As Tucson readies itself for the upcoming Tucson Folk Festival, one of folk's preeminent giants is quietly slipping into town. Pete Seeger, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee known for penning such folk standards as "Where Have All the Flowers Gone," "If I Had a Hammer" and "Turn! Turn! Turn!", will perform at Tucson High School on Tuesday with Rande Harris and Ticco da Costa.

The 77-year-old singer-songwriter hasn't performed in Tucson since the early 1960s. "I don't tour much anymore. I sing mostly up and down the Hudson River near where I live," Seeger said in a phone conversation earlier this week.

Seeger's voice has weakened over the years - even he will tell you he has lost about 90 percent of his vocal talents - but he hasn't lost his knack for presenting strong entertainment. Seeger brings seasoned R&B veteran Harris and rising Brazilian sensation da Costa with him, and is extremely enthusiastic about the pair's abilities.

"Rande Harris is a man in his 40s, who for 17 years was with the pop group the Platters. Finally he kicked the whole pop scene - quit it cold turkey. He was working in a garage, and I said, 'Rande, you've got to get out and sing.' He has such a fantastic voice," Seeger said.

Seeger has been a performing force since he first started singing in 1938, when he dropped out of college, tried to get a job as a news reporter and failed.

"I had some friends that were teaching, and one of them said they would pay me $5 for coming to sing to their class. I couldn't believe someone was going to pay me for what I had been doing all my life. I took the money and quit looking for an honest job!" Seeger said.

The circumstances that brough da Costa, Harris and Seeger together are unusual as well.

"Ticco is a brilliant Brazilian musician. He's fantastically talented. When he was in the U.S. way back last October and November, he got into a crisis. A couple of his concerts had been canceled, and he lacked the funds to come home. Rande and I were on the way back from touring, and a friend of mine helped us put on a benefit show for Ticco. We had never performed together before, but we were all capable musicians. Ticco and I could back up Rande, Rande and I could back up Ticco, and Rande and Ticco could back me up."

Tuesday's concert will be only the second performance by the three artists together, and the chemistry should be exciting, Seeger said.

"Ticco is fantastic," he said. "He'll make you laugh and even though you can't understand the words, you're singing along. He played 'Girl From Ipanema' the other night, and the whole audience was singing along. The men were singing one part, the women were singing. It was amazing."

Tickets for the Tuesday show are $18 and available at Bentley's Coffee House and Antigone's Bookstore. The 7:30 p.m. show will take place at Tucson High School. For more information, call 327-4809.

HOT RIALTO: The Rialto continues its eclectic booking practices this weekend when it plays host to Klezmer and Blues. Friday the New Orleans Klezmer All Stars perform a 9 p.m. show at the downtown theater. It'll be interesting to see how the band combines Klezmer (a polka-like Polish folk music) with typical N'Awlins heat. Saturday night the Rialto hosts two huge blues acts: the Smokin' Joe Kubek Band, with blues harp virtuoso Mark Hummel opening. Hummel is getting to be a pretty common face here in Tucson, and this weekend's benefit show should be a good one. Tickets are only $5 both nights. For more info call 740-1986.