Joan

Probably the best of the handful of mid-'60s Joan Baez albums arranged and produced by Peter Schickele--better-known as comedic classical performer P.D.Q. Bach--1967's JOAN is an orchestral folk delight on a par with Judy Collins' classic IN MY LIFE. Unlike the other Baez-Schickele collaborations, JOAN isn't dominated by Schickele's' ornate, near-baroque arrangements. While his characteristic musical wit is on full display throughout--witness the way his chart of the Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby" is filled with sly classical allusions--Baez is the focus of JOAN, and her clear, bell-like voice has rarely sounded better. Covers of appropriate tunes by Jacques Brel, Paul Simon and Tim Hardin are among the highlights, but the album's centrepiece is a deeply affecting version of Richard Farina's "Children of Darkness", recorded by Baez--Farina's sister-in-law--as a tribute to the composer, who had recently been killed in a motorcycle accident.|