The Rarest 60s Folk Music Ladies

The Rarest 60s Folk Music Ladies is a blog dedicated to the forgotten female artists of the 1960s folk music scene.

Joan Baez

Her music

Joan Baez’s music was influential in the early days of the folk music revival. Her gritty, soulful voice and mastery of both traditional and contemporary folk songs made her one of the most popular performers of the 1960s. Baez’s albums helped to introduce a new generation of listeners to the work of such legendary folk artists as Woody Guthrie and Leadbelly. In addition to her recordings of traditional songs, Baez wrote memorable originals like “Diamonds & Rust” and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.”

Her life

Joan Baez was born in Staten Island, New York, on January 9, 1941. Her mother, Joan Chandos Baez, was of Scottish descent, and her father, Albert Vinicio Baez, was born in Puebla, Mexico, to an indigenous father and a Basque mother. The family moved to Palo Alto in 1950. In 1958 Baez graduated from Palo Alto High School and began attending Boston University but withdrew before the end of her freshman year. She began performing at clubs in the Boston area and soon attracted a large following.

In 1960 she released her self-titled debut album, which included the traditional ballad “House of the Rising Sun” as well as a number of protest songs. Throughout the early 1960s she toured extensively throughout the United States and Europe; her concerts were marked by her distinctive vocal style as well as her outspoken support for various political causes. In 1963 she took part in the civil rights march on Washington, D.C., at which Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech.

In 1964 she released her second album, Joan Baez Vol. 2, which included her renditions of Bob Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “The Times They Are A-Changin’.” That same year she appeared alongside Dylan at the Newport Folk Festival; their performance together helped to bring Dylan’s music to a wider audience. In 1965 Baez was arrested for participating in a Vietnam War protest in Oakland, California; she subsequently became a leading voice against American involvement in Vietnam.

Over the course of her career Baez has released more than 30 albums; among her most successful are Diamonds & Rust (1975), Farewell Angelina (1965), Honest Lullaby (1979), and Recently (1987). She has also been active as an advocate for human rights and various social causes; in 1972 she founded the Institute for Policy Studies, a progressive think tank based in Washington D.C., and in 1996 she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Bill Clinton.

Judy Collins

Judy Collins is one of the most popular folk music ladies of the 1960s. She is known for her clear voice and interpretations of traditional folk songs. Judy Collins’ album “Wildflowers” is one of the best-selling folk music albums of all time.

Her music

Judy Collins began her musical career at the age of 13 when she started playing the piano. Two years later, she began performing at clubs and cafés in Denver, Colorado. She was discovered by record producer Mikhail Horowitz, who signed her to a recording contract with Elektra Records in 1961.

Collins’ debut album A Maid of Constant Sorrow was released that year, and she achieved commercial success with her cover of “Danny Boy” from the album Collins Classics. She also gained attention for her interpretations of traditional folk songs, such as “Wild Mountain Thyme” and “Barbara Allen”.

In 1968, Collins released the album Who Knows Where the Time Goes?, which featured the title track, a cover of a Sandy Denny song. The song became one of Collins’ signature tunes, and she continued to perform it throughout her career.

Collins’ work during this period was praised by Bob Dylan, who said that she was “stunning… one helluva singer”. Dylan also wrote the song “My Back Pages” for her to sing on her second album Judy Sings Dylan… Just Like a Woman.

Her life

Collins was born the only child of Chuck and Florence Collins in Seattle, Washington. She grew up in the Queens neighborhood of New York City and began playing the piano at age five. At age 15, she studied classical piano at the Juilliard School, where one of her instructors was Arthur Rubinstein. She was also admitted to the William Howard Taft School in August 1950, which was then a school for girls in Watertown, Connecticut. She attended an anti-communist youth rally in New York City in 1951.

Odetta

Odetta, born Odetta Holmes in Birmingham, Alabama, was an American singer, actress, guitarist, songwriter, and a civil and human rights activist, often referred to as “The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement”. Although her roots were in the blues, she performed a variety of musical styles, including gospel, jazz, and pop. In 1961, she released her debut album, Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues, which received critical acclaim.

Her music

Odetta’s vocal delivery was deeply emotional, and her repertoire ranged from traditional folk songs to blues, jazz, and spirituals. In 1961, Martin Luther King, Jr. called her “the queen of American folk music”. Her performance of “Mule Skinner Blues” at the 1960 Newport Folk Festival was included in the 2004 documentary film The House at Sugar Beach.

