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From today's perspective, the category seems almost odd. Singer-Songwriter? If you wrote it, you may as well sing it, right? But this is, in many ways, a line of thought that started with the Beatles and hit a high point with the Singer-Songwriters. Go back a few years before the Beatles and the tasks of writing, singing, and playing the instruments on a recording were typically divided amongst distinct groups. Buddy Holly, singing and performing his own material, was an anomaly; the Beatles helped make Holly's approach the norm. In their wake came a group of artists who made the fact that they "did their own stuff" the defining feature.
James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Randy Newman, John Prine — these names are among the many that recur in lists of the Singer-Songwriters. Different from the Beatles, they didn't tend to present as a group. They often had groups, but when one went to see them perform, it was to see the individual — that's where the focus was. Sometimes their voices were idiosyncratic, often their visions were uniquely their own. Randy Newman certainly offered a case study in just that.
From a perspective of social context, the Singer-Songwriters emerged out of the idealism of the 1960s but marked a shift away from utopian ideas of collectivity. These artists embodied the "inward turn" of the 1970s. Their songs were often intimate, very personal reflections on their internal experiences. More often than not, they came into the room as poets. Their performances were subdued, eschewing changes of clothes or dance moves. Things got quiet.
The lessons in this chapter will explore all of these changes, isolating a few musicians to explore their work and their historical moment in some detail. In addition, what might be called a post-Singer-Songwriter class, including Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Tom Petty, Bob Seger, and others, will allow students to consider how Rock and Roll's energy came back into popular music with the power of the Singer-Songwriters left intact.
lesson:
Singer-Songwriters and the Environmental Movement
How did the singer-songwriters of the 1960s and 70s address the concerns of the environmental movement?
lesson:
Female Singer-Songwriters in the Early 1970s
What did the success of the female Singer-Songwriters of the early 1970s reveal about the changing roles of women in the United States?
lesson:
Singer-Songwriters and the Environmental Movement (Elementary Version)
How did the singer-songwriters of the 1960s and 70s address the concerns of the environmental movement?
Video
video:
Woodstock
<p>From today's perspective, the category seems almost odd. Singer-Songwriter? If you wrote it, you may as well sing it, right? But this is, in many ways, a line of thought that started with the Beatles and hit a high point with the Singer-Songwriters. Go back a few years before the Beatles and the tasks of writing, singing, and playing the instruments on a recording were typically divided amongst distinct groups. Buddy Holly, singing and performing his own material, was an anomaly; the Beatles helped make Holly's approach the norm. In their wake came a group of artists who made the fact that they "did their own stuff" the defining feature.</p> <p>James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Randy Newman, John Prine -- these names are among the many that recur in lists of the Singer-Songwriters. Different from the Beatles, they didn't tend to present as a group. They often had groups, but when one went to see them perform, it was to see the individual -- that's where the focus was. Sometimes their voices were idiosyncratic, often their visions were uniquely their own. Randy Newman certainly offered a case study in just that.</p> <p>From a perspective of social context, the Singer-Songwriters emerged out of the idealism of the 1960s but marked a shift away from utopian ideas of collectivity. These artists embodied the "inward turn" of the 1970s. Their songs were often intimate, very personal reflections on their internal experiences. More often than not, they came into the room as poets. Their performances were subdued, eschewing changes of clothes or dance moves. Things got quiet.</p> <p>The lessons in this chapter will explore all of these changes, isolating a few musicians to explore their work and their historical moment in some detail. In addition, what might be called a post-Singer-Songwriter class, including Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Tom Petty, Bob Seger, and others, will allow students to consider how Rock and Roll's energy came back into popular music with the power of the Singer-Songwriters left intact. </p>
video:
At Seventeen
<p>From today's perspective, the category seems almost odd. Singer-Songwriter? If you wrote it, you may as well sing it, right? But this is, in many ways, a line of thought that started with the Beatles and hit a high point with the Singer-Songwriters. Go back a few years before the Beatles and the tasks of writing, singing, and playing the instruments on a recording were typically divided amongst distinct groups. Buddy Holly, singing and performing his own material, was an anomaly; the Beatles helped make Holly's approach the norm. In their wake came a group of artists who made the fact that they "did their own stuff" the defining feature.</p> <p>James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Randy Newman, John Prine -- these names are among the many that recur in lists of the Singer-Songwriters. Different from the Beatles, they didn't tend to present as a group. They often had groups, but when one went to see them perform, it was to see the individual -- that's where the focus was. Sometimes their voices were idiosyncratic, often their visions were uniquely their own. Randy Newman certainly offered a case study in just that.</p> <p>From a perspective of social context, the Singer-Songwriters emerged out of the idealism of the 1960s but marked a shift away from utopian ideas of collectivity. These artists embodied the "inward turn" of the 1970s. Their songs were often intimate, very personal reflections on their internal experiences. More often than not, they came into the room as poets. Their performances were subdued, eschewing changes of clothes or dance moves. Things got quiet.</p> <p>The lessons in this chapter will explore all of these changes, isolating a few musicians to explore their work and their historical moment in some detail. In addition, what might be called a post-Singer-Songwriter class, including Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Tom Petty, Bob Seger, and others, will allow students to consider how Rock and Roll's energy came back into popular music with the power of the Singer-Songwriters left intact. </p>
video:
Before the Deluge
