When I was younger in the early Fifties I couldn't wait to get my little copy of Sing Out!, an exciting controversial, argumentative, politically aware, and highly musical and honest mag.

I collected them all and always had one at the bottom of my guitar case.

Then, I think it was browbeaten by those who didn't like the political content.
The name of the magazine comes from Pete and Lee's song, "If I Had a Hammer,
I'd sing out danger and I'd sing out a warning". If this were the goal of Sing Out!
I would support it in a heartbeat or a New York minute. Irwin was irascible, hard hitting, sometimes rubbing people the wrong way and I loved every minute of it.
I loved the dialogue between Irwin and Izzy Young and when SO became more of
a scholarly fanzine, I lost interest. I want Sing Out! to be its noisy, controversial,
non-commercialized, hot headed self again without the emphasis on insider star folkies who I really don't care about (which Irwin went after) or long winded dissertations.. I want to see it agitate like it used to because there is so much that needs to be said today as the US slips into a corporate state. I don't want SO to go there. I liked it when it was "street" and people spoke out against injustice. Yes, times change and people get complacent. SO was a beacon of light in the political darkness and I wish it were feisty again.