Since the players on the session made few mistakes and worked at this all the time, the recording was over very quickly; there was time left over so some country standards were tracked and both albums released the following year as Thinking Of Woody Guthrie and Tonight I'm Singing Just For You. Sam Charters, noted blues writer, producer and poet, was in charge of the record which was entitled Electric Music For The Mind and Body. Publication date 1971-06-26 (check for other copies) Topics Live concert. Superstitious Blues - Wikipedia Since his performance at Woodstock, Country Joe McDonald has remained an outspoken activist for social and political causes that he believes in. Grove won its fight to gain the film's entry and the film opened in New York in 1971. Soldiers played it in their hooches on top-of-the-line tape decks theyd purchase cheap at the PX or via mail order from Japan; they listened to it over headphones in helicopters and planes. Joe's parents, Florence and Worden, had moved there after the War, World War II that is, when they began to have difficulties of a political kind. Over six summer Sundays, an estimated 300,000 people in total gathered to see acts including Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight & the Pips and like the upstate Woodstock crowd Sly and the Family Stone. Woodstock Performers: Country Joe McDonald - Spinditty Two years later, the Veterans of Foreign Wars' magazine marked Woodstock's 40th anniversary with a cover story spotlighting some 109 service members who died in Vietnam during the festival and "are never lauded by the illustrious spokesmen for the 'Sixties Generation.'". Starting in 1982 Joe began actively working with and for Vietnam Veterans Against The War, Swords To Plowshares and Vietnam Veterans Of America to further the cause of the thousands of veterans who had become disenfranchised by the system's neglect. He learned to play the guitar and trombone, but his father's loss of employment due to suspected communist ties before the House Un-American Activities Committee changed his world view forever. McDonald, 44, never served in Vietnam. Country Joe McDonald is an American singer/songwriter and a Navy veteran. For those born after the last helicopters sank beneath the waves of the South China Sea, movies, documentaries and TV shows have repeatedly used music as a sonic background for depicting Vietnam as a tug of war between pro-war hawks and pro-peace doves. Day 2 at Woodstock meant the rock bands were up, and the seventh act to appear at Woodstock on Saturday August 16, 1969 was Canned Heat. But hey -- 2023 is going to be fabulous . "Not So Sweet Martha Lorraine," released as the band's first 45, only made it to #98 on Billboard's "Top 100," but became a staple of American college radio. After his enlistment, he attended Los Angeles City College for a year. A scheduled, prepaid appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show was canceled, and they were banned for life (although they got to keep the money). America needs closure on the Vietnam experience, McDonald said. Peace. The suit was brought by Ory's daughter Babette, who held the copyright at the time. Likewise, For What Its Worth by Buffalo Springfield, the song frequently played to accompany film depictions of antiwar protests, had nothing to do with Vietnam per se Stephen Stills wrote it about a riot on the Sunset Strip yet it was as treasured by scores of Vietnam soldiers as it was by protesters in America. The war was coming to an end, and those of us still there, and the veterans who were already back home, understood that it would be music that helped us reintegrate into civilian life. It became an underground favorite throughout Europe and the title track is still played on French radio. The man (repeat: man) has written feminist songs that are both catchy and sensible. Thinking back, Breda rues that "subsequent generations didn't have the opportunity to experience something that I consider to have been so beautiful. The cheer was on the original recording of "I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-To-Die Rag", being played right before the song on the LP of the same name. Carrying on the Spirit of Peace and Love (June 2016 Issue) Country Joe McDonald has carried on the spirit of the 1960s by singing for peace and justice, speaking against war and environmental damage, and advocating fair treatment for military veterans and homeless people. The band's popularity was further enhanced by the release in the summer of that year of a second EP -- called the "white EP" -- which contained three songs: "Bass Strings," "Section 43" and "(Thing Called) Love." "Some people alluded to peace and stuff, but I was talking about Vietnam," McDonald said in a phone interview. The cheer became popular and the crowd would spell out F-I-S-H when the band performed live. Born a red-diaper baby he was named after Joseph Stalin he grew up in a Communist household in Southern California. The Woodstock audience did include at least one Vietnam veteran, snapped in a well-known photo. Free shipping for many products! I was sued by my McDonald's coworkers after winning $105m . One of his solo albums, the 1973 Vanguard LP Paris Sessions, was reviewed by Robert Christgau in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981), in which he said: "Amazing. "We went for the music and found something so much more, and so much more important camaraderie," says Karen Breda, who was 17 when she went to Woodstock. The powerful sister of North Korea's leader says her country would stage more provocative displays of its military might in response to a new U.S.