Joan Baez
Joan Baez (b. 1941) is an American singer-songwriter and activist. Baez was one of the most notable protest singers of the 1960s, standing against the Vietnam War and supporting the Civil Rights Movement and environmentalism. Though her own songwriting skills have been praised, she is mainly regarded as an interpreter of others' works, most prominently those of Bob Dylan.
Baez's music is fairly varied, ranging from folk to country to pop. Her best-known song is likely 1975's "Diamonds & Rust", a nostalgic reflection on Baez's failed relationship with Bob Dylan. It was notably covered by Judas Priest on their album Sin after Sin.
Tropes associated with Joan Baez include:
- Folk Music
- Protest Song: "There but for Fortune", "What Have they Done to the Rain?"
- Signature Song: "Diamonds & Rust", a chronicle of her early-60s fling with Bob Dylan, later covered by Judas Priest
- Where Everybody Knows Your Flame: Her song "Altar Boy and the Thief" centers around a gay bar.
- Woodstock: Baez headlined the first night of the famous 1969 festival