Customer Reviews

Colors of the Day (1972 Electra EKS-75030)

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

When I think of the folk movement of the early sixties and I look for a signature voice which stands out above all the others, Judy Collins is the one. Her voice is remarkably beautiful, her phrasing, her ability to annunciate, the range of her voice place her in a category by herself. People called Frank Sinatra "The Voice," the same can be said of Collins, she is one of those rare talents who come along once in a great while.

Every song on this album is worth listening to, we all have our individual favourites, I would strongly recommend "Sons Of," "Since You Asked," "My Father," "Both Sides Now," "Farewell to Tarwathie" and "Amazing Grace" just for starters. Every song is beautifully aranged and thoughtfully performed, I don't believe Collins ever over sings, she treats her music with a thoughtfulness and intuitive awareness that makes every recording that much more enjoyable.

I recommend this for anyone interested in good folk music but also curious about exqusitely beautiful art.

I had this album 30 years ago, and wore it out. Two years ago I bought the Elektra CD, and was astonished at how bad it was. It made me wonder if I misremembered how good the album was. This Gold version is the answer -- the difference is like night and day. Whatever was done wrong when making that Elektra stinker, has been set right on the Gold CD. If you REALLY want to hear Judy Collin's voice in all its glory, this is the CD to buy. If I hadn't compared the two CDs myself, I would never have believed there could be so much difference.

Judging by some of the negative comments posted, I think people must learn to sit back and listen. True, Judy Collins has a voice that is very plain at times, but that is part of what makes her music so good. When she sings, she sounds sincere. You can understand all of the wonderful words. It makes Collins seem less like some unreachable celebrity, and more like a human being. That is what makes her songs so touching. I think it is time that we drop our idea of what a voice is supposed to sound like, and instead recognize a truly great artist who doesn't sound like everyone else.

I remember seeing Judy in concert in the quite informal setting of Avaloch, a wonderful sylvan natural amphitheater that all the folk stars from Collins to Joan Baez to Kris Kristoferson to Tom Rush to James Taylor performed at in Lenox Massachusetts in the summers of 1970. Sadly, it is now the site of a ritzy set of summer condominiums for the New York summertime Berkshires crowd. Yet I can still recall hearing Judy with that magical soaring voice of hers warming up on stage with "Amazing Grace" as we filed onto the grass, and the song so echoed and reverberated over the warm humid airwaves that he older folks at Tanglewood, some six or seven miles way, complained about the noisome interruption. It became an inside joke that Collins, Baez and others would playfully aggravate when performing for the very mellow crowd of counterculture fans. I recall a certain sweet aroma wafting through the air, too, and it wasn't the smell of cotton candy.

Of course, it probably goes without saying that I love most of the songs on this early edition of her greatest hits, from the opening version of "Someday Soon" to her own beautifully and lyric "Since You've Asked" to the Leonard Cohen classic, "Suzanne". Cohen's haunting and evocative lyrics are masterfully interpreted by Collins, an early champion of his amazingly poetic folk songs. Of course, the song propelling the sales of the album was her number one hit song, "Both Sides Now", a song that literally dominated the charts for months. I love her amazing vocal work in two of her own quite autobiographical songs, "My Father" and "Albatross", and one can almost feel the rush of heart-felt emotion in the songs as she advances through them. Finally, I still think her interpretation of "Amazing Grace" is one of the best songs she ever recorded. This is an early greatest hits snapshot of a one of the titans of modern American folk music, taken just as she reached the peak of her awesome vocal and collaborative talents. It is one sure to please the most discriminating of well-trained folk ears, and one I am sure you will come to treasure as much as I do. Enjoy.

I just want to utter a corrective to what seems to me a tendentious point of view already put forward. mc777@bard.edu from New York is entitled to his or her opinion, obviously, but seems not to have based it on fact. Judy Collins an 'out of tune voice'? I have absolute pitch and hold LRAM and LGSM degrees, and can state that, to the best of my belief and knowledge, Judy Collins is fully on the note. Whether or not her voice is 'mediocre at best' may be more a matter of persdonal taste, but I find it a fine mezzo-contralto, with an apparent three octave range, and the artiste fully in control at every point of that range. mc777@bard.edu is incorrect in saying that Judy Collins does not write her own music. What about 'My Father', 'Grandaddy', 'The Fallow Way', 'Born to the Breed', 'Since You've Asked', 'Albatross', 'Fisherman Song' and 'Walls' - to go no further? No doubt a case can be made against any performer, short of the Archangel Gabriel, but let it at least be based on fact rather than allegation.

During a personal crisis (back in the 70's) I found refuge in Judy Collins' music. I always found her smooth melodic voice soothing, relaxing and encouraging.

I suppose her music might be classified as folk music or soft rock, but the lyrics themselves are profound and stirring.

It is music that washes over you and through you and when it's time to go back to everyday life, you find her music has left you in a better place than it found you.

I would highly recommend this album (okay, CD, whatever) to anyone who loves soft rock, folk music or Judy Collins. I always thought it was some of her best work.

Although I am only 32, I know all the words to Judy Collins songs on this album. My mom used to play it all the time when I was a young girl. I saved her album after her death in 1981 at the age of 35. Now when I hear these songs again, it brings tears to my eyes. Judy Collins has a singing style and voice that really get into your heart and soul. It's a wonderful album to sing along with!! Unfortunately my record player has been non-functional for several years, so I have not been able to enjoy her music. I must get this CD ASAP!

I was stunned by how bad this CD sounds. I'm no expert, so I can't give you a precise description with proper terminology. Suffice it to say it's a bad job of transferring the recordings to CD. I later bought the Gold version, and the difference is like night and day. Judy Collin's voice is too wonderful to let this awful CD prevent you from really hearing her. The Gold version is worth the extra money.

An uplifting listening experience as Collins' crystal voice takes centre stage on this collection f well chosen songs by herself (Since You asked, My Father, Albatross), Joni Mitchell (Both Sides Now), Leonard Cohen (Suzanne), Sandy Denny (Who Knows ...) and others. Farewell To Tarwathie is replete with the sounds of the ocean, and her 1971 novelty a capella hit Amazing Grace rounds it off nicely. My favorites include Someday Soon, Both Sides Now, Suzanne and her sensitive interpretation of Who knows Where The Time Goes. Musical fashions may come and go but nothing beats a pure voice wrapped around poetic lyrics set to a beautiful melody. This is eternal music.

Buyer beware: this Elektra version of the wonderful Judy Collins "Colors of the day" has bad mastering. The tape Elektra used was obviously played back with Dolby-C, while not encoded as such. This disc should have been taken off the market. Try and find the gold disc instead.