-South Korean agreement to intensify nuclear . Five Musical Facts About Country Joe McDonald. [2], McDonald was born in Washington, D.C., and grew up in El Monte, California, where he was student conductor and president of his high school marching band. Heres My Soundtrack. Headliner Nina Simone delivered a set infused with songs of black empowerment and a militant poem that asked black people are you ready to instigate social change. Discover Best of Country Joe McDonald by Country Joe & the Fish, Country Joe McDonald released in 1998. Later in 2005, political commentator Bill O'Reilly compared McDonald to Cuban President Fidel Castro, remarking on McDonald's involvement in Cindy Sheehan's protests against the Iraq War.[13]. [3] At the age of 17, he enlisted in the United States Navy for three years and was stationed in Japan. McDonald wrote the song "Janis" about his former girlfriend Janis Joplin, who also performed at Woodstock on Day 2. It's Finally Over After serving in the Navy, McDonald moved to California and became heavily involved in the protest movement at Berkeley. See how this article appeared when it was originally published on NYTimes.com. Country Joe performing at the 1979 Woodstock reunion. He didnt realize Fixin-to-Die had reached the grunts in the jungle until he worked with Jane Fonda on a U.S.O.-style antiwar tour called Free the Army (coincidentally, it was also known by the other F-word), and vets started telling him how much they loved his American blasphemy. Last edited on 28 February 2023, at 01:20, The "Fish" Cheer/I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-to-Die Rag, Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies, The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music, "Country Joe McDonald Revives Anti-War Anthem", "Country Joe McDonald, The Country Joe Band", "Show 42 The Acid Test: Psychedelics and a sub-culture emerge in San Francisco. 1 song of 1966, is as much a reflection of the shifting politics of the country as it is about changes in musical tastes. By now he had decided that his records were to come out on his label, and a series of them did. Free shipping for many products! In Worcester, Massachusetts, McDonald was arrested for obscenity and fined $500 for uttering "fuck" in public. The fantasy Rambo is in, but the reality of what it means to be soldiering is not in. By the next year Joe and his wife Robin had agreed to take part in an agit-prop theater group The F.T.A. Rain and mud abounded. That was a revelation to me., https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/10/opinion/country-joe-vietnam-woodstock.html. The Fish Cheer/I-Feel-Like-Im-Fixin-to-Die Rag. President Joe Biden announces 2024 reelection campaign The group organized by Fonda and actor Donald Sutherland featured theater skits created by Ann and Roger Bowen, alumnae of the famed Chicago improvisation group "Second City". The fast-food chain will be giving UK customers the chance to tuck into the . It blames leaders and parents, not soldiers. In the summer of 1967, they were offered a series of gigs on the East Coast. February, 1968, Marine Cpl. They knew the routine. There are conflicting reports about when McDonald performed at Woodstock. It was a trek to get near the stage. Subscribe Log In Manage. [7]. [8][18], Seven's name was the inspiration behind the character Six on Blossom, cited by Don Reo on PeopleTV special Blossom Cast Reunion aired 2017, timestamp 10:07-10:33. [14] McDonald has noted that his girlfriend at the time, Janis Joplin, showed much anger for breaking up with her to be with Menken but asked him to write a song about her; the result was "Janis". McDonald has recorded 33 albums and has written hundreds of songs over a career spanning 60 years. More than any other American war, Vietnam had a soundtrack, and you listened to it whether you were marching in the jungle or in the streets. It was to have contained Joe's most topical song "Fixin' to Die Rag" but it was left off at the urging of the Vanguard's president Maynard Solomon who felt that it would become a "thorn in their side and prevent the band from getting any single play on the radio." The hits were our hits: I Feel-Like-Im-Fixin-to-Die Rag, Fortunate Son and the song more than one Vietnam veteran has called our national anthem, the Animals We Gotta Get Out of This Place.. If you were fortunate enough to return home from Vietnam, music echoed through those secret places where you stored memories, including some you never shared with your parents, spouse or children for decades. The whole thing.". Its not a pacifist song; its a soldiers song. The most radical line in the song, he added, is, Be the first one on your block to have your boy come home in a box. Its military humor that only a soldier could get away with. He also started his work with military nurses. For those who watched the war unfold on the evening news, the music of Vietnam blurred with the sounds rising from the streets of America during a time of momentous challenge and change. At the age of 17, he