Richie Havens

[kbeck76]

Anyone ever seen Richie Havens perform? I caught him on the Woodsong Radio Hour a few weeks ago. He uses his thumb over the top of the guitar (barring I guess) more than I have ever seen anyone else do. He can really play and has a great voice; just a different style of playing I hadn't seen before.

I guess he's most famous for being the opening act at Woodstock and for a cover of "Here Comes The Sun".

Kevin

[RickI]

Ive seen him perform.... most recently was about 5 years ago... He was great.... such a wonderful voice..

As an encore, he did an acapela version of The Turning Away...(Pink Floyd song?) that was stunning...

[catdaddy]

I was fortunate enough to see Richie Havens this past March at Suwannee Springfest. He was terrific! I know he must be getting up in years now, but his voice was strong and expressive, his guitar playing as rhythmic as ever and his energy and enthusiasm seemingly boundless. The man is a marvel!!

[Fngrstyl]

Here's the woodstock clip

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1pMeyy__r0

[kbeck76]

The link below is for a performance of "Here Comes The Sun". He appeared with a cellist and a guy playing a resonator on the Woodsong performance. He has a wonderful voice and his foot tapping is pretty cool too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8HBHWYd6ug

[Kabalan]

i performed couples years in salmon arm festival(bc, canada) where richie havens played with a chello and an additional guitar,, he was great,, i liked
his version of pink floyd : ON THE TURNING AWAY.. very warm!!

[mitchellhopkins]

ya i saw him perform at the Alladen Theater. He was great. Freedom is an amazing song. Im only sixteen but i can absolutely appreciate his style.

[konavet]

Now this really dates me. The only time I saw Richie Havens was in '66 at the old Fillmore in SF. He was the opening act. The others were James Cotton Blues Band and The Doors. Wish I could remember more about those times, but like they say, if you remember... you weren't really there.

[mud4feet]

......but like they say, if you remember... you weren't really there.

:roll::roll::roll: That's some funny stuff!!!! Maybe because it's so true! Ahhhhhh, the good ol' days.

[Ryan Alexander]

Richie is like a force of nature - I have been a fan of his for a long time. He is still kicking HARD and making great music :)

I like all his work, especially some of the more obscure stuff like From The Prison, Indian Rope Man, Run Shaker Life etc. My first exposure to him was the Woodstock performance (just the movie, I'm only a youngin' :)). He has had a huge impact on me over the years, and listening to him today is still a spiritual experience every time. Spoke to him via email years ago - what a lovely, powerful and humble human being.

[Compurocker]

Richie Havens has that something that keeps people watching and listening. Good thing considering how long he had to play at Woodstock 69'. He plays here now and again and it is always a great show. The man sure can strum! :)

[Dukester]

I thought Id read somewhere that he had a hand issue or some sort of physical problem that kept him from being able to play traditional chords; so all of his stuff was in alternate tunings where he could play the chords in forms where he could use his thumb to bar or where there wasnt a whole lot of stretching involved. Something like that.

[twods]

He blew some minds back in the sixties, If i remember Richie uses and open E tuning for most of his tunes. His version of Here comes the sun put a lot of smiles on our faces back then.

[jgmaute]

I thought Id read somewhere that he had a hand issue or some sort of physical problem that kept him from being able to play traditional chords; so all of his stuff was in alternate tunings where he could play the chords in forms where he could use his thumb to bar or where there wasnt a whole lot of stretching involved. Something like that.

In the Woodsongs Show (http://www.woodsongs.com/showlist.asp) (scroll down to show 500) he explains how he came about playing the way he plays, basically when he started playing guitar no one taught him, he didn't know how to tune it so he tuned it to an open chord and barred, no physical issues. Richie continues to be an amazing performer, if you haven't seen or heard the Woodsongs Oldtime Radio Hour show you can watch it on your computer or download the MP3. (There are a lot of other great shows on the list too.)