Joan Baez - Girl Of Constant Sorrow (1962)

Although Joan Baez released her first album in 1960, that wasn't her first appearance on record. In 1958, after she'd graduated from high school, her father accepted a faculty position at MIT, and moved his family from the San Francisco area to Boston, Massachusetts. At that time, it was in the center of the up-and-coming folk-music scene, and Baez began performing near her home in Boston and nearby Cambridge, where she gave her first concert at the Club 47. When designing the poster for the performance, Baez considered changing her performing name to either Rachel Sandperl, the surname of her long-time mentor, Ira Sandperl, or Maria from the song 'They Call the Wind Maria', but she later opted against doing so, fearing that people would accuse her of changing her last name because it was Spanish. The audience at the gig consisted of her parents, her sister Mimi, her boyfriend, and a few friends, resulting in a total of eight patrons. A few months later, Baez and two other folk enthusiasts made plans to record an album in the cellar of a friend's house. The three sang solos and duets, and a family friend designed the album cover, which was released on Veritas Records that same year as 'Folksingers 'Round Harvard Square'. Baez later met Bob Gibson and Odetta, who were at the time two of the most prominent vocalists singing folk and gospel music, and she cites Odetta as a primary influence, along with Marian Anderson and Pete Seeger. Gibson invited Baez to perform with him at the 1959 Newport Folk Festival, where the two sang two duets, and it was this appearance that led to her signing with Vanguard Records and releasing her eponymous debut album the following year. This album showcases her solo and duet performances from the 'Folksinger...' album, as well as some previously unreleased songs from her first two album sessions, all of which show a supremely confident artist even at this early stage in her career. 

Track listing

01 Sail Away Ladies (from 'Folksingers 'Round Harvard Square' 1959) 
02 Lowlands (from 'Folksingers 'Round Harvard Square' 1959)
03 Kitty (from 'Folksingers 'Round Harvard Square', with Bill Wood 1959)
04 Virgin Mary (What You Gonna Call Your Pretty Little Baby) 
                                                                    (from 'Folksingers 'Round Harvard Square' 1959)
05 Girl Of Constant Sorrow (previously unreleased)
06 So Soon In The Morning (from 'Folksingers 'Round Harvard Square', with Bill Wood 1959)
07 I Once Loved A Boy (previously unreleased)
08 Careless Love (from 'Folksingers 'Round Harvard Square', with Bill Wood 1959)
09 On The Banks Of The Ohio (from 'Folksingers 'Round Harvard Square' 1959)
10 I Know You Rider (previously unreleased)
11 Poor Boy (previously unreleased)
12 Don't Weep After Me (from 'Folksingers 'Round Harvard Square', with Bill Wood & 
                                                                                                                    Ted Alevizos 1959)
13 Oh What A Beautiful City (from 'Folksingers 'Round Harvard Square' 1959)
14 Longest Train I Ever Saw (previously unreleased)
15 Black Is The Colour (from 'Folksingers 'Round Harvard Square' 1959)