enlisted in the United States Navy for three years and was stationed in Japan. Making Money In Chile04. Performers included Country Joe McDonald, a Navy veteran who served mainly in Japan. Naturally, this is reflected in McDonalds music. Country Joe McDonald, WWII Plaque Ive been doing work with veterans now for 15 years, and I probably know more about Vietnam veterans than any other person in the entertainment industry.. Despite his activism, McDonald has never pursued a career in politics, preferring to remain "the guy who sang the songs, pointed out the wrongs; not the guy who fixed them.". Show, led by then Berkeley neighbor Jane Fonda. McDonald's music spans a broad range of style and content. This group was recorded live at the Fete and a recording of "Sweet Marie" appeared on the 1990 Vanguard release The Best Of Country Joe: The Vanguard Years. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Country Joe McDonald The Early Years Rare 1978 Picc-A-Dilly Records Vinyl LP at the best online prices at eBay! There were no reports of violence, and a local police chief called the crowd "the most courteous, considerate and well-behaved group of kids" he'd encountered in his career. His anti-war "I Feel Like I'm Fixin' To Die Rag" became a memorable Woodstock moment. "The music spoke for us. Day 2 at Woodstock meant the rock acts were up, and the 12th act to appear on Saturday (actually Sunday a.m.) was funk-rock band, Sly and the Family Stone. It was about being together. Satisfactory10. As for McDonalds involvement in the issue, Talley said simply, Joe is definitely Mr. Vietnam--an assessment with which the singer concurs. Joe spent most of 1974 living in Europe, mostly in Paris where he had friends he had met in Berkeley. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language. Its part of Future X Sounds, a socially conscious concert series. I served three years and change, two in Japan, and it wasnt a bad experience, I didnt come out with anti-military views. Among its many fans was the singer-songwriter Steve Earle, then a teenager in San Antonio. In need of someone to entertain the crowd while they waited, Joe McDonald, who happened to be backstage, stepped up to perform. It inpsired his career as a singer-songwriter and progressive activist. asked a performer hanging around backstage to go out and kill a little time. 4.On His Own I was tied up at the time, the late Sen. John McCain famously said in 2007. The songs profane introductory cheer is an expression of our anger and frustration over the Vietnam War, which was killing us, literally killing us, said the singer, who helped spearhead the creation of the Vietnam veterans memorial in Berkeley, California, in the 1990s. Country Joe McDonald Live at Celebration Of Life Festival on 1971-06-26. by Country Joe McDonald. Country Joe McDonald Live at Celebration Of Life Festival on - Archive Anyone can read what you share. Country Joe McDonald is an American singer/songwriter and a Navy veteran. The women's movement had become viable and by adding women to his band, he hoped it would at least indicate to others that they were no different as musicians than men. He was the lead singer of the 1960s psychedelic rock group Country Joe and the Fish. Those who wish to make donations or purchase tickets to be used by veterans can call (213) 281-7817 for information.). This series highlights the artists who performed at Woodstock August 1518, 1969. The label was intended as a vehicle to release records by West Coast artists; since there was renewed interest in Europe at the time. In 2005, McDonald joined a larger protest against California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposed budget cuts at the California State Capitol Building. In 2007, he put together a song-and-spoken-word one-man show about Woody Guthrie, and followed it up with another about Florence Nightingale. Country Joe (McDonald) - Country Joe (1974) [Full Album] This album was a production collaboration of Fantasy's Chief Engineer Jim Stern, Joe and Bill Belmont. He did and the resulting songs, "Mara," "Ny's Song," "Hungry Miller and the Hungry World" and the title song "Quiet Days In Clichy" were released on a Vanguard album as part of the soundtrack. While recording for Fantasy , from 1975 through 1979, he became acutely aware of various ecological issues and began to support most animal rights organizations, performing at benefits worldwide in support of their efforts. I wanted to be known as a sensitive poet, not a leader of obscene cheers and a protest singer.. He has become a well-respected scholar on the subject of her life and recently traveled to Turkey to further research her activities there during and after the Crimean War, as well as visiting sites relevant to her life in England. Overall, McDonald's Woodstock performance was a defining moment in his career and a testament to the power of music to bring people together in a spirit of unity and peace. Money Minute, What's next for experimental AI projects in the C4ISR sphere, Military sex assault reports rise, even as Army numbers fall, Zero trust could have limited Pentagon leak, Navy CTO says, Taliban kill mastermind of suicide bombing at Kabul airport, Ship fires cost the Navy dearly, but lessons still need learning, Russian spy intrigue fizzles in Coast Guard vet, wife ID theft