Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country | Founded 05-05-05

July 17, 2008 issue

An Appalachian Summer Festival Presents Folk Icon Judy Collins Saturday


An Appalachian Summer Festival brings to the High Country music that speaks to the heart as Judy Collins takes the stage of Appalachian State University’s Farthing Auditorium at 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 19. This performance is supported by Bonnie and Jamie Schaefer and sponsored by Appalachian Hospitality Management and Mast General Store.

Few singers have staying power like that of folk artist Judy Collins. Her dulcet tones and poetic lyrics have electrified generations for nearly 45 illustrious years. With more than 40 albums, numerous top 10 hits, Grammy nominations, and gold and platinum selling albums, Judy Collins is an eclectic artist who has become a living legend in her own right.

Early in Collins’ musical background, she studied classical piano with famed orchestral conductor Antonia Brico as her mentor. At age 13, she made her public debut performing Mozart’s “Concerto for Two Pianos.” By age 16, however, Collins’ love of lyrics and traditional folk song had moved her from playing the Steinway to playing guitar.

In 1961 at The Village Gate in New York, Jac Holzman of Elktra Records heard Collins sing and signed her to what would become a 35-year, 19-album involvement. As the ‘60s grew more rebellious, Collins became drawn to songs by the social poets of the time—artists like Tom Paxton, Phil Ochs and Bob Dylan. She also worked with some of the best musicians during that era—among them, Roger McGuinn of The Byrds, who played guitar on her version of “Mr. Tambourine Man.”

The 1966 album In My Life established Collins’ eclectic nature by stepping into a broad mixture of songs, a characteristic that has stamped her albums ever since. With her next album Wildflowers, she broke ground in the contemporary song movement by asking Joshua Rifkin to arrange the entire album for orchestra. As a turning point in her career, the album produced her first major single, “Both Sides Now” and earned her the first of many Grammy nominations.

Collins started her own independent label, Wildflower Records, in 1999 with an ongoing goal of remastering and rereleasing her early recordings and making them available for the first time on CD. Her latest, and long-awaited release Portrait of an American Girl (2005) brought yet another eclectic group of original songs, along with rare covers, including Train’s “Drops of Jupiter” and Bruce Cockburn’s “Pacing the Cage.”

An Appalachian Summer Festival’s longtime patrons recall Judy Collins’ last festival performance in 1991, when, holding an umbrella, she good-naturedly sang on an outdoor stage in the rain to a drenched and dedicated crowd of enthusiasts. Her magical stage presence is stronger than ever, and patrons look forward to her return—this time to an indoor stage—with no umbrellas required.
Tickets range from $5 to $25. For tickets and information, call 800-841-ARTS(2787) or 828-262-4046 or click to www.appsummer.org.

Want To Go?
Date: Saturday, July 19
Time: 8:00 p.m.
Location: Farthing Auditorium, ASU
Cost: $25 or $18 adults/$15 or $10 students/$10 or $5 children 12 and under