Joan Baez, Diamonds and Rust - what a beautiful song

2 likes for that

 

Bought this album in a charity shop knowing only the name of the artist. On first play I thought the title track extraordinary - I still do.

 

Yup.

 

"I love that!" apparently.

JOAN BAEZ Was 'Stunned' To Hear JUDAS PRIEST's Version Of Her 'Diamonds And Rust' Classic

 

You took the words right out of my mouth; nicely put

 

When I refer to her persona, I am basing that on her performances on the Rolling Thunder Revue and her tendency to be very talkative and very much playing the entertainer. She would do her various imitations - Charo, Edith Ann, Edith Bunker - and, for me, it's a little overbearing. I am not really referring to her political activism mainly because she wasn't very political with what she said on that tour. She played some songs with political overtones but she was more likely to play "Please Come To Boston" or "Dancing In The Streets".

 

OI love it that JB sings '30 years ago, I bought you some cufflinks' on a later live recording. I guess now it has to be '40 years ago .etc.'

 

I first heard the song @ a hifi demo room.

 

Me too, a customer bought it in. I loved it, I bought it, and used it in a lot of dems.

It's one of those albums, that sound impressive, on almost any system.

 

it is a phenomenon when a song leaps out of a catalog seemingly so perfect that you wonder why don't all her/his songs have that depth and melodic magic.
but that is what makes music so intoxicating. each time you put the needle or beam down for the first time on a new release there is that chance that a song like that will come out of the speakers and mesmerize you instantly. that's why i still buy and ferret out new releases.
this song was one of the most magical in my long memory.

 

It is a fantastic song. To be heard alongside Winds of the Old Days.

The song also changed as Baez's feelings changed over the years. The nostalgia wore off and she changed the lyric in performance to something like, "so if you're offering me diamonds and rust, I'll take the diamonds." Which spoils the song in some ways, but I respect her for it too.

Tim

 

it has an airy feel like no other...beautiful melody.

 

I had a high school girlfriend with a very protective uncle who happened to be a huge Joan Baez fan. I gained his favor by saying I liked 'Diamond and Rust.' I just didn't tell him it was the Judas Priest version...

 

I love both the original Joan Baez version and the Judas Priest version they are perfect, and the Priest version also retains the spirit of the original.

 

How does her voice hold up these days? I'm pretty sensitive to familiar voices degrading with age. Not many artists manage to turn an obviously limited voice range into an asset.

 

This is her 75th birthday celebration from 2016. She sounds magnificent.

 

No, not just you ...

 

Love this song. I really don’t know lots about JB but her voice is one of a kind.
I’m going to buy the Diamonds and Rust album now.

 

Here Rob Halford is quoted as saying: "We were actually making the backend of the 'Sin After Sin' sessions when it was suggested to us that we cover this track."

Then what is the origin of the version on the Gull Best Of album? I thought that would have been recored earlier than the Sin After Sin version (an outake from Sad Wings of Destiny)? If not, how did it end up on the Gull album?

A bit disappointing to learn that it wasn't the band's own idea to cover the song.

Sorry if I'm leading the thread astray...

Edit: I see that on Wikipedia it says: "During the Sad Wings sessions, [David] Howells [of Gull records] encouraged the band to work on a heavy metal cover of "Diamonds & Rust" by folk singer Joan Baez, but it did not appear on the album." So I guess Rob mixed things up.

 

A truly beautiful song. I heard it for the first time a week ago. Simply put, a masterpiece. Haunting, nostalgic, melancholic. So many feelings conveyed in 4:46 minutes. I was about to start a thread just to appreciate this song.

The lyrics, her voice, the atmosphere- indescribable, takes your breath away.

 

What’s the story with trying to get cds of her vanguard years work. She had several albums that looked great, but hasn’t there been compilations of those years or anthology compilations? I saw the rarities set and it’s a hundred plus. Is there a problem of ownership of her masters? Bear family had a number of unavailables.

 

I find this hilarious (in a way.)

From the Guardian:
Baez had butted heads with the 60s women’s movement, particularly for appearing on a cheeky anti-Vietnam conscription poster that stated: “GIRLS SAY YES to boys who say NO.”

Joan Baez: where to start in her back catalogue

 

Umm, I've never heard of this supposed majority opinon... What do you base it on?

 

Incredible song. I looked up this thread hoping that the Dylan experts here had some inside details about it. I wonder myself about their relationship, how intimate they ever got? Anyway got some lyric changes and a story about Bobby and Joan talking about the song in Wikipedia.

Diamonds & Rust (song) - Wikipedia

 

I'm sitting here needle-dropping my original A&M album from back in 1975. It's in great shape and is working out nicely. I know that CDs can be had for dirt cheap, but this is a satisfying way to spend time in these strange times. I've always loved the title track, "Diamonds & Rust", and the rest of the album is kind-of neat too.