Arlo Guthrie’s name has been synonymous with Thanksgiving even since he released his signature narrative song, “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree,” in 1967. This Saturday, November 28 marks the 50th anniversary of the events that inspired Guthrie’s folk classic and the singer has celebrated the special occasion on his current tour by busting out his 18-minute story song for the first time in years.

In a new interview with Relix and Jambands.com, Guthrie discussed the song’s origin saying, “Originally the song was a commentary on the ridiculous situation we were engaged in in Southeast Asia. It wasn’t an anti-war song—although I was certainly against the adventurism in Vietnam—it was an anti-stupid song. When the war was over, the draft had ended and our boys began coming home, so the song didn’t have the impact it’d had formerly. In addition, it was just too long to do every night. So I took it off the setlist except for the occasional anniversaries like the one we’re doing now.

Guthrie also spoke about his longstanding friendship with Pete Seeger, with whom he often played Thanksgiving weekend shows, and his Bar-Mitzvah, which felt more like a hootenanny than a traditional service.

The complete interview is available here. Guthrie will perform at New York’s Carnegie Hall on Saturday.