Publication date:
19 December 2012Length of book:
300 pagesPublisher
Scarecrow PressDimensions:
238x162mm6x9"
ISBN-13: 9780810883086
Israel G. “Izzy” Young was the proprietor of the Folklore Center in Greenwich Village from the late 1950s to the early 1970s. The literal center of the New York folk music scene, the Center not only sold records, books, and guitar strings but served as a concert hall, meeting spot, and information kiosk for all folk scene events. Among Young’s first customers was Harry Belafonte; among his regular visitors were Alan Lomax and Pete Seeger. Shortly after his arrival in New York City in 1961, an unknown Bob Dyan banged away at songs on Young’s typewriter. Young would also stage Dylan’s first concert, as well as shows by Joni Mitchell, the Fugs, Emmylou Harris, and Tim Buckley, Doc Watson, Son House, and Mississippi John Hurt.
The Conscience of the Folk Revival: The Writings of Israel “Izzy” Young collects Young’s writing, from his regular column “Frets and Frails” for Sing Out! Magazine (1959-1969) to his commentaries on such contentious issues as copyright and commercialism. Also including his personal recollections of seminal figures, from Bob Dylan and Alan Lomax to Harry Smith and Woody Guthrie, this collection removes the rose tinting of past memoirs by offering Young’s detailed, day-by-day accounts. A key collection of primary sources on the American countercultural scene in New York City, this work will interest not only folk music fans, but students and scholars of American social and cultural history.
The Conscience of the Folk Revival: The Writings of Israel “Izzy” Young collects Young’s writing, from his regular column “Frets and Frails” for Sing Out! Magazine (1959-1969) to his commentaries on such contentious issues as copyright and commercialism. Also including his personal recollections of seminal figures, from Bob Dylan and Alan Lomax to Harry Smith and Woody Guthrie, this collection removes the rose tinting of past memoirs by offering Young’s detailed, day-by-day accounts. A key collection of primary sources on the American countercultural scene in New York City, this work will interest not only folk music fans, but students and scholars of American social and cultural history.
Many fine performers and songwriters flourished in the folk music revival of the 1950s-70s. The general public knows about many of them, but even folk devotees may not know about Izzy Young (b. 1928), a seminal figure in the revival. As a labor of love, Young ran the Greenwich Village store Folklore Center from 1957 to 1973. In addition to offering books, records, and instruments for sale, the Folklore Center became a vital hangout for folk musicians Young encouraged and mentored, for example, Bob Dylan. Young branched out to promote folk concerts, have a radio show, and write articles. This book presents, among other material, all his "Frets and Frails" columns, which ran in the journal Sing Out! from 1959 to 1969. Filled with news of folksingers' lives and creative efforts, the columns offer refreshingly outspoken views of the genre and the music business. Also included in the volume are Young's earlier and later writings and interviews. This material should prove very valuable for researchers of the folk revival and popular culture of the time, and should interest serious fans as well. With this book, Young, who has lived in Sweden since 1973, gets well-deserved recognition. Summing Up: Highly recommended.