Tag Archives: Judy Collins

Christmas Comes Early To Leonard Cohen Fans

For years, Dominique BOILE has generously shared photos, documents, and memorabilia from his incredible collection of Leonard Cohen treasures. Perhaps imbued with the spirit of the impending holidays, however, Dominique has now outdone himself, offering a delightful and impressive batch of photos, some of which have never before been published, that will be on display here and the DrHGuy site in the upcoming days.

Today’s Stocking Stuffer – Who’s Who In The 1960s New York Folk Scene

Shown in the rare photo atop this post (click on image to enlarge),  is an outstanding array of folksingers, all of whom appear to be pondering the doom that will inevitably befall mankind – or waiting for Bob Dylan to show up.

From left to right: Mimi Fariña¹ Dave Van Ronk,² Joan Baez, Leonard Cohen,  Judy Collins,  Chad Mitchell³ (on guitar).

Photo taken at Linda Leiberman’s New York apartment by Daniel Kramer.

Bonus: Leonard Cohen and Judy Collins As A Duet

Also contributed by Dominique BOILE, this photo depicts Leonard Cohen and Judy Collins singing together on Judy’s 1976 Soundstage TV concert.  Photo by Jon Randolph.

1. From Wikipedia:  Mimi Fariña  collaborated with her husband, Richard Fariña,

   on a number of influential folk albums, most notably Celebrations for a Grey Day (1965) and Reflections in a Crystal Wind (1966), both on Vanguard Records. After Richard Fariña’s death (on Mimi’s 21st birthday) in a 1966 motorcycle accident, Mimi married Milan Melvin and continued to perform, sometimes recording and touring with either her sister Joan [Baez], or folksinger Tom Jans, with whom she recorded an album in 1971, entitled, Take Heart. Among the songs she wrote is In the Quiet Morning (For Janis Joplin), which her sister recorded. The song is included on Joan Baez’s Greatest Hits album.In 1967, Fariña joined a satiric comedy troupe called The Committee. That same year, she and her sister Joan Baez were arrested at a peaceful demonstration where the two were temporarily housed in Santa Rita Jail, personalizing the experience of captivity for her. By 1973, she was asked to accompany her sister Joan, and B.B. King and perform for the prisoners in Sing Sing Prison. Those two experiences led her to a desire to do more for those who are held in institutions. In 1974, Fariña founded Bread and Roses, a non-profit co-operative organization, designed to bring free music and entertainment to institutions: jails, hospitals, juvenile facilities, nursing homes, and prisons, initially in the San Francisco Bay area, and later nationally. It still remains in operation, producing 500 shows per year. The organization’s name came from a 1911 poem by James Oppenheim, Bread and Roses, which is commonly associated with a 1912 garment workers’ strike in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Though she continued to sing in her later years, releasing an album in 1985 and performing sporadically, Fariña devoted most of her time to running Bread and Roses. In the late 1980s, she teamed up with Pete Sears to play a variety of benefit and protest concerts. Many concerts were concerned with human rights issues in Central America, especially the US backed civil wars in Guatemala and El Salvador. They once set up to play on the abandoned railroad tracks outside Concord Naval Base in California. Surrounded by military police, Farina and Sears played a show for people protesting US weapons being shipped to government troops in El Salvador. In 1986, she took the time to record her own album, Mimi Farina Solo. Fariña used her connections with the folksinging community to elicit help in her focus with Bread and Roses, including Pete Seeger, Paul Winter, Odetta, Judy Collins, Taj Mahal, Lily Tomlin, Carlos Santana, and Bonnie Raitt, amongst others. In 2000 alone, Bread and Roses brought performers to play in over 500 concerts in 82 institutions. Fariña died of neuroendocrine cancer, at her home in California, on July 18, 2001, at age 56.

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2. From Wikipedia:  Nicknamed the “Mayor of MacDougal Street,” Dave Van Ronk was

   an important figure in the acoustic folk revival of the 1960s. His work ranged from old English ballads to Bertolt Brecht, blues, gospel, rock, New Orleans jazz, and swing. He was also known for performing instrumental ragtime guitar music, especially his transcription of St. Louis Tickle and Scott Joplin’s Maple Leaf Rag. Dave Van Ronk was regarded as the friendly uncle of Greenwich Village, presiding over the coffeehouse folk culture and acting as a friend to many up and coming artists, inspiring, aiding and promoting them. Folk performers whom he befriended included Bob Dylan, Tom Paxton, Patrick Sky, Phil Ochs, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott and Joni Mitchell. Van Ronk received the Lifetime Achievement Award of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), in December 1997.

   Dave Van Ronk will also be featured in an upcoming Heck Of A Guy post. [↩]

3. From Wikipedia:

   The Chad Mitchell Trio were a North American vocal group who became known during the 1960s. They performed folk songs, some of which were traditionally passed down and some of their own compositions. Unlike many fellow folk music groups, none of the trio played instruments. They became popular in some quarters, and were particularly notable for performing satirical songs that criticized current events during the turmoil in the United States during the cold war and a time of unrest brought about the civil rights movements and the Vietnam War, unlike the typical folk music and singer-songwriter musicians of their time.

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