In the late '60s and early '70s, Baez came into her songwriting own, penning many songs (most notably "Diamonds & Rust," a nostalgic piece about her ill-fated romance with Bob Dylan, and "Sweet Sir Galahad," a song about sister Mimi Fariña's ( of Richard & Mimi Fariña fame) second marriage, and continued to meld her songcraft with topical issues. She was outspoken in her disapproval of the Vietnam war and later the CIA-backed coups in many Latin American countries.
She was also instrumental in the Civil Rights movement, marching with Dr. Martin Luther King on many occassions and being jailed for her beliefs. In 1963, her performance of "We Shall Overcome" at the Lincoln Memorial just prior to Dr. King's famous "I Have A Dream..." speech helped confirm the song as the Civil Rights anthem.
In December 1972, she traveled to Hanoi, North Vietnam, and was caught in that country's "Christmas Campaign," in which the U.S. bombed the city more times than any other during the entire war. While pregnant with her only son, Gabriel, she performed a handful of songs in the middle of the night on day one of the 1969 Woodstock festival. She is considered the "Queen of Folk" for being at the forefront of the 1960s folk revival and inspiring generations of female folksingers that followed. On July 28, 2019, following dates across Europe, Baez performed her final concert at Madrid's Teatro Real. In January 2021, Baez received a 2020 Kennedy Center Honor.
East Virginia
Joan Baez Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
North Carolina I did roam
There I met a fair pretty maiden
Her name and age, I do not know
Her hair, it was of a bright some color
And her lips of a ruby red
On her breast she wore white lilies
Well, in my heart you are my darling
And at my door, you're welcome in
At my gate, I'll meet you my darling
If your love I could only win
I'd rather be in some dark holler
Where the sun refused to shine
Then to see you another man's darling
And to know that you'll never be mine
Well, in the night I'm dreaming about you
In the day, I find no rest
Just the thought of you my darling
Sends aching pains all through my breast
Well, when I'm dead and in my coffin
With my feet turned toward the sun
Come and sit beside me darling
Come and think on the way you done
The song "East Virginia" is a traditional American folk song that reflects the simplicity, beauty, and tragedy of love. The song starts with the singer introducing himself as someone who was born in East Virginia and roamed in North Carolina. In his travels, he meets a beautiful young woman who wears white lilies on her breast, and he falls in love with her. He longs to lay his head on her chest and have her by his side. However, he knows that he cannot have her because she belongs to someone else, and this thought pains him deeply.
The singer expresses his desire to be alone in some dark holler where the sun refuses to shine instead of seeing the love of his life with another man. He dreams about her at night, and during the day, he cannot find any rest. The pain of unrequited love aches through his breast, and he cannot help but yearn for her. The song ends with the singer asking his love to think about the way she has done him wrong when he is gone and requests her to sit beside him when he is dead and in his coffin.
Overall, the song captures the essence of loss, heartbreak, and despair that often accompanies unfulfilled love. It is a poignant reminder of the fragility of the human heart and the inevitability of pain in love.
Line by Line Meaning
I was born in east Virginia
I was born in a small town in the eastern part of Virginia state
North Carolina I did roam
I traveled to North Carolina
There I met a fair pretty maiden
During my travels, I met a beautiful young woman
Her name and age, I do not know
I didn't bother to ask her name or age
Her hair, it was of a bright some color
Her hair was bright and colorful
And her lips of a ruby red
She had beautiful, red lips
On her breast she wore white lilies
She had white lilies on her chest
There I longed to lay my head
I wanted to rest my head on her chest
Well, in my heart you are my darling
You are the love of my life
And at my door, you're welcome in
You are always welcome to my home
At my gate, I'll meet you my darling
I will come to greet you at my gate
If your love I could only win
If only you could love me back
I'd rather be in some dark holler
I'd rather be alone in a dark valley
Where the sun refused to shine
A place where it's always dark and gloomy
Then to see you another man's darling
I'd rather not see you with another man
And to know that you'll never be mine
It hurts to know you'll never love me
Well, in the night I'm dreaming about you
I dream about you every night
In the day, I find no rest
I can't find peace during the day
Just the thought of you my darling
Thinking of you is overwhelming
Sends aching pains all through my breast
It hurts me deeply
Well, when I'm dead and in my coffin
When I die and am buried
With my feet turned toward the sun
My feet pointing towards the sun
Come and sit beside me darling
Please come and sit next to me
Come and think on the way you done
Think about what you've done to me
Lyrics © Downtown Music Publishing
Written by: JOAN C. BAEZ
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@marcojoshua3440
"Joan" i Love You and thx that u me understand .
The new summer of love...
U be Love for me, you and all.
The 2 who go to 1..
Holy Syster i pray with u...
I live in hell, and i stand tho u too...
Be love feel free to heal my pain.
Enlightment all souls
lts Free...Love its Free
Your LOVE
SJMMAL
@reneen.3519
Joan's voice is at its most haunting beauty here. She owns these old ballads like no one else.
@leland-bobpalmer4274
This & in Donna Donna..wait you mean the album..of course :-).. foreboding & deep/transcendent
@rjohnson2844
a voice as pure as crystal
@jeffloewi5632
This album changed my life forever. I don't know if the beauty of her voice and her playing and her music still stands up in 2015, but it would make me so very happy to know others somehow felt the same incredible epiphany I experienced when I first heard this album and were somehow able to pass it on to future generations.
@lindaposson8193
+Jeff Loewi Me too. You expressed my sentiments exactly! An epiphany is what is was for sure.
@AN-tf3vd
+Jeff Loewi Yes, it is happened to me too
@EvelDr
+Jeff Loewi I couldn't agree more. It was truly transformative - such a pure tone. I knew little about music when I first heard this; it wasn't part of my upbringing. But it made a lifelong folk music fan out of me.
@tucanoman
One of my very first albums. Probably drove mom bonkers playing it over and over in my back room off the kitchen on Oxford Avenue in Montreal.
@jeffloewi5632
I was in my first year of college and I practically wore out one copy which might explain why I still have two of them. I honestly don't know why nobody strangled me.
@Dagvi
West virginiaaaaa