Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCCLXXXVIII--Richie Havens; San Francisco Bay Blues

 I wrote about this week's tune in one of my earliest posts, wherein I related how I had bought Eric Clapton's Unplugged for my father, who was in the last couple of months of his battle with lung cancer, and the joy the song brought to him.  Eric Clapton's version (it's been covered by many) was my introduction to it, but since Clapton has become a right-wing nut job, I went with Richie Havens' version of it because a) it's better, and b) Havens wasn't a racist jackass who stole his best friend's wife like Clapton.

I also wrote about Richie Havens, and his wonderful song "Follow" about a year and a half ago, so there is no need for a bio this week.  And since Havens passed in 2013, there aren't any updates to his career.

Like "Follow," Havens' version of "San Francisco Bay Blues" was not released as a single.  Also like "Follow," it was released on the album widely considered to be Havens' best work, Mixed Bag, which I will gently remind you peaked at #182 on the Billboard 200.

I'm not going to lie to you:  had "San Francisco Bay Blues" been named "Hudson Bay Blues" the chances are good that I still would have liked the song but being about walking around my birth home and most favorite city in the world most certainly takes it into another stratosphere for me.  Havens tells the tale of a man whose woman has left him, sailed away on an ocean liner, and while he knows he's to blame he's still dreaming she'll come back so he can walk arm in arm with her down by the San Francisco Bay.  Behind an airy musical groove, Havens' vocals capture exquisitely the man's sorrow, his hope, and the romance that is San Francisco.  This one's a little personal as it brings back memories of walking around Sausalito with my family when I was still in my early teens with the bay in the background, but that doesn't make it any less of a gem than it is.

Lyric Sheet:  "I ain't got a nickel/And I ain't got a lousy dime/If she don't come back/I think I'm going to lose my mind..."

Enjoy:

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Peace,

emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCCXXI--Richie Havens: Follow

 A few years back when I was still managing a thrift shop, I had heard Richie Havens version of the Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun" on some cable station that was showing the Woodstock rockumentary and for the first time I really came to appreciate how great it was.  As luck would have it, a few days later someone kindly donated a copy of Havens' greatest hits, which I scooped up for a dollar.  Little did I know that there would be several of his songs I liked just as much as "Here Comes the Sun," and a few even more--such as this week's tune.

Richie Havens was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1941.  At the ripe old age of 20 he headed for Greenwich Village for a chance to better express himself artistically, picked up a guitar shortly thereafter, and by 1966 he had released his first LP.  Havens would go on to develop a sterling reputation both as a singer and as a live performer (his performance at Woodstock was equal to any other band's), and would continue to record and tour through his retirement due to health reasons in 2012.  Havens also belongs to a long list of emaycee faves that have not been elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (Squeeze, the Spinners, Bachman-Turner Overdrive, and the Guess Who to name a few).  For his career, Havens released 22 albums (with one reaching the top thirty), and 13 singles (one hitting the top twenty).  Sadly, Havens died from a heart attack in 2013, leaving a rock solid legacy in the music world, and, in my humble opinion, is one of the most underrated music artists I've ever heard.

(Not sure whether or not this is a) Fun Fact:  Havens requested to be cremated at his death and to have his ashes scattered over the fields where the original Woodstock was held--and his family complied with those wishes.

"Follow" was released on Havens' debut album, Mixed Bag.  The song was not released as a single, and the album did not chart on the Billboard 200.

If, like me, you have a soft spot for folk music then "Follow" should be a cool breeze on a warm summer day for you.  The song features a lightly strummed acoustic guitar, a bass, and a delicate touch of electric guitar, and lets Havens vocals carry the day--which he does with an understated yearning as he passes on an old man's hopes for a younger generation.  The plea--which is more or less to enjoy the bounties which love and nature provide us--is delivered so gently and with such earnestness that if you can harness your inner child for six minutes it will not be lost on you.  There are some songs from the sixties where the message of peace, hope, and love don't age so well, but "Follow" is not one of them.  A timeless classic from a timeless and classic performer.

Lyric Sheet:  "And maybe you can sing to me the words that I just told you/If all the things you feel ain't what they seem/And don't mind me 'cos I ain't nothin' but a dream..."

Enjoy:

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Peace,

emaycee