<p>From today's perspective, the category seems almost odd. Singer-Songwriter? If you wrote it, you may as well sing it, right? But this is, in many ways, a line of thought that started with the Beatles and hit a high point with the Singer-Songwriters. Go back a few years before the Beatles and the tasks of writing, singing, and playing the instruments on a recording were typically divided amongst distinct groups. Buddy Holly, singing and performing his own material, was an anomaly; the Beatles helped make Holly's approach the norm. In their wake came a group of artists who made the fact that they "did their own stuff" the defining feature.</p> <p>James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Randy Newman, John Prine -- these names are among the many that recur in lists of the Singer-Songwriters. Different from the Beatles, they didn't tend to present as a group. They often had groups, but when one went to see them perform, it was to see the individual -- that's where the focus was. Sometimes their voices were idiosyncratic, often their visions were uniquely their own. Randy Newman certainly offered a case study in just that.</p> <p>From a perspective of social context, the Singer-Songwriters emerged out of the idealism of the 1960s but marked a shift away from utopian ideas of collectivity. These artists embodied the "inward turn" of the 1970s. Their songs were often intimate, very personal reflections on their internal experiences. More often than not, they came into the room as poets. Their performances were subdued, eschewing changes of clothes or dance moves. Things got quiet.</p> <p>The lessons in this chapter will explore all of these changes, isolating a few musicians to explore their work and their historical moment in some detail. In addition, what might be called a post-Singer-Songwriter class, including Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Tom Petty, Bob Seger, and others, will allow students to consider how Rock and Roll's energy came back into popular music with the power of the Singer-Songwriters left intact. </p>
video:
(You Make Me Feel Like a) Natural Woman
<p>From today's perspective, the category seems almost odd. Singer-Songwriter? If you wrote it, you may as well sing it, right? But this is, in many ways, a line of thought that started with the Beatles and hit a high point with the Singer-Songwriters. Go back a few years before the Beatles and the tasks of writing, singing, and playing the instruments on a recording were typically divided amongst distinct groups. Buddy Holly, singing and performing his own material, was an anomaly; the Beatles helped make Holly's approach the norm. In their wake came a group of artists who made the fact that they "did their own stuff" the defining feature.</p> <p>James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Randy Newman, John Prine -- these names are among the many that recur in lists of the Singer-Songwriters. Different from the Beatles, they didn't tend to present as a group. They often had groups, but when one went to see them perform, it was to see the individual -- that's where the focus was. Sometimes their voices were idiosyncratic, often their visions were uniquely their own. Randy Newman certainly offered a case study in just that.</p> <p>From a perspective of social context, the Singer-Songwriters emerged out of the idealism of the 1960s but marked a shift away from utopian ideas of collectivity. These artists embodied the "inward turn" of the 1970s. Their songs were often intimate, very personal reflections on their internal experiences. More often than not, they came into the room as poets. Their performances were subdued, eschewing changes of clothes or dance moves. Things got quiet.</p> <p>The lessons in this chapter will explore all of these changes, isolating a few musicians to explore their work and their historical moment in some detail. In addition, what might be called a post-Singer-Songwriter class, including Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Tom Petty, Bob Seger, and others, will allow students to consider how Rock and Roll's energy came back into popular music with the power of the Singer-Songwriters left intact. </p>
video:
Billy Joel
<p>From today's perspective, the category seems almost odd. Singer-Songwriter? If you wrote it, you may as well sing it, right? But this is, in many ways, a line of thought that started with the Beatles and hit a high point with the Singer-Songwriters. Go back a few years before the Beatles and the tasks of writing, singing, and playing the instruments on a recording were typically divided amongst distinct groups. Buddy Holly, singing and performing his own material, was an anomaly; the Beatles helped make Holly's approach the norm. In their wake came a group of artists who made the fact that they "did their own stuff" the defining feature.</p> <p>James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Randy Newman, John Prine -- these names are among the many that recur in lists of the Singer-Songwriters. Different from the Beatles, they didn't tend to present as a group. They often had groups, but when one went to see them perform, it was to see the individual -- that's where the focus was. Sometimes their voices were idiosyncratic, often their visions were uniquely their own. Randy Newman certainly offered a case study in just that.</p> <p>From a perspective of social context, the Singer-Songwriters emerged out of the idealism of the 1960s but marked a shift away from utopian ideas of collectivity. These artists embodied the "inward turn" of the 1970s. Their songs were often intimate, very personal reflections on their internal experiences. More often than not, they came into the room as poets. Their performances were subdued, eschewing changes of clothes or dance moves. Things got quiet.</p> <p>The lessons in this chapter will explore all of these changes, isolating a few musicians to explore their work and their historical moment in some detail. In addition, what might be called a post-Singer-Songwriter class, including Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Tom Petty, Bob Seger, and others, will allow students to consider how Rock and Roll's energy came back into popular music with the power of the Singer-Songwriters left intact. </p>
Print Journalism
article:
Joni Mitchell: Clouds
JONI MITCHELL has written songs for Tom Rush, and the Fairport Convention have used her songs on both their albums. In each case, I'd had the idea of an intricate delicacy; but tiny intonations in both interpretations indicated that the singers didn't own the songs they'd chosen. Rush is one of those singers whose songs lose tautness through musing; and Judy Dyble, the original Fairport singer, although she feels her songs, fails to charge them. An English girl singing "All alone in Carolina, and talking to you," for example, loses a crucial sense of place. Fairport Convention, however, are a...
article:
James Taylor: Sweet Baby James (Warner Bros.)
JAMES TAYLOR was the first artist signed to the Beatles’ Apple label, and ironically, the first to leave it as well. While there, he produced an album so effective in its understatement that it went almost unnoticed. Since then he has drifted into the waiting arms of the Warner/Reprise empire (which is beginning to look like a haven for dispossessed artists) for whom he has produced this second album. I’m glad to report that this new album is as beautiful as the first. Glad for myself, because a visit from Mr. Taylor is always welcomed. I must admit that Sweet Baby James took...