In the wake of tragedy, Judy Collins knows the times are – once again –changing.
The famed singer, 78, came of age during the 1960s, a time when young people protested war and worked for change. This week, 17 people were killed in a shooting at a Parkland, Florida high school. Collins – who plays The Sharon on March 22 – admires the students who spoke out against gun violence.
“I’m glad to see these students taking it to the streets; they are so brave and inspiring,” Collins told Villages-news.com in a telephone interview. “This was such a terrible, terrible tragedy, it goes beyond politicians and big money groups.
“It’s about people themselves trying to bring change and going out on the streets to do it. They’ve got to make their voices known. They’ve got to go to voting booths. That’s what democracy is all about.”
Music can be a force for change and healing.
It was during the 60s, when the folk movement gave voice to such singers as Bob Dylan, Phil Ochs, Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell, Peter Paul and Mary, and Collins.
Her remarkable career includes such classics as, “Both Sides Now,” “Send In the Clowns,” “Suzanne,” and “Someday Soon.” Collins is a classically trained pianist, but her singing influences include such folk legends as Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger.
They did more than sing; they put themselves on the line to stand up for what they believed.
So did Collins.
She talked about an eventful day at the House of Representatives in 1971. “We were protesting the Vietnam War and were hauled away by the police,” she said. “That’s life in a democracy.
“That’s also why we live in such a great country. The founders believed we could overcome. We are allowed to express our voices. We are allowed to vote. That’s why so many people want to come to America. They want freedom.”
The Judy Collins story begins in Denver, Colorado. Her father, Chuck, was a radio personality and singer. She played classical piano.
She was playing with orchestras in Colorado at 13, but eventually found herself in New York, with the burgeoning folk music movement. In 1967, she recorded a Joni Mitchell song, “Both Sides Now,” and it was a huge hit.
“I knew it was going to be (a success),” Collins said. “It’s just an innate gift I have for picking out a special song, it’s in my DNA.”
Collins never worked with Mitchell on the song.
“It’s a beautifully written song, but I’m the singer and I have to do the song my way. You don’t talk it over with the writer, that’s not how it works.”
Here she is singing the song:
Stephen Sondheim was best known for his music on Broadway, and Collins created an instant classic with “Send In the Clowns.”
“I knew it was for me,” she said. “It became a Judy Collins’ song.”
In 2016, Collins collaborated with a Ari Hest, a young singer/songwriter. They released a single, called “Strangers Again,” and an album, “Silver Skies Blue.” It was nominated for a Grammy Award in Folk Music, Collins’ first Grammy nomination in 40 years.
“It was wonderful to collaborate, write and work with Ari,” Collins said. “We’re going to do more songs.”
The late Leonard Cohen was a close friend.
Collins paid tribute to him with an emotional and tender version of his song, “Suzanne” at last year’s Grammy Awards.
“I met Leonard 50 years ago,” she said that night. “He came into my living room and said: ‘I can’t play the guitar and I can’t sing. And I don’t know if this – ‘Suzanne’ –is a song. And then he sang it.”
It didn’t take Collins long to appreciate the man and the music.
“I knew immediately this song and this man were very special,” she said over the telephone. “He was an incredible talent and he had depth, goodness and generosity. I miss him.” Here is the song:
Last year, Collins toured with another old friend, Stephen Stills. He wrote “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes,” for Crosby, Stills and Nash back in the late 1960s. It was a Top Ten hit and Collins and Stills had a romantic relationship back then.
They broke up, but 50 years later found themselves on tour together.
“We always stayed friends,” Collins said, joking that it was like couple going through therapy after a marriage.
Collins has influenced generations of singers, including those in The Villages.
“Her voice is unparalleled,” said Bill Davis, director of The Villages Pops Chorus. “She has a wonderful soprano, but she has the ability to sing a lower octave, if need be. She also possesses a wonderful lyric quality. She can sing any kind of song and make it her own.”
Collins has put her personal stamp on such songs as “Amazing Grace,” “In My Life,” “Turn, Turn, Turn,” “Chelsea Morning,” “Morning Has Broken” and “Who Knows Where The Time Goes,” and the list goes on.
Villages’ singer Sally Spieth has “loved Judy Collins’ music all my life. Judy Collins has a special gift of connecting with people when she sings.”
Collins takes it all in stride.
“I’m fundamentally an artist,” she said. “My fundamental work is performing. I do 150 shows a year. This is my music; this is my life.”
