The Best Folk Music Artists of the 1960s
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Looking for the best folk music artists of the 1960s? Check out our list of the top performers, including Bob Dylan and Joan Baez.
Joan Baez
Joan Baez is a woman of many firsts. Not only was she one of the first commercially successful folk music artists, but she was also one of the first to bring folk music to a wider audience. She was born in New York City in 1941 and her career spans over five decades. Joan Baez is considered one of the most influential folk music artists of the 20th century.
Her music
While Baez’s early recordings were met with some criticism for being “too mellow”,[68] she found great success with her fourth album, Joan Baez in Concert, Part 1, which reached No. 3 on Billboard’s pop albums chart in 1962.[69] The album included her first Top 40 single, a cover of “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down”.[70] The following year’s Joan Baez in Concert, Part 2 also performed well commercially, reaching No. 5 on the pop albums chart and becoming the first live album by a solo female artist to be certified gold by the RIAA.[71] In May 1963, Baez appeared on the cover of Time magazine,[72] and later that year she was featured on the cover of Newsweek.[73][74] Also in 1963, she was one of several artists who performed at the Newport Folk Festival when Bob Dylan played an electric guitar for the first time publicly.[75]
Her impact
Joan Baez’s music and activism helped fuel the 1960s folk music revival. In addition to her clear, powerful voice, Baez was known for her commitment to social causes. As a teenager, she became involved in the Civil Rights Movement and later joined Martin Luther King Jr.’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Baez’s activism continued throughout her career, as she spoke out against the Vietnam War and supported various human rights campaigns.
Baez’s music also helped to raise awareness of social issues. Her songs often addressed topics like war, racism, and poverty. “We Shall Overcome” and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” are just two examples of her socially conscious songs. In addition to her own material, Baez also popularized the work of other songwriters, including Bob Dylan and Phil Ochs. Her interpretations of their songs helped to bring them wider attention.
Baez was one of the most popular folk musicians of the 1960s. She released dozens of albums and toured extensively throughout the decade. Her popularity began to decline in the 1970s, but she remained an active force in music and activism into the 21st century.
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is one of the most influential and successful folk music artists of the 1960s. Dylan’s songs captured the spirit of the times and were able to speak to a generation of young people who were facing unprecedented social and political change. Dylan’s music was also very influential in the development of the folk rock genre.
His music
Dylan’s six-minute single “Like a Rolling Stone”, recorded in 1965, became a worldwide hit and an anthem of the anti-establishment youth movement of the 1960s. His recordings, particularly the albums Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan (1963), The Times They Are A-Changin’ (1964), Bringing It All Back Home (1965), Highway 61 Revisited (1965) and Blonde on Blonde (1966), exhibited greater musical sophistication and helped popularize modern rock and roll. As a lyricist, Dylan has infused American popular music with the influences of literature and poetry.
His impact
Bob Dylan is one of the most influential folk music artists of the 20th century. His music has been described as some of the most important and influential of the last 100 years. He has been a major force in the development of popular music, and his songs have been covered by countless other artists. His impact on American culture and society is also significant.
The Byrds
The Byrds were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn being the sole consistent member. The Byrds are credited with helping to pioneer the folk rock genre, with their 1965 cover of Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man”. The band became a countercultural phenomenon of the 1960s, influenced by the burgeoning hippie movement.
Their music
The Byrds were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band initially emerged as one of the leading bands of the mid-1960s folk rock movement, thanks to the success of their signature song “Mr. Tambourine Man”. The original five-piece lineup of the band, with Roger McGuinn on lead vocals and guitar, Gene Clark on harmonica and lead vocals, David Crosby on rhythm guitar and vocals, Chris Hillman on bass guitar and vocals, and Michael Clarke on drums and percussion, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991.
Their impact
The Byrds were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band Byrds is synonymous with the genre of folk rock, which they helped create during the mid-1960s. The original lineup of the band consisted of Jim (Roger) McGuinn (lead vocals and lead guitar), Gene Clark (vocals, tambourine), David Crosby (vocals), Chris Hillman (bass guitar), and Michael Clarke (drums).
