Sunday, 12 April 2009

1226 Judy Collins and Folk Music

Last night I experienced a living Legend, the third this year and the first of a trio of folk singers who summoned up my generation. The other legends were Ritchie Havens and Don Mclean and the three original folk singers who came together in Greenwich Village, New York along with Arlo Guthrie and Peter Paul and Mary were of course Bob Dylan and Joan Byes. The legend is Los Angeles born but Colorado raised Judy Collins. I must confess that while I bought the my generation records of Joan Byez and Bob Dylan, I never took to the pure sound of Judy Collins in the same way although whoever I heard her sing on TV usually associated to a visit to the UK. This was a pity because as last night demonstrated, with the maturity that comes from loving and loss, especially the death of her only son, her voice now has an expressive richness and vulnerability which she accompanies with a highly professional, but spontaneous account of her experience which she also delivers with great humour .

It was bitterly cold last night, as I set off earlier than recent instances for live events, in the hope of getting to Smiths for the latest fantasy DVD. The local branch closed at five so I thought I get to Newcastle in time to park the car and go to the central branch as it was late shopping night, alas forgetting the traffic into the city, although it was the cold which led be to abandoning the idea and settling for an exceptionally large helping of exceptionally hot and exceptionally spicy vegetable soup, with a hot roll for an excellent value £2.50. After this I made my way to the music library and internet set run by the local authority Library service, read three magazines about jazz reflecting on how out of touch I was with contemporary artists appearing at various festivals and which proved a jog to listen more to the jazz the great 24 hour jazz digital station which is available through Sky or online, and then when a listening seat became available, by chance the selection included the latest Judy Collins album released earlier the year on the songs of Lennon and McCartney.

As I do on such occasions I review my records, in this instance of Folk music which had continued to be wide ranging and mostly international although I do have a 1950's 1960's era record The Industrial muse which includes the Durham Lockout and a dozen other Miner's tunes, which had been brought out of the cupboard, so to speak because yesterday I commence to write about the industrial heritage aspect of my summer walking, Rivera, ancient purchased bought for 10p from Woolworth along with three 10p or 20p records of Nina Simone is called Songs of the Revolution by a brought together group called the Tolpuddle Martyrs and was brought out in the era of 1960's protest to appeal to the likes of me although the records were sold in the late 1970's early 1980's when vinyl started to go out of fashion, and tapes were the in thing. One of my earliest folk records was the Alan Lomax Blues in the Mississippi night. It was several de I acquire a three volume anthology of African Tribal Music and Dances and a similar volume of Traditional Songs and Dances of Greece although it was in Greece that I bought my first Album by Dora Stratou. I only have vinyl of Farewell Angelina by Joan Byez, Dylan's The Times they are a Changing and Leonard Cohen's songs. Leonard Cohen was discovered and brought to public attention by Judy Collins and last night she sang his Suzanne, My search for Folk tapes revealed a forgotten double recording of Don Mclean live at the Dominion at one end of Tottenham Court Road across the way from the Tube station which was a place which I have regular used over the year as a meeting point for 100 Oxford Street, the former 2is coffee bar in Soho Square, Foyle's and Collets bookshops, and I nearly became a trainee buyer at Heals, the Furniture Store in 19597, when the offer of a job was received in the post after interview and then withdrawn, at a time when I was interviewed as a management trainee in factory making plastic and selling up market cigarette machines in pubs and clubs, interviewed in a bar by a couple of Sloane Rangers. I also have Joan Byes Speaking of Dreams and Recently, the Magic Album and two compilations, one from 1977. The Dylan's is a great compilation of some 45 songs which I also now have on CD. I also have bought CD's of Buffy St Marie, the indigenous American born on the Piapot Cree Reserve in the Qu' Appelle valley. More on this remarkable song writer, singer and educator another time.

Back to the concert where I had a second row seat immediately opposite Judy when she played the piano and sang some of her own compositions at the commencement of the second half. It is perhaps an indication that she has failed to command the longevity of public acclaim of Dylan and Byez as Dylan still plays to Arena's with several thousand seats, I could not get a ticket for Byez in the 1500 seat Hall 1 at the Sage earlier in the year but Judy was consigned to the second 500 seater hall although there was standing customers around the balconies.

The continuing influence of her father was apparent throughout the concert in the way that she spoke of him and his life and it was also evident that she still has positive feelings for Stephen Stills of Crosby Stills and Nash who she mentioned she recently had dinner with, and his life and her grand daughter. However she did not touch on other painful periods of her life but tested audience reaction with references to some of her radical activities mentioned the late sixties anti Vietnam Grosvenor Square demo and her current preoccupation reference to Bring the boys back home brought no audience response. One explanation for the loss of standing in the business that following the suicide of son aged 33 on 1992 she had along period of depression and substance abuse and it was not until 2002 that she was able to talk about the process of recovery in Sanity and Grace (Truth, therapy, Trust, Try, Treat Treasure and Thrive). So last night for me became more than a concert in which to relive past events but it was quickly event that this was a woman who had confronted the truth and overcome the guilt, accepted the need for counselling and the to express emotions, together with the need to for self discipline to avoid or limit the need for drugs of all kinds, including overeating as a means of dealing with loss and pain, the need to take care and control of the body through exercise and meditation, the keeping alive of memories through writing and keeping a journal and being positive, hopeful, open to love and to others and that it is possible to rebuild a life. However as is always the case when one who has been there, or is there encounters another, you recognise the fragility and the precariousness.

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