Wow...I just found this. I was a huge Ochs fan. I saw him perform several times in California at various U.C. campuses. But, my biggest memory was when he came to Schonberg Hall at UCLA when I was in graduate school. I walked over to the concert hall and was stopped by a beat-up VW bug. The passenger rolled down the window and asked, "Hey, where is Schonberg Hall?" I looked closely and realized it was Phil Ochs asking me that. I was stunned. I began giving him directions when he said, ""please climb in and show us the way." I got in the back seat and directed him and, as it turned out, his brother Michael, to the concert hall. When we arrived there, and parked, as we were getting out Phil asked me to give him the songbook that was on the backseat - HIS song book. I asked him, "why do you need that - these are all your songs!" to which he replied, ""sometimes I forget the words." I had asked him to sing a particular favorite song of mine at the concert - I don't remember which one - but, at one point in his show, he said, "this one is for Bruce." Sweet memory....
I went to the 1971 four day long May Day Protest in Washington D.C. against the Vietnam War. On Saturday May 1, 40,000 demonstrators camped out in West Potomac Park to plan the protests and to listen to a free rock concert. I fell asleep late that night but was woken up by a friend yelling "Phil Ochs is playing." We stayed up to listen to Phil play. i will never forget that night, along with the three following days of protests and civil disobedience as we blocked traffic and tried to shut down the city, which led to the arrests of more than 12,000 demonstrators, the largest mass arrests in U.S. history.
I was there too in DC '71 with our Red Balloon Collective, arrested on two of those days. Good to meet you, Jeff! Still as true as ever: "If the government won't stop the war, we'll stop the government."
I got busted on the Capitol steps that Wednesday, May 5. I was an undergrad @ Georgetown U at the time, heavily involved with dozens of other students in housing and feeding demonstrators from out of town. The overreaction of the police, the city, and the university was so outrageous that a friend and I went down to the Capitol to protest. Hundreds of others had the same idea. Four members of Congress -- Ron Dellums, Bella Abzug, Charles Rangel, and Parren Mitchell (four Black men and a Jewish woman -- not a coincidence) -- came out to speak. They invited us to come up on the steps so we could hear better. Then the police cordoned us off and said anyone who stayed on the steps was going to get arrested. About 1,200 of us stayed and got busted. My friend and I were both held at the D.C. Coliseum, along with a few hundred other people. Thing was, sitting on the Capitol steps, esp. after you've been invited up there by members of Congress, isn't illegal. This was the case that became Dellums v. Powell. It took a while to make its way through the courts, but ten years later I got a check for $2,000 from the U.S. government for wrongful arrest. For months a huge graffiti on a Wisconsin Ave. stone wall read FREE THE D.C. 13,400.
My father took me and my sister, I was 10. I remember helicopters overhead dropping tear gas. I think Joan Baez sang at some point. I was in love with all of the young protesters, hippies. They were very sweet to me.❤
I was too young to see Phil perform, but more importantly his antiwar, anti-imperialism, anti-racism, anti-exploitation of worker spirit lives on. It must live on.
So many of his songs hold up wonderfully, and I still know a lot of the words. I only wish he were around to hear them still being remembered and sung.
I think Dave Van Ronk's song inspired Adam Sandler's song about his friend Chris whose last name I forget at the late hour I am writing this. Sandler's song is a great and moving song as well.
Growing up in New York City in the 1960s I had a chance to see many artists. i saw Phil Ochs a number of times. In Central Park at least twice and once in concert when he played Rock 'n' Roll .It was a great concert though some people did not want him to change. I loved it. I particularly love his ballads and poetry. Changes, Pleasures of the Harbor, Crucifixion.... A unique poet, song writer with a beautiful voice. RIP
I'm from Scotland. Like most of us on this side of the pond, I found Phil through Bob. Just like I found Woody, Dave van Ronk and so many others. In 1969, I moved to Switzerland where I met a boy from California who'd got there via Montreal. You can all guess why. And he introduced me to Melanie, another life-changer for a kid like me. Phil had one the great voices in history, up there with Bob and Sam Cooke. And Melanie. To me, because of his music, Phil is not dead. People like Phil, Bob, Melanie, Pete Seeger and Ché don't die. Trust me. They talk to me every day. Thank you IMGONNASAY IT NOW for posting this, which I had never heard. God bless you all. Phil Davison
Dear Imgonna, I did not know that. That makes me feel even more proud of my fellow Phil. Joan Baez's mother was from Edinburgh. So cool to "talk" to another Phil fan. x
@@imgonnasayitnow I didn't expect that my comment on a music video from nearly half a century ago, with blurry images and sound, would get a reply. There is an old Chinese saying: "Peach tree doesn't speak, but there is always a path formed to it." It means beautiful things naturally attract people. Great music will never die.
