Sixty Four
Encyclopedia
Sixty Four is the twenty-first studio album
and twenty-sixth album overall from Scottish
singer-songwriter
Donovan
. It is composed of demo tracks recorded by Donovan in 1964. Sixty Four was released in the United States
in February 2004 (Donovan Discs).
and recorded several demo
songs. At the time, these demos were intended to circulate within the record company and were not intended for public release. The tapes were subsequently archived and their existence was relatively unknown to the public.
When Donovan was assisting with the compilation of his first compact disc boxed set Troubadour: The Definitive Collection 1964-1976
in the early 1990's, he gained possession of the original demos. Two of the songs were released on the boxed set; covers of Tim Hardin
's "London Town" and Buffy Sainte-Marie
's "Co'dine". The remainder of the tapes remained unreleased.
After the release of Sutras
in 1996, Donovan focused on reorganizing his business around his own website and launching his own independent music label, Donovan Discs. Donovan Discs issued the set of demos as Sixty Four exclusively through Donovan's new website. A limited number of copies were signed by Donovan and also sold from the website.
The demo tapes feature an 18 year old Donovan playing guitar and mouth harp. His style is remarkably close to that of both Woody Guthrie
and Bob Dylan
, but the songs also feature a distinct style that further developed on Donovan's first two albums, What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid
and Fairytale
.
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
and twenty-sixth album overall from Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Donovan
Donovan
Donovan Donovan Donovan (born Donovan Philips Leitch (born 10 May 1946) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Emerging from the British folk scene, he developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelia, and world music...
. It is composed of demo tracks recorded by Donovan in 1964. Sixty Four was released in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in February 2004 (Donovan Discs).
History
In the summer of 1964, Donovan negotiated his first record contract with Pye RecordsPye Records
Pye Records was a British record label. In its first incarnation, perhaps Pye's best known artists were Lonnie Donegan , Petula Clark , The Searchers , The Kinks , Sandie Shaw and Brotherhood of Man...
and recorded several demo
Demo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
songs. At the time, these demos were intended to circulate within the record company and were not intended for public release. The tapes were subsequently archived and their existence was relatively unknown to the public.
When Donovan was assisting with the compilation of his first compact disc boxed set Troubadour: The Definitive Collection 1964-1976
Troubadour: The Definitive Collection 1964-1976
-External links:*...
in the early 1990's, he gained possession of the original demos. Two of the songs were released on the boxed set; covers of Tim Hardin
Tim Hardin
James Timothy "Tim" Hardin was an American folk musician and composer. He wrote the Top 40 hits "If I Were a Carpenter", covered by, among others, Joan Baez, Bobby Darin, Johnny Cash, Ramblin' Jack Elliot, and Robert Plant, and "Reason to Believe", covered by many, including Rod Stewart, as well...
's "London Town" and Buffy Sainte-Marie
Buffy Sainte-Marie
Buffy Sainte-Marie, OC is a Canadian Cree singer-songwriter, musician, composer, visual artist, educator, pacifist, and social activist. Throughout her career in all of these areas, her work has focused on issues of Indigenous peoples of the Americas. Her singing and writing repertoire includes...
's "Co'dine". The remainder of the tapes remained unreleased.
After the release of Sutras
Sutras (album)
Sutras is the nineteenth studio album, and twenty-second album overall, from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It was released in the UK and the US on October 14, 1996...
in 1996, Donovan focused on reorganizing his business around his own website and launching his own independent music label, Donovan Discs. Donovan Discs issued the set of demos as Sixty Four exclusively through Donovan's new website. A limited number of copies were signed by Donovan and also sold from the website.
The demo tapes feature an 18 year old Donovan playing guitar and mouth harp. His style is remarkably close to that of both Woody Guthrie
Woody Guthrie
Woodrow Wilson "Woody" Guthrie is best known as an American singer-songwriter and folk musician, whose musical legacy includes hundreds of political, traditional and children's songs, ballads and improvised works. He frequently performed with the slogan This Machine Kills Fascists displayed on his...
and Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
, but the songs also feature a distinct style that further developed on Donovan's first two albums, What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid
What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid
What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid is the debut album from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It was released in the United Kingdom four days after Donovan's 19th birthday on 14 May 1965, through Pye Records . Terry Kennedy, Peter Eden, and Geoff Stephens produced the album...
and Fairytale
Fairytale (album)
Fairytale is the second album from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It was first released in the United Kingdom on October 22, 1965 through Pye Records . The U.S. version of Fairytale was released by Hickory Records in November 1965 with a slightly different set of songs...
.
Track listing
- "Crazy 'Bout a Woman" (Jesse FullerJesse FullerJesse Fuller was an American one-man band musician, best known for his song "San Francisco Bay Blues".-Early life:...
) – 2:42 - "Talkin' Pop Star Blues" (Donovan Leitch) – 3:29
- "Dirty Old TownDirty Old Town"Dirty Old Town" is a song written by Ewan MacColl in 1949 that was made popular by The Dubliners and has been recorded by many others since.-History:...
" (Ewan MacCollEwan MacCollEwan MacColl was an English folk singer, songwriter, socialist, actor, poet, playwright, and record producer. He was married to theatre director Joan Littlewood, and later to American folksinger Peggy Seeger. He collaborated with Littlewood in the theatre and with Seeger in folk music...
) – 2:31 - "Keep on Truckin'" (traditional; arranged by Donovan Leitch) – 2:19
- "Co'dine" (Buffy Sainte-MarieBuffy Sainte-MarieBuffy Sainte-Marie, OC is a Canadian Cree singer-songwriter, musician, composer, visual artist, educator, pacifist, and social activist. Throughout her career in all of these areas, her work has focused on issues of Indigenous peoples of the Americas. Her singing and writing repertoire includes...
) – 4:47 - "London Town" (Tim HardinTim HardinJames Timothy "Tim" Hardin was an American folk musician and composer. He wrote the Top 40 hits "If I Were a Carpenter", covered by, among others, Joan Baez, Bobby Darin, Johnny Cash, Ramblin' Jack Elliot, and Robert Plant, and "Reason to Believe", covered by many, including Rod Stewart, as well...
) – 4:08 - "Isle of Sadness" (Donovan Leitch) – 3:03
- "Darkness of My Night" (Donovan Leitch) – 3:28
- "Freedom Road" (Emerson Harper and Langston HughesLangston HughesJames Mercer Langston Hughes was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist. He was one of the earliest innovators of the then-new literary art form jazz poetry. Hughes is best known for his work during the Harlem Renaissance...
) – 2:06