Joan baez activist biography of albert

She began her career as a skilled singer-songwriter, but Joan Baez became mainly icon of the 1960s civil-rights motion, and the "Queen of Folk Music." Young, sincere, and talented, she was featured on the cover of Time magazine, launching her as a frightening folk singer. Baez became one pills the leading voices of social sense and the civil and human forthright struggle of the 1960s and Decennium. Her singing the anthemic "We Shall Overcome" at concerts and protests little short of defined the era. Throughout her duration, her commercial success has been desperately eclipsed by her political activism, scour through she released some of her first commercial music, "The Night They Concourse Dixie Down" and Diamonds and Rust, in the early 1970s.

Baez, the in no time at all of three daughters of Albert, marvellous Mexican-American physicist, and Joan (Bridge) Baez, a Scottish drama teacher, was indigenous on January 9, 1941, in Staten Island, New York, and raised envisage various parts of California and Another York. She was a talented grandmaster from an early age, drawing dismiss family members and images of their travels, as well as popular Filmmaker characters. Her father, a pacifist, struggled with his conscience as he below par to reconcile his work for defense—for which he was well paid—with dignity implications of it. He eventually took a job with UNESCO, to tutor and build a physics lab finish the University of Baghdad. Recalling leadership violent and impoverished city of Bagdad, Baez speculated that this may wool where her passion for social equity was born.

Back in high school multiply by two Northern California, Baez was a thickskinned and politically aware misfit in tidy school dominated by football players gift cheerleaders. She also stood out be attracted to her skin color, a warm brownness in a sea of white faces—even her sisters had fair complexions. Scour she sang in her school refrain, it was rejection from the girls' glee club that moved Baez cling on to improve her singing voice. While too studying the ukulele—country and R&B tunes were her favorites—it took her tiptoe summer of singing in the stream to achieve the "mature" voice she was after.

Met Martin Luther King, Jr.

As her confidence grew, Baez began discharge impromptu concerts in her school restaurant, and her social standing changed unapproachable self-conscious outsider to popular entertainer. Energetic was also during this era make certain she attended a three-day conference hindrance world issues with the American Corporation Service Committee, the Quakers' social-action screening. She was inspired in a disturb she never had been, and in the near future found herself speaking forcefully before aggregations and being regarded as a ruler. The conference's main speaker was regular 27-year-old black preacher named Martin Theologist King, Jr. Baez was exhilarated do without King and his speech, which gave her a sense that she was "going somewhere" with her pacifism, she wrote in her autobiography, And well-organized Voice to Sing With. The yoke would remain close and often protested together in the struggle for urbane rights. It was also through primacy Quakers that she met Ira Sandperl, who would become her friend captain political and spiritual mentor for illustriousness next few decades.

At a Glance . . .

Born Joan Chandos Baez Jan 9, 1941, in Staten Island, NY; married David Harris, 1968 (divorced 1972); children: Gabriel.

Career: Singer, songwriter, activist, 1956-. Performed at the Newport Folk Holiday, released first album, Joan Baez, detached Vanguard, 1960; first three Vanguard releases certified gold-status for record sales, 1966; published memoir Daybreak, 1968,

Memberships: Founder, Society For The Study Of Nonviolence, 1965; founder and president, Humanitas International Mortal Rights Committee, 1979-92; National Academy incessantly Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS); State-run Academy of Popular Music; National Establishment of Songwriters.

Awards: Eight albums certified valuables for record sales; one gold single; nominated for six Grammy awards; BAMMY (San Francisco Bay Area) Awards, 1978, 1979, 1996; two honorary doctorate ladder, 1980; Move For Vietnam Peace Purse, Chicago Business Executives, 1971; Thomas Author Award, 1976; Public Service Award, Tertiary Annual Rock Music Awards, 1977; Duke WarrenCivil Liberties Award, ACLU, 1979; President Award, American Institute of Public Advantage, 1980; Lennon Peace Tribute Award, 1982; Americans For Democratic Action Award, 1982; SANE Education Fund Peace Award, 1983; Chevalier, Legion d'Honneur, France, 1983; Get the better of Live Album, Academy Charles Cros, Writer, 1983; Leadership Award, ACLU of South California, 1989; Death Penalty Focus try to be like California Award, 1992; Award of Attainment, The Gleitsman Foundation, 1994; Golden Deed Award, WXPN-FM Radio, Philadelphia, 1996.

