Joan Baez

The most ambitiously produced and conceived of Joan Baez's albums got a lot better with this expanded re-release, Joan [Bonus Tracks], which boosts the fidelity of the sound and eliminates any trace of harshness in the most densely arranged sections (check out "La Colombe -- The Dove"). One can actually hear the acoustic rhythm instruments buried in the mix on "The Dangling Conversation," and when the horns come back in on the last verse, they sound as though their bells are right next to you, while the celeste seems like it's in the same room; similarly, on "The Lady Came From Baltimore," it's possible to hear the acoustic guitar definitively, rather than simply as a suggestion in the mix. One can hear the action of the piano keys, the acoustic guitar, and the reed section, on "If I Were A Carpenter,"; the inner detail of the playing of the string quartet on "North"; and the action on the drums and the reed instruments on "Children Of Darkness." In other words, this is one disc that's worth buying over again, and that's not even counting the presence of definitive notes by Arthur Levy utilizing interview material with arranger Peter Schickele, Maynard Solomon, and Joan Baez. There are also a pair of bonus tracks: a thematically unrelated recording (from about the same time) of "Oh, I Had A Golden Thread," with a stripped down hillbilly backing; and a hauntingly beautiful rendition of "Autumn Leaves" (in French) in Schickele's arrangement, from the Joan album sessions. ~ Bruce Eder, All Music Guide