Music and Coffee

This morning as I read about the passing of folk legend Pete Seeger, I thought about the connection music has to coffee. When I lived in Nashville, our cafe had a weekly songwriters night. This is when aspiring musicians, and some more famous ones try out new material on an audience.

Coffee houses for generations have been places of performances. Think back to the hip scenes in 1950s movies or TV shows, and there were people dressed in black, singing, or reciting poetry. It's not untypical to see a sound system in a coffee house, as they are welcoming to performers.

So why coffee houses? No doubt the free space, or at least limited rental price is an attraction, but there's something more. Coffee and music have a communal nature. People come together over both. I remember during the songwriters nights how performers would interact with each other. There was a fellowship, a bond, which made the whole evening feel like a party in your living room.  The audiences for these nights were also very relaxed, and pleased to be around each other. I loved standing behind the counter and taking in the sight.

Pete Seeger popularized songs like "This Land is Your Land" and "We Shall Overcome". He wrote "If I Had a Hammer." The musicians he inspired included John Mellencamp, Bruce Springsteen, Joan Baez, Arlo Guthrie, Rufus Wainright, and so many more. No doubt at some point, the musicians brought their music, and their sense of community to a local coffee house, just as Pete Seeger did.

This morning I raise a cup in honor of Pete Seeger.

Charlie