Phil Ochs made us think, more than any teacher or parent or Politician or priest. That is why we loved him so much. He opened up the world full of possibilities.
I knew Phil Ochs' choruses due to my father who served right before Vietnam and nearly got sent there several times during his National Guard service after leaving active duty. I knew of the influence of Phil Ochs in such obscure songs as "The Day" by They Might Be Giants. I didn't understand the power of his music until much later, and it was the death of John Prine that sent me down the folk music rabbit hole. Thanks for the upload!
Thanks for your father's Ntl Grd service. As a matter of fact, very few if any, reserves were ever sent to Vietnam. This was a political decision to keep the War out of living rooms as much as possible. Busch, John Fogerty, and many others slipped, bribed & used influence, etc. to enter the reserves in order to avoid Vietnam. Very soon the reserves had a huge waiting list!!
@@4711StGermain My dad was out of the regular army before Vietnam was a thing, I know a lot of people just a little younger than my dad enlisted or got drafted and never came home. I think it bothers him a little bit, possibly why he dedicated almost half a century to the volunteer fire and EMS. There's always the "why me?" factor when you luck out by no action of your own, just circumstances. He just turned 80, and was an unsung hero for many in his civilian life. Proud to have him as my father.
@@4711StGermainCost me $ 100. &a case of Dewars scotch to get an early enlistment in NYARNG @ 6yrs. Got home from college in '66 & got a draft notice that I was 1A, with 2 weeks to appear. Thought at first that maybe I would go with the flow & test my metal ' by fire ' ; sobered up after getting that 1A notice. Have since found six friends names on the Long Black Wall. What a vicious, hateful waste !!
Thanks for posting this. Thank you for the fact that so far (20Jan22) there are NO ADS. Phil Ochs was a lonely warrior - we need more from the mold that was broken after he came forth. He was probably the bravest person I will know about in our times.
Hello, Tori. Not the most convenient space but, do you have account of anyone who has been in the 66 January 7nd Carnegie Hall concert and who remembers which Nov obvious songs he played that didn't went on the album? Thanks in advance. Unterberger mentions "Joe Hill", but maybe he played a lot more...
I'm a writing student in college, and I was obsessed with Dylan for years but it was when i discovered Ochs in 2021 I had never heard music that was so familiar. It was like meeting someone you knew and hadn't spoken to in years. It's been another a year since his death, and all I can say is I wish I could've met him.
I am only at the beginning of this tribute to Phil Ochs but while it is not identical to it, I think this might be the performance I had recorded on a cassette tape from a radio broadcast that aired on KUAT-FM in Tucson. I still have the tape after all these years but how wonderful it will be to see the performers who had gathered together back then. If this includes his sister Sonny speaking of finding her brother's body, it will be heartbreaking.
Thanks so much for posting this. Its amazing. I'm going to watch it again with my mom next week. She is not long for this earth but she loves Phil Ochs music. I played her William Kunstler's speech at 45:19 and she laughed so hard. Thanks for that!
What a magnificent tribute to one of the last century's best songwriters. Don't Play the Chords of Fame is my favorite of Phil's songs. Tim Hardin blows me away. Thank you for posting this!
I was looking up Tom Paxton songs and let RU-vid add whatever followed. How amazing this was to accidentally "find"this magnificent historical event. I can't thank you enough. It should be televised on PBS!
I’ve been waiting, albeit for its appearance on LP or CD, but here it is-almost 50 years after its broadcast on PBS. That broadcast in 1976 or 1977 created a feeling within me that provoked me to feel a sense of unity around me afterwards. When the death of Phil Ochs was announced in The Arizona Republic I was under the influence of LSD, I therefore exchanged Phil’s name for Pete Seeger’s. It seemed impossible to conjure the death of Ochs as he was in his mid-thirties. I saw Phil Ochs in concert in Central Park, at Brophy Prep in Phoenix and the Troubadour in LA. I met him briefly and he honored me with an autograph. The folksinger’s family settled in Far Rockaway (where I was brought up), in Ohio and I believe in Texas. The opening of the concert featuring Dave Von Ronk singing “He Was A Friend of Mine” is a tour-de-force-Phil’s death affected him deeply and thus the opening performance is something to behold. For those who do not know Phil’s A & M recordings one must experience his great album “Pleasures of the Harbor” among his others on that label which are masterpieces as well.