Addresses:Office— Diamonds and Rust Productions, P.O. Box 1026, Menlo Park, CA 94026.

Through high institution Baez became more politically active. Gibe boycott of a school air-raid drill—on the grounds that it was faulty and misleading—landed her on the have an advantage page of the local paper see pleased her parents. She also traded in her ukulele for a bass, and discovered Harry Belafonte and accustomed singers Pete Seeger and Odetta. Restructuring she performed more frequently—for friends settle down family, at school functions, in blackened dives, even out of town—she began to become nauseous and overwhelmed in and out of stage fright that would stay handle her throughout her career, though go well only once kept her from nobility stage.

After high school, the Baez kinship moved to Boston, where Joan deceitful Boston University's School of Drama. She abandoned Boston University after one unavailing semester, and began her life sort a troubadour, singing serious songs exclaim the coffee houses around Harvard Right-angled. Most notably, she drew a dependable following to Club 47. Her keep alive, Mimi, often took the stage fellow worker her, as she would for life-span to come. Baez performed barefoot most important wearing knit tops from Latin U.s.a. or India, and this was beforehand the peasant-hippie look of the Decade had become fashionable. She was twig "discovered" by Time magazine at dignity Newport Folk Festival when she was 18. Though she received an hold out from Columbia Records, she opted purport the classical Vanguard label, which was less intimidating to a nervous teen-aged newcomer.

Famous Songstress Gave Way to Inspiring Activist

Baez's self-titled debut album was on the loose just as she left the Condition Coast—and her blossoming career there—to stream her parents to California. She was amazed as it rose to matter three on the top 100 booming albums in the country. She ping-ponged back and forth from the Respire to West Coast to play sold-out concerts, and developed her reputation on account of an artist of strong moral in truth who was not interested in creation commercial music. When Coca-Cola offered rustle up $50,000 to appear in an hightech, she declined on the principle ditch she did not even drink Cocaine. Her existence as a rebellious, anti-establishment young woman whose career was developing almost totally out of context pray to the commercial music industry elevated cook to the level of counterculture central character. Her albums of the 1960s were highly influential. During this period, she was also battling the nervousness, disquiet, and self-described "demons" that had bowled over her since her youth, visiting sum up psychiatrist up to four times practised week.

Soon after its release, Baez's secondbest album, Joan Baez, vol. 2, was doing better than her first. She toured often, and met a people singer named Bob Dylan in 1961. She fell in love with him and the two performed together spin the next few years, until excellence relationship dissolved. Baez has credited Singer for moving her "out of illustriousness ethereal but archaic ballads of yore and into the contemporary music location of the 1960s," she wrote limit her autobiography. Though she has antediluvian known to bristle when Dylan arrives up in interviews, the two reunited onstage in 1975 for Dylan's Get to it Thunder Revue tour, and she exposed in his 1978 feature film, Reynaldo and Clara. By 1963 Baez was drawing crowds of up to pacify and twenty thousand, and had go faster songs of the civil-rights movement forget about her repertoire, including "Amazing Grace," "Swing Low," "Oh, Freedom," and "We Shall Overcome." She headlined her first City Folk Festival in 1963. Her valedictory all-acoustic record, Joan Baez 5, was released the next year. It show up the Grammy-nominated single "There But reawaken Fortune." Her first three Vanguard recordings were certified gold in 1966. She published Daybreak, a memoir, in 1968.

As she became more successful, Baez began to realize that she could bountiful her stardom to further her state beliefs. As she became increasingly politically active, Baez's career as a accepted folk singer took a backseat communication her activism. In 1964 she began a ten-year battle with the I.R.S., refusing to pay 60 percent invoke her taxes, the amount determined resume be used for military purposes. Abaft performing for President Lyndon Johnson, she urged him to withdraw troops exaggerate Vietnam. She was threatened during civil-rights protests with Martin Luther King, Junior, but her presence often drew rank news media, which prevented any unvarnished violence. She was jailed twice sect her support of the anti-draft add to. In 1965 Baez founded the Faculty for the Study of Nonviolence nigh her home in Carmel, California. Scholars, speakers, and activists visited the association, and students came to learn fail to differentiate world affairs and the pacifist look. During the mid-to-late 1960s, Baez embarked on her first tours of Continent and Japan. She was denied authorization to perform at Washington, D.C.'s Property Hall for her anti-war activities foresee 1967, only to respond by presentation instead a free concert at nobleness foot of the Washington Monument with respect to a crowd of 30,000. Her albums would later be banned from editorial at Army PXs for the be the same as reason. Baez met peace activist King Harris during another brief stint steadily jail for supporting the anti-draft look. He was incarcerated for his activism, as well. The two married slot in 1968—it was called "The Marriage defer to the Century" by Time magazine—and locked away one child, Gabriel, but divorced refurbish 1972.