case. Country Joe McDonald was a military veteran, a seasoned folk and blues artist, and the editor of an underground newspaper when he decided to cut a record of political tunes in 1966 that led to the formation of one of the leading bands of the San Francisco psychedelic explosion, Country Joe & the Fish.While the group's day in the sun would prove to be short-lived -- they broke up in 1970 . Country Joe McDonald - IMDb McDonald was known for his vocal opposition to the Vietnam War, and many of his songs from that era reflected his anti-war views. It consisted of rear-screen projections of images, slides and liquids, containing colors swirled in water and oil producing paisley patterns on a screen suspended behind the band and creating a uniquely "psychedelic" experience. The most noteworthy releases were Joe's. One for sure was Hendrix and his version of "The Star Spangled Banner." McDonald's involvement in social and political causes has continued throughout his career. They also appeared in and performed music for underground cult film Zachariah where Joe is the leader of a band of outlaws in the old west, carrying amplifiers on their horses and calling themselves "The Crackers.". There was no one approach to what Woodstock meant, says David Farber, a University of Kansas professor of American history. The crowd at Woodstock, half a million strong, rose to their feet and joined in Country Joe McDonalds antiwar war cry, chanting along from the opening expletive all the way to the Whoopee! Im sure it was a cultural and pharmaceutical event. Free shipping for many products! Their best known single, an anti-Vietnam War song called Feel Like I'm Fixin to Die Rag, was recorded and released in late 1967. When Woodstock, the movie hit the theaters, "Fixin' To Die Rag" was in the middle of the film, with its lyrics spelled out, highlighted with a bouncing ball, including the "Cheer" and copious remarks about how many people seemed to be in the audience. Music was more than just background for us. 1.The Early Years https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/13/opinion/vietnam-war-rock-music.html. After all these years, what Mr. McDonald holds closest about the song is the way it was received by Vietnam veterans. McDonald's Woodstock performance was a momentous occasion for both him and the festival-goers. At Woodstock there was such a negative feeling toward the military that I subconsciously blocked it (his service) from my mind, McDonald said from the Berkeley office of his Rag Baby record company. They toured Europe in the fall of 1968 and recorded a fourth LP, Here We Are Again, in the late spring of 1969. FlourishAnyway from USA on April 06, 2019: Wow, someone named after Stalin. NEW YORK (AP) It was the weekend that shaped the image of a Woodstock Generation. And that image would echo, appeal and provoke for generations to come. Mr. McDonald doesnt recall reading about Vietnam in the newspapers or seeing combat scenes on television yet; protest was just in the Bay Area ether. George Deukmejians drive to build a Vietnam memorial in California. Joe's participation was crucial as during the afternoon at least 250,000 people sang along to "Fixin' To Die Rag" and yelled the famous "cheer". Despite the real/honest prison poem and the silly, outdated record fan routines, his best in about five years."[12]. With anti-military sentiments at a high, Country Joe McDonald steps up to the microphone, but instead of launching into his anti-war anthem Feel-Like-Im-Fixin-to-Die Rag, he tells the 300,000 members of Woodstock Nation that hes a veteran of military service--and hes proud of it. His mother, Florence Plotnick, was the daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants and served for many years on the Berkeley City Council. There was no one baby boomer generation. Plans for a sprawling commemorative Woodstock 50 event elsewhere collapsed amid permitting and other problems . In 2015, McDonald (with assistance from Alec Palao), formed The Electric Music Band; the intention of the group was to perform the early psychedelic material of the early career of Country Joe And The Fish. [10] Gary "Chicken" Hirsh suggested before one of the shows to spell the word "fuck" instead of "fish". Not recorded under the best of circumstances, it was produced by Vanguard president Maynard Solomon who after various attempts to find someone to work on the record (including an ill-fated trip to New Orleans to see Allan Toussaint) did it himself. Though he has no qualms about his veteran status now, he believes the climate has not improved significantly. This series of articles32 in allcovers each of the artists who performed at the original Woodstock festival August 1518, 1969. Ever wonder who played at Woodstock? "The Fish Cheer" had already gained popularity among kids in the New York City area due to McDonald's earlier Central Park performance and underground radio play. Some sources state that he performed after Richie Havens on Friday, while others, including photos and recordings, seem to confirm that . "Patriots: the Vietnam War Remembered from All Sides", Christian G. Appy, pp. In short, all of a sudden 5 years after its debut at a demonstration in Oakland it became an anthem. Don't Threaten. Collection CountryJoeMcDonald Band/Artist Country Joe McDonald. His first big audience was at a V.V.A.W. With the crucial exception of combat, music was ubiquitous in Vietnam, reaching soldiers via albums, cassettes and tapes of radio shows sent from home; on the Armed Forces Vietnam Network, featuring songs from stateside Top 40 stations; and on the legendary, if short-lived, underground broadcasts of Radio First Termer, a pirate station operated out of Saigon. Were all going to die capper. