The Steel Guitar Forum

Steel guitar by Harold Rug and LLoyd Green. Need I say more? " The Best Of Buffy Saint-Marie." This CD is a Woodstock on it's own. A Treasure!

Her 1971 album has Neil Young and Crazy Horse on a few tracks, the 1969 Illuminations is amazing, most of her 60s and 70s work is now availabel on CD, especially the Vengaurd material, the best-of and straigth up reissues of the 60s and '71 album She Use To Be A Ballerina.

I had the pleasure to meet her back in '68 or so...my brother-in-law was in a band called 'Moonrose Forest', and she was looking for a back-up band and knew a couple of the guys. She and her hubby came and stayed with us for a couple weeks in Santa Cruz, and that's the first time I ever heard 'Strange Fruit'. She played guitar, and the mouth bow, but mostly sang.

Her voice was magic, with that tremelo that drove some people nuts but I loved it.

She ended up touring with the remnants of the band and some guy named Howard Dumble playing guitar...

Great times, and what a singer she is.

And her 'Universal Soldier' is, I think, one of the great philosophical songs of all times.

The CD that I had just purchased is "The Best Of Buffy Sainte-Marie" which was originally issued on LP in 1970. It is basically her best material from 1964-1969 and I believe mostly Vanguard. The photo on the cover shows her reclining on some kind of Turkish day bed with a National guitar lying across her lap. I believe it was the original photo for the double LP record. Really some great music, covers many styles from solid country, to folk, 60’s protest music, mountain music and even heavy metal. There is some experimental early electronic music sounds on some of the songs too. I guess she put out a complete electronic music album in the early 1970’s.

Her Native American background adds a lot to her style in the way she writes and sings.
It’s a unique style all her own.

This is classic 60’s.

When I was in high school my Dad was a folk nut, and turned me on to loads of great 60's music. My Mom got him Buffy Sainte-Marie tickets for his birthday, he asked me to go and I wasn't very interested. The concert was actually amazing, I found myself alternately moved and inspired. One of several transcendant experiences that taught me to open my mind and experience music, and life, from different perspectives. Thanks Dad, and Buffy.

Buffy wrote one of my all time favorite songs, "The Pineywood Hills." It's a beautiful waltz with a great message.

i was one of the people driven nuts by her vibrato or whatever. that howard dumble guy is the creator of dumble amplifiers..sought after by many.

oh yeah, an aquired taste, but should you aquire it, lossa rewards.

The country album she did in 1968, it's okay, she's not really one for standard backing though.
I think that's why her early records and Illuminations are the best, something otherwordly about them, the stripped back approach of the guitar, mouth bow, etc.. and the psyche-orchestration of Illuminations. A mind melt.

Buffy also wrote Up Where We Belong, made famous by Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes. My favorites were Darling Dont Cry and Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee.

Special place in my heart. I wish I could remember for sure but many moons ago I think I saw her in NYC performance in a line up including Pete Seeger, Phil Ochs, Patrick Sky (definitive performer of "Ira Hayes"), Tom Paxton....no doubt more. Maybe Odetta.
Hell--maybe Buffy wasn't even in that line up. But she's such a strong part of the culture.

My good friend Cubby Laroque who played bass for Buffy in the late 70's sent me this.


Hey Buddy, Thanx for all the good information you have told me about music and musicians. Here's kind of a funny story I have about when I was a member of Buffy's band. We played a command performance for the Queen of England when she visited Canada for her 25th celebration in 1977 at the National Arts center in Ottawa. During the performance we got a great round of applause for every song exept one. When we did "Now that the Buffalo is gone," we got sort of a broken round of applause. We didn't think much of it until we arrived at the Los Angeles International airport the next day. I forget if it was a Canadian or an American newspaper that had the headlines, "Buffy insults the Queen?" The story explained that the Queen and the entire Canadian Parliment had just finished a buffalo diner before the concert. Now that the Buffalo is gone seemed to indicate that they had eaten all the buffalo. I don't know if Buffy had any prior knowledge of the buffalo diner, but she sure made top headlines for that song. Thanx again for you help Buddy.

I'll second that, about Pineywood Hills!