Phil Ochs (December 19, 1940 – April 9, 1976)

[wgscott]

Although Pearl Jam and Nirvana are more of my "generation" (Eddie Vedder is about the same age and born in the same town I was), and I only heard of Phil Ochs about the time I was 27 (in grad school in Berkeley), his work nonetheless is something I find unparalleled in raw politically informed emotion. I was reading liner notes accompanying Billy Bragg's song "I dreamed I saw Phil Ochs last night" (set to the tune of Joe Hill), in which he states "New Bob Dylans were ten a penny in the late sixties but there was only ever one Phil Ochs. Both artists came out of that same Greenwich Village protest music scene but when Dylan became a rock star in 1966, Phil stayed true to the political tradition of Woody Guthrie...When he died in 1976 his FBI file was 410 pages long. America has yet to produce another songwriter like him."

 

His suicide was by hanging, but essentially the product of prolonged alcoholism and manic depression.

 

If you haven't heard Phil Ochs (yes, there would be a reason for that), may I suggest:

 

 

There and Now: Live in Vancouver 1968 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Priaptor]

Although Pearl Jam and Nirvana are more of my "generation" (Eddie Vedder is about the same age and born in the same town I was), and I only heard of Phil Ochs about the time I was 27 (in grad school in Berkeley), his work nonetheless is something I find unparalleled in raw politically informed emotion. I was reading liner notes accompanying Billy Bragg's song "I dreamed I saw Phil Ochs last night" (set to the tune of Joe Hill), in which he states "New Bob Dylans were ten a penny in the late sixties but there was only ever one Phil Ochs. Both artists came out of that same Greenwich Village protest music scene but when Dylan became a rock star in 1966, Phil stayed true to the political tradition of Woody Guthrie...When he died in 1976 his FBI file was 410 pages long. America has yet to produce another songwriter like him."

 

His suicide was by hanging, but essentially the product of prolonged alcoholism and manic depression.

 

If you haven't heard Phil Ochs (yes, there would be a reason for that), may I suggest:

 

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There and Now: Live in Vancouver 1968 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Thanks for posting. I saw Ochs as a kid in a tiny little cafe/coffee shop in Kew Gardens, Queens. He was amazing as was the venue. The Interlude Cafe.

 

A Picture History of Kew Gardens, NY - The Austin Street Book Store

 

As it happened the Interlude Cafe was at the murder site of Kitty Genovese who became the victim of what became known as bystander effect or "Genovese Syndrome".

 

Murder of Kitty Genovese - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

My best friend's older sister took us there to see Ochs as she was a big fan. Think about it-seeing a genius like him in a tiny coffee shop out of the mainstream Village venues all to ourselves. It was amazing.

[astrotoy]

Thanks for bringing up Phil Ochs. I was in college from 1963-1967 and Phil released his first three albums on Elektra - I bought them all - it was the same label that Judy Collins released her initial albums, about the same time. We would hear Ochs on the radio, singing his inimitable protest songs. I still remember his protest of the Vietnam war, where we were only sending "advisors" during the early years of the Johnson administration.

 

He sang with both passion and irony, many very funny songs with serious undertones.

 

Joan Baez, Tom Paxton, Judy Collins, Bob Dylan (who sang at our end of the year Freshman concert/dance, bringing his then girlfriend Joan Baez). Jose Feliciano, were all beginning their careers at about the same time as Ochs. I think he played at the Club 47 in Cambridge along with many of these same people.

 

I just checked, I still have six of his albums. The first one from 1964 includes "Talking Vietnam", "The Bells" putting Edgar Allan Poe's poem to music, "Too Many Martyrs" about the assassination of Medgar Evers in Mississippi.

 

Larry

[wgscott]

Here is what I have ripped to the HD:

 

 

This one is very unusual, but among my favorites:

 

[Priaptor]

IMHO "Jim Dean of Indiana" was his best and one of the best folk songs ever

[Jud]

As it happened the Interlude Cafe was at the murder site of Kitty Genovese who became the victim of what became known as bystander effect or "Genovese Syndrome".

 

Murder of Kitty Genovese - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

 

A camp counselor was a great fan, so for the month I spent at camp in the summer of '68 I heard "Small Circle of Friends" over the loudspeakers pretty much every day.

[Allan F]

I saw Phil Ochs when he performed at the 1964 Newport Folk Festival (also Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Peter Paul & Mary, Judy Collins, Jose Feliciano and Odetta). Phil was always very passionate about the issues that he sung about. But there was a tender side to him too, as shown in his song, "Changes".

[TubeLover]

I saw Phil Ochs when he performed at the 1964 Newport Folk Festival (also Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Peter Paul & Mary, Judy Collins, Jose Feliciano and Odetta). Phil was always very passionate about the issues that he sung about. But there was a tender side to him too, as shown in his song, "Changes".

 

I learned about, and understood Phil Ochs much later then the 60's, but that does not lessen my amazement at his impact. He was an incredible song writer, and a passionate artist beyond what ordinary mortals can achieve. I also strongly recommend listening to his live performances as noted earlier, but beyond that, I would tell you that this collection, comprised of artists who truly understood and honored his contributions to music, is required listening.

 

Amazon.com: What's That I Hear? The Songs of Phil Ochs: Music

[sfox7076]

I imagine hearing Ochs sing near the site of the Kitty Genovese murder would be powerful. Hearing him sing "Outside a Small Circle of Friends" there would blow my mind. I really like Gun Fight at Carnegie Hall (probably the story more than the music). Gunfight at Carnegie Hall - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia He was always a subversive, even to his own fans.

[Priaptor]

I imagine hearing Ochs sing near the site of the Kitty Genovese murder would be powerful. Hearing him sing "Outside a Small Circle of Friends" there would blow my mind. I really like Gun Fight at Carnegie Hall (probably the story more than the music). Gunfight at Carnegie Hall - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia He was always a subversive, even to his own fans.

 

I was talking to my friend about that time we went to Kew Gardens with his older sister. I forgot, that while it was his older sister who "really liked" Ochs, it was his mother who loved him. His mother was way ahead of her time given the time. As a kid Kitty Genovese had no meaning to me when I saw Ochs and it was only later in life, when I met my wife to be, who grew up a block away from the incident and the place where I saw Ochs. The place is still a little coffee shop.

[wgscott]

Can you elaborate a little bit? I'm now lost. Sorry...

[Allan F]

Can you elaborate a little bit? I'm now lost. Sorry...

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Kitty_Genovese

[Cycleman]

I'm of the age where Phil Ochs very much influenced my views in the 1960s.

 

I saw him perform live twice, both of note:

 

* A concert in 1966 at the Hunter College Auditorium in NYC. Of note was the opening act, some group I had not heard of back then. The Doors. Funny combo, but only in retrospect.

 

* At the "Unbirthday Party" for LBJ in Chicago at the Democratic convention in August 1968. Others sang at that event, but he was the prime performer. As Bill's initial post noted, there was no one who combined music and politics like Phil Ochs did.

 

Excellent documentary about him I saw on Netflix. When I watched it with my wife, who is 6 years younger and came from a conservative family, she understood why he meant so much to me.

 

And they never made that bio-movie about him, which -- several years ago -- was going to have Sean Penn as Ochs. Could have been interesting.

 

Dave, who notes that the man had a great and rich voice in addition to being a lyrical and passionate songwriter