Odetta - Woke Up This Morning (w My Mind Stayed on Freedom) 1964 - Voice of the Civil Rts Mvmt

[appalachiablue]

- 1964. Odetta Holmes (Dec. 31, 1930 – Dec. 2, 2008), known as Odetta, was an American singer, actress, guitarist, lyricist, & civil rights activist, often referred to as "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement".

Her musical repertoire consisted largely of American folk music, blues, jazz, & spirituals. An important figure in the American folk music revival of the 1950s & 1960s, she influenced many of the key figures of the folk-revival of that time - Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Mavis Staples, & Janis Joplin. In 2011 Time magazine included her recording of "Take This Hammer" on its list of the 100 Greatest Popular Songs, stating that "Rosa Parks was her No.1 fan, & Martin Luther King Jr. called her the queen of American folk music."

.. Legacy: Odetta influenced Harry Belafonte, who "cited her as a key influence" on his musical career; Bob Dylan, who said, "The first thing that turned me on to folk singing was Odetta. I heard a record of hers Odetta Sings Ballads & Blues in a record store.. I went out & traded my electric guitar & amplifier for an acoustical guitar, a flat-top Gibson..;
Joan Baez, who said, "Odetta was a goddess. Her passion moved me. I learned everything she sang"; Janis Joplin, who "spent much of her adolescence listening to Odetta, who was also the first person Janis imitated when she started singing"; Poet Maya Angelou, "If only one could be sure that every 50 years a voice & a soul like Odetta's would come along, the centuries would pass so quickly & painlessly we would hardly recognize time"..

In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked Odetta at no. 171 on its list of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time...https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odetta

[panader0]

1. My friend's older sister turned me on to Odetta about '64.

She also turned me on to the Beatles, Dylan and Seeger. Oh, and weed.

[appalachiablue]

2. She had great taste, lucky you! That was a very special time w lots of hope, creativity & energy.