In the early-1930s, the Depression, and renewed interest in America’s cultural heritage, led to an intense growth of politically charged music. The Composer’s Collective, a branch of the Communist Party’s Worker’s Music League, sought to produce aesthetically complex music for the masses, and published The Workers Songbook, a collection of revolutionary songs, some of which were traditional folk songs. Note how the cover employs the revolutionary imagery of a singing army, marching in unison with its sleeves rolled up.

This image accompanies the audio recording of “I Don’t Want Your Millions Mister,” one of twenty songs you can listen to in the exhibit Labor Sings! Songs from the 1930s and 1940s, featuring highlights from the extraordinary compact disc collection by Ron Cohen and Dave Samualson, Songs for Political Action.