Judy Collins at The Queen’s Hall Edinburgh tonight was a chance to catch up with and listen to one of the defining singers of the 1960s folk music movement and, as expected, it was a more than interesting musical evening.
When you have had a career in music that has spanned more than 60 years, where do you start when you put together a touring set list? Well, for anyone, that would be a difficult choice to make, but if you are Judy Collins and your career and life have also been spent around some of the most iconic names in music from her generation, then that task becomes an even bigger one; a song like “Chelsea Morning” very early in the set list was though as good a place as any to feature.
Judy Collins, at 80, is still a very special singer. Yes, of course, her voice has changed over the years, and anyone expecting Judy Collins on stage now to be exactly like the voice on their favourite vinyl album of the 1960s is being unrealistic. Still though, there is a voice and vocal ability that most of us would be happy to have at any time in our lives.
There are few people out there who can honestly say not only that “they were there”, but that “they were at the centre of their musical world” when it comes to talking about the 1960s, but Judy Collins can with honesty make that statement. How many people can casually drop into the introduction of “Mr Tambourine Man” that they were there when Bob Dylan was writing it, or that Leonard Cohen brought his poetry and words over to read to her - cue for “Suzanne”.
The 1960s was not just about music though, it was about many other things too, and amongst them was a growing awareness of political and environmental issues coupled with a rising awareness of people who were not afraid to stand up and be counted in words, songs and protest (often all three) about injustices and corruption that they saw all too often around them in every walk of life. It is clear from some opening comments about Brexit and Scotland’s lack of voice in outcome that Judy Collins has never been prepared to give up her “Freedom of Speech” over the years, and is now at times questioning why all too many people of this generation seem to have waived that right and the political situation both here and the USA is in such a desperate state of affairs.
If 1960s American folk and protest music... read the full article here