DONOVAN

Born in Glasgow, Scotland Donovan was one of the most popular British recording artists of his day. He became a friend of leading celebrities and pop musicians including Mia Farrow, Joan Baez and The Beatles. He influenced both John Lennon and Paul McCartney when he taught them his finger-picking guitar style. His popularity enjoyed a revival in the 1990's when Manchester band Happy Mondays mane checked him as an influence.

Donovan in music: Troubadour: The Definitive Collection 1964-1976

Donovan was the ultimate flower child, listening to Troubadour, however, it's striking how versatile, melodic, and agreeable most of his material sounds decades after "Mellow Yellow" has faded into a jaundiced yellow. Clearly under the sway of Bob Dylan early on in his career, Donovan nevertheless was capable of directing his reverence into something as enchanting as "Catch the Wind." Amping up as the '60s progressed, he assembled a series of psychedelic-pop classics, including "Season of the Witch," the "Hey Jude"-like sing-along "Atlantis," and the uncharacteristically driving "Hurdy Gurdy Man". This two-disc anthology may be more Donovan than some desire, but the booklet, seven previously unreleased tracks, and expansive perspective it provides makes it a more-than-worthy overview for those who take their paisley folk-rock with a beatific smile.

Donovan in words: The Autobiography of Donovan: The Hurdy Gurdy Man

Donovan's autobiography charts his life from a post-war, Glaswegian childhood to the height of an international career as one of the leading figures of the 1960's music scene. Always feeling like an outsider, he found relief through music and poetry. The book reveals how he came to be influenced by Buddhist teachings, and the music of Woody Guthrie and Joan Baez. The book explores the significance of falling deeply in love with the woman who was to become his muse, and the profound sense of loss he felt when their relationship came to an end, and how the loss affected him both personally and creatively. A leader of the folk revival in both Britain and America, the book recounts how he rose to be an international star, releasing songs such as "Mellow Yellow" and "Catch the Wind", and his most successful album, "Sunshine Superman". Donovan is acknowledged as one of the most significant cultural icons of the 1960's. The book provides a frank account of his early experiments with drugs and his search for self. He reveals the story of how he developed friendships with Baez, Dylan and the Beatles, with whom he a shared spiritual sojourn to meditate with the Maharishi in India. Donovan's autobiography offers first-hand insights into his music and poetry, recollects his rise to fame and the way in which destiny was to play a hand by re-uniting him with the lost love of his life through a chance meeting.

Donovan in film: Sunshine Superman - The Journey Of Donovan

Sunshine Superman The Journey Of Donovan is the ultimate life story of the 60´s folk-pop phenomenon. The deluxe double-DVD set contains classic 60´s film and TV appearances, rare archive footage and never-before-seen material as well as 5 previously unreleased songs and all of the hits. With appearances by Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Pete Seeger, Arlo Guthrie, Mickie Most, Rick Rubin, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Franco Zeffirelli, David Lynch (and many more) and a 40 page booklet chock full of informative liner notation and exclusive photo material, Sunshine Superman is the ultimate story of Donovan s remarkable and unique four decade career.

PETE SEEGER

Forget gangsta rap or Elvis '56. Pete Seeger was the original American music rebel!! He was the most picketed and black listed entertainer in American history. Indicted for "unamerican" actions in the 1960's, at the height of American commie paranoia, he was jailed for 12 months and black listed for 17 years!

An inspiration to Donovan, Dylan and Springsteen you need to hear his songs and you need to hear his story.......

Pete on CD: If I Had a Hammer: Songs of Hope & Struggle
Pete Seeger is a national treasure, a living American institution. Unfortunately in our fast-paced world we often forget about our treasures, our institutions, and our heritage. This wonderful collection, culled from his massive library of work with Folkways Records, is, if nothing else, a reminder of how much Pete Seeger means to America. Seeger sang for the people and their rights at a time when that could get rabble-rousers blacklisted and worse. What's more, he got the people singing for themselves. You'll know many of these songs--the title track, "Where Have All the Flowers Gone," "Turn, Turn, Turn"--you just might not know them in their original voice. If I Had a Hammer will set that straight.

Pete in words: How Can I Keep from Singing?: The Ballad of Pete Seeger
How Can I Keep from Singing? is the compelling story of how the son of a respectable Puritan family became a consummate performer and American rebel. Updated with new research and interviews, unpublished photographs, and thoughtful comments from Pete Seeger himself, this is an inside history of the man Carl Sandburg called “America’s Tuning Fork.” In the only biography on Seeger, David Dunaway parts the curtains on his life.Who is this rail-thin, eighty-eight-year-old with the five-string banjo, whose performances have touched millions of people for more than seven decades? Bob Dylan called him a saint. Joan Baez said, “We all owe our careers to him.” But Seeger’s considerable musical achievements were overshadowed by political controversy when he became perhaps the most blacklisted performer in American history. He was investigated for sedition, harassed by the FBI and the CIA, picketed, and literally stoned by conservative groups. Still, he sang. Today, Seeger remains an icon of conscience and culture, and his classic antiwar songs, sung by Bruce Springsteen and millions of others, live again in the movement against foreign wars. His life holds lessons for surviving repressive times and for turning to music to change the world.

Pete in film: Pete Seeger: The Power of Song

In Pete Seeger: The Power of Song, Director Jim Brown documents the life of one of the greatest American singer/songwriters of the last century. Pete Seeger was the architect of the folk revival, writing some of its best known songs including Where Have All the Flowers Gone, Turn, Turn, Turn and If I Had A Hammer. Largely misunderstood and criticized for his strong beliefs he was picketed, protested, blacklisted, and, in spite of his enormous popularity, banned from commercial television for more than 17 years. Musicians including Bob Dylan, Arlo Guthrie, Joan Baez, Bonnie Raitt, Brice Springsteen, Natalie Maines, and Peter, Paul and Mary appear in this intimate portrait and discuss Seeger s lasting influence on the fabric of American music.