Customer Reviews

And A Voice to Sing With: A Memoir

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

An excruciatingly lovely, honest portrayal of Joan Baez' life, from self-conscious childhood through more self-confident adulthood (she speaks of self demons that haunt her yet). Includes photographs of self, family, performances, and other public appearances. A professed non-reader, non afficionado of public (regimented) learning, Joan intelligently writes about non violence, her public issues, and relationships, and in doing so, encourages readers to make more of their own personal and public lives. Powers to be: Please give this woman a Grammy for all of her talent!!

Honest, humorous, well written. Ms. Baez dosen't pull any punches as she shares the story of her career and escapades with her readers. If you are a Baez fan you will enjoy this book. I had no idea that Joan was such an accomplished writer. I wish she'd write more.

This is the only "novel" I have read twice and would like to pick up again. I found the truth more fascinating and heart-warming than any good fiction! Ms. Baez's openness in sharing personal information gives the reader insight into understanding her motives/lyrics and direction. It is also interesting to "see" inside the workings of one who is trying to make a difference in the world versus personal and public views of a performer. Ms. Baez literary style displays her intelligence, forsight, and concerns. I would like to read future works by Ms. Baez reflecting, as a woman, how she acquired her aspirations and confidence...familial and/or inborn!

She's gutsy and candid and a bit naughty- I loved this book because of it's particular insightfulness. Joan makes sure that we "get" her essence. Although only slightly familiar with her music ; I have become much more so after reading about her passion and ambition. there are some great snapshots of people; of course we see Dylan from a slightly scorned woman perspective- but tale hasn't hurt this unwashed phenomenon's career one bit. Truly engaging is hearing firsthand from Joan what it is like to be flying high ( while selling records) to being tossed around as a second stringer as the fads shift. The chapter on Live Aid is a hoot- the "latest thing" was madonna of all people. I would love to read a sequel- C'mon Joan-let's go.

Joan Baez's music and life as an activist-pacifist make for a unique story. She is a giant in both areas. Her first ten years (the Vanguard years) likely have never been equaled by any other American folksinger--the purity of her voice(and her wonderful guitar playing) and her great taste resulted in a series of albums (at least the first 6 on Vanguard) that truly deserve classic status. Her activism, repardless of one's political bent, must be recognized and respected, and this book doesn't even chronicle her work in this regard for the last 20 years. Her writing is breezy and makes for an interesting read-- I much prefer this kind of book, even with perhaps some faults and a lack of editing, rather than some ghost written autobiography one usually encounters. For a more complete picture of Baez I suggest reading "Positively 4th Street" by David Hajdu, which expertly chronicles the unique interrelationship between the Baez sisters, Dylan, and Richard Farina in the years 1960-65. Baez pretty much skips over this aspect of her life, yet it is essential to get a whole picture of those critical years, especially since she and Dylan were such important and influential figures during that time. The recent PBS documentary on Baez is also well worth watching, as it brings you up to her current situation. An enjoyable read for Baez fans.

Joan Baez is a hero of mine so I already expected to love this book. What I did not expect was the completeness of the information she wrote about. Much of it is written in narrative as well as dialogue. I especially liked the narration of her thoughts, not just facts. I highly recommend this book.

I'm accustomed to cut non-professional writers some slack when I assess their memoirs, but, really, why should I? It's to Ms. Baez's credit that she apparently didn't use a ghostwriter. It's not to her credit that she apparently didn't use an editor either.

When this book is on, it's very good. Ms. Baez's description of the college and coffeehouse folk Bohemian scene is vivid and too brief. Unfortunately, the book overall is rambling. Its diction is inconsistent. It lapses into the second person unaccountably. It is peppered with often inscrutable pseudo-poetic purple passages. It tends to be candid about things I don't especially care to know of, the author's rampaging libido, undiminished by age, for example, and vague or circumspect about things that most arouse my curiosity, the nit and grit of the recording industry, for example.

There are, however, enough enticing tidbits of information to make this worth reading if the zeitgeist of the fifties and sixties has any pull on you. I don't know about buying. In any case, a figure looming this large on the cultural landscape, so to speak, deserves to be heard.

I loved this book. It is insightful and honest and gives a picture of Joan in her own words that helps flesh out the public persona. She is a remarkable woman, one of the greatest voices of her generation, and has lead an interesting and worthwhile life. Heartily recommended.

My introduction to Joan Baez was very odd - coming from reading about her playing to Dorothy Day during the Fresno farmworker strikes of 1973 - but within a short time I was curious about her acclaimed voice, which I first heard whilst on holiday in Glasgow singing "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall", a song I knew from Bryan Ferry's superb rendition that was his first hit in my native Australia. However, because Baez' rendition was equally impressive, I eventually began collecting most of her Vanguard-era albums and was impressed by the beauty and darkness of her albums up to the controversial Baptism.

However, for much of Joan Baez' life, her work as a political activist has tended to compete with or even overshadow her considerable talent as a singer. As a result, it is in no way surprising that Baez would eventually write an autobiography, and I was instantly curious on looking at "And A Voice to Sing With", which came out in 1987 when - even more than in her present role as an elder stateswoman to progressive causes - Baez was out of the public spotlight.

"And A Voice to Sing With" certainly shows Baez understood very well the cultural changes that were sweeping through the world at the time, and how she was passionately involved in the protests against the Vietnam War. She goes into great detail about the relationships she had, especially with her sole husband, the draft resister David Harris, and how she was involved in the countercultural movements of the 1960s. In the process Baez is indeed revealing about her life during that decade in a very interesting way that reveals a great deal about her spiritual and political interests. She is also effective in explaining her childhood and evolution.

The problem I feel is that Baez neglects her music rather too much. She fails to explain adequately how she felt over the years about such musical decisions as moving towards contemporary material and then to her own in the 1970s - nor about the changes in musical style she made beginning with her excellent Farewell, Angelina album. Given the title "And A Voice to Sing With", one would certainly expect far more about this. There is also rather little about such issues as her motherhood, her son, or her sister Mimi Fariña. These omissions or lack of detail make "And A Voice to Sing With" a rather slight biography even though in the areas it prefers to focus on much detial is provided. Serious fans of Joan Baez should have a look at "And A Voice to Sing With", but it could be improved a good deal I think.

An excruciatingly lovely, honest portrayal of Joan Baez' life, from self-conscious childhood through more self-confident adulthood (she speaks of self demons that haunt her yet). Includes photographs of self, family, performances, and other public appearances. A professed non-reader, non afficionado of public (regimented) learning, Joan intelligently writes about non violence, her public issues, and relationships, and in doing so, encourages readers to make more of their own personal and public lives. Powers to be: Please give this woman a Grammy for all of her talent!!