Be not too hard, donovan song 1967

Jean Pierre · August 19, 2023, 09:21:16 AM

In late 1967 Donovan contributed two songs to the Ken Loach film Poor Cow. "Be Not Too Hard" was a musical setting of Christopher Logue's poem September Song, and was later recorded by such artists as Joan Baez and Shusha Guppy.

Just two guitars, bass (uke bass) and melodica

Because it's for a festival Donovan/Dylan

citation wikipedia

QuoteIDuring Bob Dylan's trip to the UK in the spring of 1965, the British music press were making comparisons of the two singer-songwriters which they presented as a rivalry. This prompted The Rolling Stones guitarist Brian Jones to say,

We've been watching Donovan too. He isn't too bad a singer but his stuff sounds like Dylan's. His 'Catch The Wind' sounds like 'Chimes of Freedom'. He's got a song, 'Hey Tangerine Eyes' and it sounds like Dylan's 'Mr. Tambourine Man'.[17]

Donovan is the undercurrent In D. A. Pennebaker's film Dont Look Back documenting Dylan's tour. Near the start of the film, Dylan opens a newspaper and exclaims, "Donovan? Who is this Donovan?" and Alan Price from The Animals spurred the rivalry on by telling Dylan that Donovan is a better guitar player, but that he had only been around for three months. Throughout the film Donovan's name is seen next to Dylan's on newspaper headlines and on posters in the background, and Dylan and his friends refer to him consistently.

Donovan finally appears in the second half of the film, along with Derroll Adams, in Dylan's suite at the Savoy Hotel despite Donovan's management refusing to allow journalists to be present, saying they did not want "any stunt on the lines of the disciple meeting the messiah".[18] According to Pennebaker, Dylan told him not to film the encounter, and Donovan played a song that sounded just like "Mr. Tambourine Man" but with different words. When confronted with lifting his tune, Donovan said that he thought it was an old folk song.[19] Once the camera rolled, Donovan plays his song "To Sing For You" and then asks Dylan to play "Baby Blue". Dylan later told Melody Maker: "He played some songs to me. ... I like him. ... He's a nice guy." Melody Maker noted that Dylan had mentioned Donovan in his song "Talking World War Three Blues" and that the crowd had jeered, to which Dylan had responded backstage: "I didn't mean to put the guy down in my songs. I just did it for a joke, that's all."

cuthbert · August 19, 2023, 10:47:54 AM

Excellent fingerstyle and vocal, JP. This is a Donovan song I wasn't familiar with - you captured his style here beautifully.

Also, thanks for the interesting historical context of Dylan and Donovan during the former's 1965 UK tour. I remember watching Don't Look Back many years ago. I will have to have another viewing sometime!