Publisher's Synopsis
Joan Chandos Baez, born on January 9th, 1941, Staten Island, New York, U.S., is a singer, songwriter, musician and activist. Joan's contemporary folk music has often included songs of protest or social justice, having performed for over 60 years, issuing more than 30 L.Ps. Fluent in Spanish and English, Baez has recorded songs in 8 languages. She's usually considered as a folk singer, but her music has diversified since the counter-culture era of the '60s, encompassing genres including folk rock, pop, country and gospel music. Joan's recording career started during 1960, her eponymous 1st 3 albums, Joan Baez, Joan Baez, Vol. 2 and Joan Baez in Concert, all going gold. Although a songwriter, she's usually interpreted other composers' work, having recorded songs by the Allman Brothers Band, the Beatles, Jackson Browne, Leonard Cohen, Woody Guthrie, Violeta Parra, the Rolling Stones, Pete Seeger, Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder and Bob Marley among others. Baez was one of the 1st artists to record the songs of Bob Dylan in the early '60s, when she was already an internationally recognised artist, having done much to popularize his early songs. Joan has successfully interpreted the work of more recent songwriters on her L.Ps, including Ryan Adams, Josh Ritter, Steve Earle, Natalie Merchant and Joe Henry. Her best known songs include Diamonds & Rust, along with covers of 'There but for Fortune' by Phil Ochs and The Band's The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down. 'Farewell, Angelina', Love Is Just a Four-Letter Word, Forever Young, Here's to You, Joe Hill, Sweet Sir Galahad and We Shall Overcome, are some other popular songs by Baez. She performed 14 songs at the Woodstock Festival of 1969, having since shown a lifelong commitment to political and social activism in the fields of non-violence, civil rights, human rights and the environment. Joan was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on April 7th, 2017.
