Judy Collins

Country of origin:

U.S.

Type of music generally:

Mainstream pop, contemporary folk and traditional folk

Status:

Most recent release, Winter Stories (with Jonas Fjeld and Chatham County Line, 2019)

See also:

Judy Collins' site

Wikipedia's entry for Judy Collins

Comparisons:

She is someone other artists are compared to, rather than the other way around, though she is sometimes compared to Joni Mitchell, Janis Ian, Joan Baez, etc.

Covers/own material:

Covers, own, and traditional

General comments:

Judy has a rich, strong, and sometimes ethereal voice, and is known as an interpretator of other's material, and made songs by Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell, Sandy Denny, and Ewan MacColl famous. She's always been on the periphery of my musical awareness. With the exception of a few songs that were so overplayed on AM radio over the last fifty years that I can't bear them, I've always liked her and admired her expressive voice. However, I was never particularly drawn to her until a friend made a tape of her first album, A Maid of Constant Sorrow (1961). She is also an activist and author. (Neile)

Although she has slipped, she still deserves to be here, in the Big Three of the ectophiles' pantheon. (fleur)

Recommended first album:

A compilation would be a good starting place, though I've heard many speak of Whales & Nightingales and Bread and Roses as long-time favourites.

Recordings:

• A Maid of Constant Sorrow (1961)
• Golden Apples of the Sun (1962)
• Judy Collins #3 (1963)
• The Judy Collins Concert (1964)
• Judy Collins' Fifth Album (1965)
• In My Life (1966)
• Wildflowers (1967)
• Who Knows Where the Time Goes (1968)
• Judy (compilation, 1969; identical to Recollections)
• Recollections (compilation, 1969; identical to Judy)
• Whales & Nightingales (1970)
• Both Sides Now (compilation, 1971)
• Living (live, 1971)
• Colors of the Day (compilation, 1972)
• Amazing Grace (compilation, 1972)
• True Stories and Other Dreams (1973)
• Judith (1975)
• Bread and Roses (1976)
• So Early in the Spring... The First 15 Years (compilation, 1977)
• Hard Times for Lovers (1979)
• Running for My Life (1980)
• Times of Our Lives (1982)
• Home Again (1984)
• Trust Your Heart (1987)
• The Stars of Christmas (seasonal, 1988)
• Sanity and Grace (1989)
• Fires of Eden (1990)
• Baby's Bedtime (children's, 1990)
• Baby's Morningtime (children's, 1990)
• Wind Beneath My Wings (compilation, 1992)
• Judy Sings Dylan... Just Like a Woman (1993)
• Come Rejoice! A Judy Collins Christmas (seasonal, 1994)
• Shameless (1994)
• Voices (1995)
• Live at Newport (1959-1966) (live, 1996)
• Forever: An Anthology (compilation, 1997)
• Christmas at the Biltmore Estate (live and seasonal, 1997)
• Both Sides Now (compilation, 1998)
• Classic Broadway (1999)
• All on a Wintry Night (2000)
• Judy Collins Live at Wolf Trap (live, 2000)
• The Very Best of Judy Collins (compilation, 2001)
• Judy Collins Sings Leonard Cohen: Democracy (compilation, 2004)
• The Essential Judy Collins (compilation, 2004)
• Portrait of an American Girl (2005)
• Judy Collins Sings Lennon and McCartney (2007)
• Paradise (2010)
• Bohemian (2011)
• Live at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (lives, 2012)
• Live in Ireland (live, 2014)
• Strangers Again (2015)
• Silver Skies Blue (with Ari Hest, 2016)
• A Love Letter to Stephen Sondheim (2017)
• Everybody Knows (with Stephen Stills, 2017)
• Winter Stories (with Jonas Fjeld and Chatham County Line, 2019)

A Maid of Constant Sorrow

Release info:

1961—Elektra

Availability:

Wide

Ecto priority:

Recommended for fans of Judy Collins or of traditional material

Group members:

Judy Collins, vocals, guitar

Guest artists:

Fred Hellerman—second guitar
Erik Darlin—banjo

Produced by:

Jac Holzman

Comments:

This is a delightful collection of traditional folk songs, sung powerfully and evocatively by a very young Judy Collins. Her versions of these songs are expressive and focused on the lyrics, so the stories come through clearly. She does mournful ("Wild Mountain Thyme," "Pretty Saro") and lively ("O Daddy Be Gay") and martial ("THe Rising of the Moon") songs here, and does them all beautifully. (Neile)