The Byrds are one of the most influential bands of the 1960s. They popularized the genre of folk rock with their interpretation of Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man”, which became a #1 hit single in 1965. The Byrds also helped pioneer country rock with their hit cover of Gram Parsons’ “Hickory Wind”, which hit #7 on the Billboard Country chart in 1968. In total, the Byrds released 12 studio albums and 24 singles during their six-year lifespan as a band.
Simon and Garfunkel
Simon and Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo consisting of singer-songwriter Paul Simon and singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the most successful musical acts of the 1960s and became counterculture icons of the decade. Simon and Garfunkel’s music was featured in the films The Graduate, Catch-22, and The Sopranos.
Their music
Simon and Garfunkel’s music was nothing short of timeless. They wrote and recorded some of the most beautiful and moving songs of the 1960s, and their music has continued to resonate with listeners for decades.
The duo’s signature sound was built around Paul Simon’s gift for melody and catchy songwriting, and Art Garfunkel’s angelic voice. But their music was also marked by a deep sensitivity to the human condition, which helped make their songs some of the most enduring ever written.
hits like “The Sound of Silence,” “Mrs. Robinson,” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water” are among the most beloved folk songs of all time, and their album Bridge Over Troubled Water is often hailed as one of the greatest albums ever made.
Even though Simon and Garfunkel only recorded together for a few years, their impact on folk music and popular culture was profound. They remain one of the most well-loved folk music artists of all time.
Their impact
Simon and Garfunkel’s music was often injected with a heavy dose of social commentary, which is likely one of the many reasons their tunes still resonate with listeners today. The duo found success early on with songs like “The Sound of Silence” and “I Am a Rock,” both of which tackle feelings of isolation and loneliness. But they reached new heights with 1967’s “The Boxer,” a song that speaks to the struggles of the everyman.
After experimenting with different sounds and genres on later albums, Simon and Garfunkel returned to their folk roots for their final album, Bridge over Troubled Water. The title track, which Paul Simon wrote about his mother’s death, went on to become one of the most popular songs of all time. Even though they only released five studio albums, Simon and Garfunkel left a lasting mark on the folk music genre and American pop culture.
Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young
In the 1960s, folk music was at its peak. There were many great folk music artists, but Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young were one of the best. They were a supergroup that consisted of four of the most talented musicians of the time. They were known for their harmonies and their fantastic songwriting.
Their music
Formed in 1968, Crosby, Stills & Nash (CSN) were a folk rock supergroup made up of American singer-songwriters David Crosby and Stephen Stills, and English singer-songwriter Graham Nash. Graham Nash had been a member of the English pop-rock group The Hollies, and both David Crosby and Stephen Stills had successful solo careers and were members of other bands – The Byrds and Buffalo Springfield respectively – before the formation of CSN.
The trio’s self-titled debut album, released in 1969, reached #6 on the US Billboard 200 chart and #28 on the UK Albums Chart. It was certified four times platinum by the RIAA for US sales of over four million copies. The album included the songs “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes” and “Marrakesh Express”, both of which were major hits for the group.
In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked Crosby, Stills & Nash at #62 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. In 2010, they were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Their impact
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young were a folk rock supergroup made up of American singer-songwriters David Crosby and Stephen Stills, and English singer-songwriter Graham Nash, augmented by occasional fourth members throughout their history. Originally formed as Crosby, Stills & Nash in 1968, the group released two studio albums before adding Neil Young to their ranks for the first time in 1969.
The quartet’s increase in popularity resulted in CSNY headlining the historical opening concert at Woodstock festival in 1969. The band continued to record and tour throughout the 1970s and 1980s, intermittently acrimoniously. Following an apparent reconciliation between all four members since 2006, they have toured together since 2014.
During the 1960s folk music experienced a resurgence due largely to The Kingston Trio, who popularized traditional pop standards among college students and young adults. The Kingston Trio’s clean-cut image was quickly supplanted by that of CSNY with their free love mantra and hippie ethos. Although all four members of CSNY were highly accomplished musicians individually, it was Hendrix who inspired them to reach new heights both musically and spiritually.