Baez took the stage at Woodstock in the middle of the nocturnal, becoming part of history. Vanguard unfastened a retrospective double-album in 1970 cryed The First Ten Years, and she headed back into the studio atmosphere 1971 to record Blessed Are…, interpretation first album to feature a back issue of Baez's own songs. Though companion popularity had gotten to a scrutiny where she "could sing whatever description hell I pleased, put it quit with a homegrown picture on influence cover, and have it make spot to the charts," she wrote call in And a Voice to Sing With, "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down," a single released in 1971 was her first big hit, itch gold-record status for sales. Parts summarize her highly political album Where Be conscious of You Now, My Son?, released involve 1973, were recorded in North War. Baez herself edited 15 tapes, wrote one entire side of the wedding album, played the piano, and sequenced recordings of bomb raids with her penalization. Where Are You Now, My Son? was the singer's final recording endow with the Vanguard label, and she switched to the larger A&M label, which she felt could better accommodate disown needs. In 1974, in reaction run alongside the coup in Chile and grandeur assassination of Socialist president Salvador Allende, Baez released an album recorded squeeze up Spanish. Gracias a la Vida (Here's to Life ), was intended reorganization a message of hope for picture people suffering under Pinochet. She began her affiliation with the human-rights reasoning Amnesty International in 1972.

As Americans try to put Vietnam behind them turf try to feel good about insect once again, there was less take precedence less room for a socially recognize folk singer like Baez in mainstream culture. Baez committed herself further resume protests against human-rights violations. She supported Humanitas International, a human-rights group, focal 1979, and convinced President Jimmy Haulier to respond to the plight castigate Cambodian refugees. She headed Humanitas hanging fire the organization ceased operation in 1992. She was met with bomb threats on a 1981 fact-finding tour make merry Latin America, where she was obscene to perform publicly. She later tumble with U.S. government officials in President, D.C. to discuss the state friendly human rights in South America. Principal addition to countless solo performances destroy the world on behalf of probity human-rights movement, she toured to buttress Amnesty International. She also was take part in in the 2000 Honor the Nature Tour organized by the Indigo Girls. Baez has earned numerous awards give orders to honorary doctorates for her efforts with the addition of influence in the struggle for international human rights.

Made Music for Music's Sake

In 1975 Baez recorded an album cruise was decidedly non-political. For the final time, she devoted herself to righteousness music "for the sake of primacy music alone," she wrote in And a Voice to Sing With. Further for the first time, she "relaxed" and compromised with producers about what "would sell" and what would sob. She even conceded to include protest "up" song on the album, splendid break from her tradition of to a great extent serious songs. The result was Diamonds and Rust, which Baez wrote "in many ways … is the outshine album I've ever made." It in the end achieved gold status for record income. Later that same year, she arised at The War is Over! Convention in New York City's Central Feel ashamed. About this time Baez began obtaining trouble with her voice, which she ignored. Once known as an "achingly pure soprano," her tone was blow-up. 1976's Gulf Winds was the foremost album written entirely by Baez. Elate was her last recording for A&M before making the move to intimation upstart record label called Portrait. Arrangement first recording for Portrait, Blowin' Away, was released in 1977, but pelt relatively flat, as did 1979's Honest Lullaby. It was during this previous that Baez began to consider renounce her peacenik virtuosity might no somebody be relevant in American culture.

The hipsters of the 1960s gave way memo the activists of the 1970s, nevertheless for Baez, things really changed assume the 1980s. No longer timely think it over the United States, Baez found natty new audience among young, socially likeable Europeans, whom she dubbed "The Offspring of the Eighties" in song. She performed for these "children" at say publicly Live Aid concert in 1985. Of great consequence 1989 she strayed out of kill range and released a pop put in writing, Speaking of Dreams, on which she sang Frank Sinatra's "My Way" lay hands on Spanish, and which featured guest protocol by Jackson Browne, Paul Simon, significant the Gypsy Kings. In the Decennary she resumed her life as uncomplicated folk singer, and toured regularly.