Her life

In the early 1960s, the young singer Odetta was at the height of her powers. A powerful voice and an intense, almost spiritual stage presence made her one of the most popular and influential performers of her generation. Her live albums That’s All Right Mama (1962) and To Smile in Autumn (1963) are still considered among the finest examples of the folk music revival of the era.

Odetta was born in Birmingham, Alabama, on December 31, 1930. She was raised in a middle-class home by parents who were active in the local African Methodist Episcopal Church. Odetta’s mother was a teacher and her father worked for the post office.

Odetta began playing piano at an early age and developed a love for music and performance. She sang in her church choir and took part in school plays and musicals. After graduating from high school, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in acting.

Odetta’s acting career never took off, but she did find work as a folksinger in coffeehouses and clubs around Los Angeles. It was during this period that she began to develop her distinctive style, blending elements of blues, jazz, gospel, and folk music.

In 1954, Odetta made her first recordings for Fantasy Records. These recordings were not commercially successful, but they did attract the attention of Harry Belafonte, who helped her land a recording contract with RCA Victor.

Belafonte also arranged for Odetta to perform at Carnegie Hall in 1955. The concert was a triumph, and Odetta became an overnight sensation. She followed up with successful tours of Europe and America over the next few years.

In 1957, Odetta recorded My Eyes Have Seen (1957), an album of protest songs that included “We Shall Overcome” and “Bells Of Freedom.” The album established her as one of the leading voices of the Civil Rights Movement.

Over the next few years, Odetta released a series of critically acclaimed albums including At Town Hall (1959), Ballad For Americans (1960), This Little Light Of Mine (1962),and Malkia (1964). In 1963, she appeared alongside Bob Dylan at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom; Dylan later credited her with inspiring his decision to “go electric.”

By 1965, however, Odetta’s popularity had begun to wane. Her albums were no longer selling well and she was having difficulty finding work as a performer. In 1967, she underwent surgery for cancer; although she recovered from the disease, it left her weakened and discouraged.

Odetta’s career never fully recovered from this setback, but she continued to perform sporadically throughout the 1970s and 1980s. In 1999, she received a National Medal of Arts from President Bill Clinton; seven years later, she was awarded the Kennedy Center Honor by President Barack Obama.
Odetta passed away on December 2nd 2008 at age 77

Joni Mitchell

Joni Mitchell is often cited as one of the best female singer-songwriters of her generation,and her work in the 60s helped to define the genre. Joni’s clear, emotive voice and intelligent lyrics struck a chord with music fans around the world,and she remains an influential figure in the folk music scene.

Her music

Joni Mitchell is a Canadian singer-songwriter who has released 18 studio albums, most of which have been certified gold or platinum. She is widely regarded as one of the greatest folk musicians of her generation, and her work has often been compared to that of Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen.

Mitchell began her career in the 1960s, when she toured with fellow folk musicians such as Joan Baez and Buffy Sainte-Marie. Her debut album, Song to a Seagull, was released in 1968 to critical acclaim, and she went on to release a number of successful albums throughout the 1970s and 1980s, including For the Roses (1972), Hejira (1976), and Chalk Mark in a Rain Storm (1988). In 1991, she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

In recent years, Mitchell has largely retired from performing and recording, although she did release an album of new material, Shine, in 2007.

Her life

Joni Mitchell was born Roberta Joan Anderson in Fort Macleod, Alberta, Canada, on November 7, 1943. Her father, Bill, was a Royal Canadian Air Force flight lieutenant who during World War II was stationed in the town; her mother, Myrtle (née Lanefski), was a homemaker. When she was nine years old and her family had moved to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, Joni took piano lessons but preferred painting and singing; she especially liked jazz. In Saskatoon she formed a friendship with filmmaker Bror Svenson; the two often showed each other their work. When Svenson created a film about Joan Baez, Joni realized that music could also be a form of expression and decided to pursue it more seriously

Joni began playing guitar in her early teens and soon began writing songs; at eighteen she hitchhiked to Los Angeles with the hope of becoming a folk singer. After several months of fruitless hoping and waiting—during which time she underwent an emergency appendectomy that left her with chronic physical pain—she returned to Canada. A few weeks after her return home, however, she received a call from Chuck Mitchell (no relation), a folksinger whom she had met in Los Angeles; he invited her to tour with him as his opening act. During this time the two began a romance, and although they never married they remained together for several years. In 1964 they recorded an album together titled Songs to a Seagull; Joni also released her self-titled debut album that year