I recall Woody telling Alan Lomax, in the interviews he did for the Library of Congress Archive of Folk Song, that he (and I paraphrase) always found them full of jokes.

Woody was a victim of the racism of his time, and of his geography--and certainly of the attitudes of those he lived among. It, as always, was a huge dynamic that he strove to rise above. I do too, but I often fail to live up to my ideals. I'm often just too lazy.

Art