Dan's Papers - November 7, 2008 -

Fifty years after she began her musical career as a seminal player in the 1960s Greenwich Village folk movement, first singing traditional folk songs and songs by her contemporaries, then later her own, Judy Collins is still going strong and remains highly relevant in today's world of music.

Now, on the heels of a tribute album, Born to Breed - A Tribute to Judy Collins - Vol. 1, which was released in Oct. on her label Wildflower Records, and with a backlog of classic songs and covers as well as the new material she is constantly writing, Collins will head back to the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center on Nov. 15, having performed a benefit concert for the small, non-profit theatre in 1997, prior to its renovation.

Interestingly enough, the idea for a tribute album came about because of Chrissie Hynde, lead singer of The Pretenders, who told Collins that one of her top 10 favorite songs of all time was the song "My Father." And Hynde isn't the only big name on board. The album features Collins' covers by iconic performers such as Dolly Parton, Leonard Cohen (a long time friend of Collins) and Joan Baez, as well as the new generation of singer-songwriters who are on their way to becoming classics in their own right, such as Rufus Wainwright, Dar Williams and Shawn Colvin. A portion of proceeds from the album will benefit the Jazz Foundation of America.

Collins became interested in music at an early age, her father was a radio DJ, and she studied classical piano. She eventually picked up a guitar, though, and was moved by the music of Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger. She also performed the songs of her contemporaries, which boasted musicians such as Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Tom Paxton and Phil Ochs. Famously, however, she was a huge influence on the musical career of Cohen, a poet. "He would come to me and ask me whether or not he was writing songs," she said. "In 1966, I also pushed him on stage for the first time."

She's also working on a book, Suite Judy Blue Eyes (yes, she was the inspiration for the Crosby, Stills & Nash song) about 50 years of sex, drugs and rock and roll. But this isn't her first time trying her hand at writing, having written a novel in 1995 and a number of other books, including another memoir, a book about songwriting and one on suicide, which touches upon the suicide of her son as well as her own attempt as a teenager.

Collins, who is constantly working on new material - which she refers to as "the plight and the pleasure" of being a creative person, is working on a record she's tentatively calling Paradise. It'll be released on her label, Wildflower, which she founded in 1999 "out of desperation," based on her dealings with major labels. But Wildflower has taken on an important role in today's music industry, discovering up-and-coming artists and nurturing their growth as musicians, as major labels focus solely on artists that can make them a quick buck. "It may not be much, but it's all I have," she said of her label, adding, "I'm always interested in and looking for new artists. I'm always looking for talented people."

She also says that having her own label is "not a big jump" for her, since early in her career she was given a fair amount of autonomy by other labels, co-producing many of her albums. "It was never a matter of others telling me what to do with my life," she said. "[Wildflower] was a natural step. It just gave me more control."

Collins will be at the WHBPAC on Nov. 15 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $80/$65/$50. For more information, or to purchase tickets, go to whbpac.org or call 631-288-1500. For more information on Collins, go to www.wildflowerrecords.com.