Search - Judy Collins :: Forever Anthology

A terrific Collection Of The Very Best Of Judy Collins!

Barron Laycock | Temple, New Hampshire United States | 08/20/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This compilation of Judy's best numbers from a dozen or more albums over twenty years is a fantastic showcase of her unbelievable vocal magic. I remember seeing Judy in concert in the quite informal setting of Avaloch, a wonderful sylvan natural amphitheater that all the folk stars from Collins to Joan Baez to Kris Kristoferson to Tom Rush to James Taylor performed at in Lenox Massachusetts in the summers of 1970. Sadly, it is now the site of a ritzy set of summer condominiums for the New York summertime Berkshires crowd. Yet I can still recall hearing Judy with that magical soaring voice of hers warming up on stage with "Amazing Grace" (which is included here) as we filed onto the grass, and the song so echoed and reverberated over the warm humid airwaves that he older folks at Tanglewood, some six or seven miles way, complained about the noisome interruption. It became an inside joke that Collins, Baez and others would playfully aggravate when performing for the very mellow crowd of counterculture fans. Of course, it probably goes without saying that I love most of the songs on this album, from the opening smash hit of "Someday Soon" to the thoughtful and memorable "who Knows Where The Time Goes?" to a wonderful cover of Joni Mitchell's "Chelsea Morning" and another unforgettable cover of Leonard Cohen's masterful "Suzanne", which Judy made famous (along with a very shy and reticent Cohen, who she literally had to coax onto the stage several times to get him started). Many of my all-time Judy Collins favorites are here, from "My Father", "In My Life", "Both Sides Now", and a terrific "First Boy I Loved" to "Albatross", "Turn, Turn, Turn", and "Spanish Is The Loving Tongue". Of course, not all of her hits are here, and that is one of the reasons I am a great believer in sampling all of an artist's original albums to get all of his or her work in context. Luckily, most of Judy's work is still available. The one song I regret not being included is Jacques Brel's classic song of love, "Marieke", which I used to name my daughter. Still, this is a superb collection of an incredible artist, a glossy Technicolor snapshot of a one of the titans of modern American folk music, taken at the peak of her awesome vocal and collaborative talents. It is one sure to please the most discriminating of well-trained folk ears, and one I am sure you will come to treasure as much as I do. Enjoy."

A Beautiful Voice, A Beautiful Collection.

Harold J. Gaugler | Philadelphia, PA USA | 12/23/1999

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Judy Collins Anthology, "Forever", is a great place to start for anyone who wants to become familiar with one of the great interpretive singers of our time. All her biggest hits are here, including "Both Sides Now", "Someday Soon", "Amazing Grace" and "Send in the Clowns", as well as many of her best album tracks, including several early selections from her folk years. The only fault to be found is the glaring omissions of her 1966 cover of Randy Newman's "I Think It's Going To Rain Today" and her 1975 cover of Jimmy Webb's "The Moon's a Harsh Mistress". Had these two songs been included, this would have been a 5-star review. Still, this is a fine collection that showcases one of the most beautiful voices ever put to record. Highly recommended."

An outstanding anthology of a brilliant folk-pop singer

Peter Durward Harris | Leicester England | 03/31/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The two CD's are book-ended by four classic songs that will forever be associated with Judy - Someday soon, Send in the Clowns, Both sides now and Amazing grace - but while these are exceptional, the rest of the music here is well worth listening to.



Some of those classics were covers, so it will come as no surprise to find other wonderful covers here, including Who knows where the time goes (Sandy Denny), Desperado (Eagles), In my life (Beatles), Suzanne, Bird on a wire (both Leonard Cohen), Masters of war (Bob Dylan), Salt of the earth (Rolling stones). Judy also does a fine cover of City of New Orleans, although nobody beats Willie Nelson's version of this classic train song. Another great cover is Turn turn turn. Originally written by Pete Seeger based on a passage in the New Testament's Book of Ecclesiastes, it only became famous when the Byrds had a hit with it in the sixties. Chelsea morning is a cover of a Joni Mitchell song, but Judy recorded a new version for this compilation, having covered the song previously on one of her early albums.



Judy also wrote some of her own material. Born to the breed, Since you've asked, The fallow way, Grandaddy, My father, Fisherman song and Albatross, all included here, prove what a good songwriter she was, even if none of them reached classic status. Of these, Fisherman song is my favorite. Judy also co-wrote two new songs for this collection - Nothing lasts forever and Walls.



It is not possible to give more than an overview of Judy's music in two CD's - I noted the absence of Home, a duet she recorded with T G Sheppard in the early eighties - but this a very strong collection of her music, essential for any fan of folk-pop music."