Joan Baez

Jun 25, 2008 14:14

I don't know if anyone on my flist is interested in these videos, but I love them unreservedly, and am therefore posting them anyway. :p

A wee bit o' history: Joan Baez and Bob Dylan were professional and romantic partners for a while in the sixties; they also toured together during the Rolling Thunder Revue in the seventies. The romantic part almost certainly ended because Dylan was being an ass; much as I adore the man's work, there's no denying that he was a total jerk at times, and that contributed to the end not only of his relationship with Joan, but his marriage to Sara Lownds. How much of that was artistic ego, drug use, or just him naturally being a jerk, I don't know. At any rate, Joan's ability and career don't hinge on Bob in any way. He may have gone on to be more famous in the long run, but Joan was famous long before he was, and her talent is undiminished by years. But the history is important for these two songs.

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^ "Diamonds and Rust" - a song Joan wrote about Bob.

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^ "Love is Just a Four-Letter Word" - a song written but never recorded by Bob. Joan did record it in the sixties without bothering to ask permission first; she tells a great story of Bob hearing her version on the radio for the first time, listening intently until the very end, then turning to her and telling her what a great song it was, whereupon Joan rolled her eyes and said, "You wrote it, you idiot." Bob had apparently forgotten it entirely. :p This performance is from the Dylan documentary No Direction Home. When her voice goes a little weird at :57 and 2:41, she's not losing control of the performance; she's parodying Dylan's own voice, and doing a great job of it. :D

A class act, this lady, and the voice of an angel. I need to buy some of her albums instead of just watching YouTube videos.

Edit: Mandy, I found her touring schedule. If Joan Baez comes anywhere near Phoenix in the future, we're going to see her.

video, bob dylan, music

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