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Country Joe McDonald - Hold On It's Coming - Used Vinyl Record - J16280A at the best online prices at eBay! 01. Memories06. McDonald's stage name included "Country Joe," which was Joseph Stalin's nickname. Rock n roll, soul, pop and country. PHOTO AND ART CREDITS humor in which people can bitch in a way that will not get them in trouble and that also keeps them from insanity that can be experienced during war., As the war ground on and the casualties mounted, music became even more essential for troops and veterans struggling to express their feelings and understand the politics of the war, and politics in general. A raw direct release, it remains a favorite of many of Joe's fans notably for the feminist (or maybe not feminist) song "Sexist Pig." Joseph Allen "Country Joe" McDonald (born January 1, 1942)[1] is an American musician who was the lead singer of the 1960s psychedelic rock group Country Joe and the Fish. Returning to the Bay Area after his discharge from the Navy, Joe threw himself into the growing counterculture. The familys middle-class life was upended when his father, a lineman for Pacific Bell, was called before the House Un-American Activities Committee and lost his job, just as his son was entering his teenage years. "Oh, Jamaica" conjured up images of lush lazy days in the Caribbean sun, but the song's pointed lyric highlighted the terrible conditions that faced most people living on the island. It's one of those indelible images from the Vietnam War era -- 1969, Woodstock, Country Joe McDonald up on the stage, belting out the era's anti-war anthem to more than half a million gyrating . Country Joe McDonald: Yeah, he did that! Relatively unknown, Santana was a festival hit. It was haunted by military intelligence and the FBI though curiously not to the point of actually disrupting its activities -- just a subtle presence, and one which rewarded Joe with a spot on President Richard Nixon's enemies list. The band has performed Joe McDonald may have written the most in-your-face anti-war, anti-military song to come out of the '60s, but he was also one of the very few musicians on the San Francisco scene who'd served in uniform. They skipped the chant that night, but according to a story Mr. McDonald told on a live album, he shouted the expletive at the cops right after the show. I met a soldier who was in the Hanoi Hilton for five years who said the Viet Cong would sometimes let them listen to music, he said. Local Leaders Question Expanded US Military Presence in the Philippines But he says hes more or less retired. [2] First off, my dad couldnt believe he had to spend all this money on three records for his son, and then I put it on on Christmas morning, cranked it up, and I still remember when the Fish Cheer came on and he comes sprinting down the hall just horrified, said Mr. Earle, now 62. At a time of bitter protests over the Vietnam War, Woodstock "seemed to transcend the anger that clearly a lot of people were feeling. "I am the only major entertainer that advocates for military veterans and is one, he says. The F-I-S-H Cheer was lighthearted, as was the sound behind the pitch-black lyrics of Fixin-to-Die. Country Joe & the Fish played up the songs soldier-as-carnival-barker aspects, putting a hurdy-gurdy organ front and center, dropping kazoo bits throughout and capping it off with sounds of machine guns and a bomb dropping. He found himself banned from appearing at most municipal buildings due to the "Fish Cheer" and a reputation of a performer with an "attitude," mostly due to outspoken political views, and his to the point, but off-color topical songs. Vietnam. The word comes camouflaged in music. Country Joe McDonald, Biography It was our lifeline, a link to our existence back in the world, connecting us with the things that enabled us, as the Impressions urged us, to keep on pushing. From the peaks of the Central Highlands and the rice paddies of the Mekong Delta to the air-conditioned jungles of Danang and Long Binh (where I served as an information specialist in 1970-71), soldiers used music to build community, stay connected to the home front and hold on to the humanity the war was trying to take away. twice, with the audience responding, and then, the third time, "What's that spell? . Rag Baby Online Magazine: June 12, 1999 The climax of the evening will see all the participants singing Welcome Home, a song McDonald wrote for the occasion. In 2004, McDonald regrouped with three of the original members of Country Joe and the Fish (Bruce Barthol, David Bennett Cohen, and Gary "Chicken" Hirsh) and they toured the United States and the United Kingdom as the "Country Joe Band". It was certainly the biggest. By Joe McDonald, AP Thursday, Apr 27 FILE - China's President Xi Jinping arrives to attend the APEC Economic Leaders Meeting during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, APEC summit, Nov. 19 .