Thank you! I remember watching this sometime in 1977, I think. I tried to record the audio onto a portable cassette recorder, but that didn't work terribly well. It's so good to hear these voices singing these songs again.
Is Eric Anderson amazing or what? His hand gestures in announcing his Thirsty Boots is simply precious, so precious as is the rendition of the song. This performance ranks among his finest.
This is a terrific concert and a fitting memorial to a true American original. I would love to see one of the 'big' stars, like Bruce Springsteen, revive some of Phil Ochs' songs.
So sorry to have missed seeing him in concert. Grateful to find these great videos. I understand he was attacked and the injuries resulted in losing his voice, and maybe then, his will to live.
I'm almost certain that the guitarist with Tim Hardin at 59:19 is Frank Carillo, one of our generations most underrated guitarists. I went to JHS and high school with Frank, who probably wouldn't remember me as I kept a low profile in those days. Frank's current work with the Bandoleros is on RU-vid. Great guitarist, great songwriter, and great music!
@@imgonnasayitnow This was almost 40 years ago. He was on a double-bill with the Beach Boys at the Stock Pavilion at the University of Wisconsin. My recollection is that his guitar playing was hampered by a cast or bandage on one hand. His voice was strong and his lyrics still compelling.
@@tanguerochas I would guess it was in 1974, sometime that year he broke right his arm and wore a cast. Thank you so much for sharing, I’m so glad you had the opportunity to see him.
I saw Phil play in 1975 at a rally with Cesar Chavez; will never forget it. I went to see Chavez. I was only dimly aware of Ochs but that night got me listening to his music and I've been a big fan ever since. It's a shame that a movie of his life was never made. Sean Penn wanted to play him, but apparently he couldn't get the rights to Phil's music. Phil wasn't in good shape when I saw him; at what point he broke a string and stormed off stage, but came back a few minutes later and completed his set. What a loss; think of the songs he'd have written about Reagan, W, and Trump. Thank you so much for posting this!
Thank You for posting this. I will always miss Phil Ochs. He was a great talent and a man with a big heart for those who needed help and recognition. May He Be Most Happiest In Paradise!Shalom Aveynu, Shalom Aleychem. Baruch HaShem, Olav Hashalom Omeyn.
YOu better not use any Hebrew. I believe PHil was Jewish. You better not let the Pro-Palestinians that might start calling him Pro-Zionist which PHil probably was.
mmm Ilove him so and his all music poetry was 17 in time he was gone but i was in war long and etc.i sing alwayes so young so strong so ready for war and my son play same .....hope that one time come end of war in this shit world so our childern can sing withPhil about flowers no guns
Phil was too true for this planet. A troubadour for his time and ours, in 2024. An old, long-lost friend, turned me on to Mr. Ochs too many years ago now. Phil's story always brings tears. Because of his support for the left and his work for the unions, he was targeted by hoover. A melancholy action man too deep in the throes of alcoholism to continue. God bless you Phil, long may you inspire.
Thanks.... I knew he was so familiar, but I was overwhelmed seeing Melanie, Dave Van Ronk, Eric Andersen, etc, etc... WXPN, Gene Shay, always played the Crucifixion' on the Folk Show Sunday night before Christmas on FM radio! I still get shivers the minute it starts. I was lucky to see Phil Ochs at the Philly Folk Fest and a concert of just Phil in Philadelphia Academy of Music! So lucky to be in the world when he was so inspiring. This is amazing.
Amazing! Had never seen this before. A fan for a long time, but never had the opportunity to see Phil live. Many of great singers were on a recording from The Bitter End I found years ago - not sure if he was on it, and it's among my vinyl that's rather buried. Thanks so much for posting. Let's sing I Ain't a Marching and dedicate it to Russian resistors to Putin!
I hope somebody finishes it before me, but would like to attempt a definitive list of the complete contents. Perhaps it will take the contribution of two or three researchers. I don’t recognize, for example, everything comprising the song ending at 1”18”-an ensemble with a mandolin.
Would anybody have the playlist for this great concert please. Seventy year music fan here and I love to know some of the artists her that I don’t recognise.
Have you acquired such a listing yet? If not I’m sure that in between pages that my publisher demands I never abandon, I would be happy to supply this to fill in your gaps and test to see if I know what I think I know. Do you have any specific questions in the interim? Please pay particular attention to Eric Anderson performing his ‘Thirsty Boots’, his homage to the phenomenon of Northern kids going down South to help settle matters surrounding the Civil Rights movement.