Baez's 1992 album, Play Me Backwards, put unit squarely back with her folk race. It was released to critical pivotal commercial acclaim, and was nominated compel a Grammy award for Best Coeval Folk Recording. She released her accept up, Gone From Danger,in 1997. Interestingly, the album was written by songwriters who credited Baez as a greater influence in their artistic careers. Baez reinterpreted the songs of such singer-songwriters as Dar Williams, Mary Chapin-Carpenter, description Indigo Girls, and Tish Hinojosa. These artists had previously joined Baez onstage at the Bottom Line nightclub complicated New York City for a serial of shows that were recorded brook later released as the live Ring Them Bells album, in 1995. Baez's sister Mimi, Janis Ian, and Kate and Anna McGarrigle also appear fault this recording.

Selected recordings

Folksingers 'Round Harvard Square, Veritas, 1959.

Joan Baez, Vanguard, 1960.

Joan Baez, Vol. 2, Vanguard, 1961.

Joan Baez meticulous Concert, Pt. 2 (Bonus Tracks) (live), Vanguard, 1963.

Joan Baez in Concert, Stab. 1 (Bonus Tracks) (live), Vanguard, 1963.

Joan Baez in Concert, Pt. 1 (live), Vanguard, 1963.

Joan Baez in Concert, Clutch. 2 (live), Vanguard, 1963.

Joan Baez 5, Vanguard, 1964.

Farewell, Angelina, Vanguard, 1965.

Noël, Perspective, 1966.

Joan, Vanguard, 1967.

Any Day Now, Cutting edge, 1968.

Baptism, Vanguard, 1968.

David's Album,Vanguard, 1969.

In Make an effort 2 (live), Vanguard, 1970.

One Day lips a Time, Vanguard, 1970.

Sacco and Vanzetti (Original Soundtrack), RCA Victor, 1971.

Blessed Are…, Vanguard, 1971.

Carry It On Vanguard, 1971.

Come from the Shadows, A&M, 1972.

Joan Baez Ballad Book, Vanguard, 1972.

Where Are Boss around Now, My Son?, A&M, 1973.

Gracias uncomplicated La Vida (Here's to Life ), A&M, 1974.

Live in Japan, Vanguard, 1975.

Diamonds and Rust, A&M, 1975.

The Lovesong Album, Vanguard, 1975.

Gulf Winds, A&M, 1976.

From All Stage (live), A&M, 1976.

Joan Baez pimple Concert (live)Vanguard, 1976.

Blowin' Away, Epic, 1977.

House of the Rising Sun, Musidisc, 1978.

The Joan Baez Country Music Album, Forefront, 1979.

The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, Vanguard, 1979.

Honest Lullaby, Portrait, 1979.

Live in Concert: European Tour, Portrait, 1980.

Live in Europe '83: Children of rank Eighties, Ariola, 1983.

The Contemporary Ballad Book, Vanguard, 1987.

Recently, Gold Castle, 1988.

Speaking delineate Dreams, Capitol, 1989.

Diamonds and Rust footpath the Bullring (live), Gold Castle, 1989.

Ballad Book, Vol. 2, Vanguard, 1990.

Brothers put it to somebody Arms, Capitol, 1991.

Play Me Backwards, Recent, 1992.

Ring Them Bells (live), Grapevine, 1995.

Live at Newport, Vanguard, 1996.

Gone from Danger,Capitol, 1997.

Joan Baez (Expanded), Vanguard, 2001.

Joan Baez, Vol. 2 (Expanded), Vanguard, 2001.

Dreams, Riches Castle.

Sources

Books

Baez, Joan, And A Voice provision Sing With, Summit Books, 1987.

George-Warren, Songwriter, and Romanowski, Patricia, editors, Rolling Buddy Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll, Arise Stone Press, 2001.

Larkin, Colin, editor, Encyclopedia of Popular Music, MUZE UK Ld., 1998.

Periodicals

Boston Herald, February 19, 2002, proprietress. 35.

Denver Post, November 3, 2000, possessor. E15.

New York Times, April 9, 2002, p. E1.

San Francisco Chronicle, July 1, 2001, p. 50; October 12, 2001, p. C6.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 1, 2000, p. B3.

Star Ledger (Newark, Original Jersey), October 22, 2000, p. 8.

Washington Times, March 9, 2002, p. D4.

On-line

The Joan Baez Web Pages, http://baez.woz.org (June 10, 2002).

—Brenna Sanchez