-so-it-s-not-like-i-can-fix-it-i-just-have-to/) [Sarah Addison Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-addison-allen/) > [You're the one who broke my heart you're the reason my world fell apart you're the one who made me cry and I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-re-the-one-who-broke-my-heart-you-re-the-reason-my-world-fell/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My mother loved my father. From my view, she let him get away with too much. It broke my heart to see him in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-edgar-wideman/my-mother-loved-my-father-from-my-view-she-let-him-get-away-with-too/) [John Edgar Wideman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-edgar-wideman/) > [I broke up with my first girlfriend because I was out of love. 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We might have to actually get lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brown-ladyy/imagine-if-facebook-twitter-and-msn-all-broke-at-the-same-time-we/) [Brown Ladyy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brown-ladyy/) > [Well I think they broke the mould when they made me and being humble is one of my great assets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-hagman/well-i-think-they-broke-the-mould-when-they-made-me-and-being-humble/) [Larry Hagman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-hagman/) > [By disgracing and degrading the presidency of the United States, by fleeing the White House like a diseased cur, Richard Nixon broke the heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/by-disgracing-and-degrading-the-presidency-of-the-united-states-by/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“She plucked a twig and broke it, but she found no spring in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/she-plucked-a-twig-and-broke-it-but-she-found-no-spring-in-it/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [The man who begins to speculate in stocks with the intention of making a fortune usually goes broke, whereas the man who trades with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dow/the-man-who-begins-to-speculate-in-stocks-with-the-intention-of/) [Charles Dow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dow/) > [Thousands of Americans have given their lives in Afghanistan and Iraq upholding their oaths and defending this nation. Chelsea Manning broke her oath and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/thousands-of-americans-have-given-their-lives-in-afghanistan-and-iraq/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) [Browse all 2,091 Broke quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/broke/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A folk song is what's wrong and how to fix it or it could be who's hungry and where their mouth is or who's out of work and where the job is or who's broke and where the money is or who's carrying a gun and where the peace is.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Woody Guthrie" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/a-folk-song-is-what-s-wrong-and-how-to-fix-it-or-it-could-be-who-s/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Broke" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/a-folk-song-is-what-s-wrong-and-how-to-fix-it-or-it-could-be-who-s/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07b/woody-guthrie-11022_broke_a-folk-song-is-what-s-wrong-and-how-to-f_1376059.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07b/woody-guthrie-11022_broke_a-folk-song-is-what-s-wrong-and-how-to-f_1376059.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07b/woody-guthrie-11022_broke_a-folk-song-is-what-s-wrong-and-how-to-f_1376059.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A folk song is what's wrong and how to fix it or it could be who's hungry and where their mouth is or who's…” — Woody Guthrie", "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": "Woody Guthrie", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A folk song is what's wrong...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/a-folk-song-is-what-s-wrong-and-how-to-fix-it-or-it-could-be-who-s/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/a-folk-song-is-what-s-wrong-and-how-to-fix-it-or-it-could-be-who-s/#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 } } ] } ```