Today is Buffy Sainte-Marie's birthday and I'm celebrating the day with a mammoth BuffyFest of 100 of my favourite songs of hers. The beauty of having a long career is a lot of records to choose from (even if the 80s did pass by with no Buffy music at all). It's 47 years since Buffy's first album, 'It's My Way!' was released, and she's still doing it her way.
I've been listening to all sorts of music today, from experimental electronic sounds from the late 60s to lush, orchestrated love songs, with powwow and country and folk and dance and rockabilly and pop music all in there somewhere. Buffy keeps on moving, keeps developing.
It's also nice to hear songs I don't often hear since they're not on albums or on CD, like the version of 'Until It's Time For You To Go' from 1965 that's only available as a UK single, which I always think of as a French version because of it's left bank sounds. It's a memory-jogger sometimes to really listen to the words and become re-acquainted with songs, such as realising again that 'Soulful Shade Of Blue' is a tender song of young love and hope, and as such is doubly beautiful. As well as lush sounds Buffy also does sparse, such as 'Lazarus' which is just her voice and hand claps in an echoing studio, but oh so powerful. I'd love to hear her sing that song one day.
Buffy is coming back to the UK in the summer to play the Cornbury Festival in Oxford and Union Chapel in London - I will (of course) be at Union Chapel. I've been wondering if Buffy knows it really is a working church with the acoustics to match and whether she'll have her full band or treat is as an acoustic set? A powwow chorus in that venue will be spectacular. Either way, I'll be happy.
And here's Buffy from last year playing 'Cho Cho Fire' with her great band. Enjoy!
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