Though born in Seattle, Washington (where she spent the first ten years of her life), she moved to Denver, Colorado, in 1949. As a child Collins studied classical piano with Antonia Brico, making her public debut at age 13 performing Mozart's Concerto for Two Pianos. It was the music of Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger, and the traditional songs of the folk revival of the early 1960s, that piqued Collins' interest and awoke in her a love of lyrics. Three years after her debut as a piano prodigy, she was playing guitar. She eventually made her way to Greenwich Village, New York City, where she busked and played in clubs until she signed with Elektra Records, a record label with which she was associated for 35 years. In 1961, Collins released her first album, A Maid of Constant Sorrow, at the age of 22.
At first she sang traditional folk songs, or songs written by others, in particular the social poets of the time, such as Tom Paxton, Phil Ochs, and Bob Dylan. She recorded her own versions of seminal songs of the period, such as Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man" and Pete Seeger's "Turn, Turn, Turn". Collins was also instrumental in bringing then little known composers to a wider public; for example, she recorded songs by Canadian poet Leonard Cohen, and Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell.
With her 1967 album Wildflowers, she began to record her own compositions, the first of which was entitled "Since You've Asked". This album also provided Collins with a major hit, and a Grammy award, with her version of Joni Mitchell's "Both Sides Now", which reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100.
1968's Who Knows Where the Time Goes was produced by Stephen Stills (of Crosby, Stills & Nash), with whom Collins was romantically involved at the time (she is the "Judy" of the Stills-written CSN classic "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes"). It had a mellow country sound, and included Ian Tyson's "Someday Soon" and the title track, a Sandy Denny song which has been covered by several artists.
By the 1970s, Collins had a solid reputation as an art song singer and folksinger. She had also begun to stand out with her own compositions. She was also known for her broad range of material: her songs from this period include the traditional gospel song "Amazing Grace", the Stephen Sondheim Broadway ballad "Send in the Clowns" (both of which were top 20 hits as singles), and her own compositions such as "My Father" and "Born to the Breed".
In 1979 she posed nude on the album "Hard Times For Lovers".
In more recent years, Collins has taken to writing, producing a memoir, "Trust Your Heart" in 1987, and two novels. Though her record sales are not what they once were, she still records and tours. One of her more recent albums is a collection of songs based on her novel Shameless. She performed at US President Bill Clinton's first inauguration in 1993, singing "Amazing Grace" and "Chelsea Morning". (The Clintons have stated that their daughter Chelsea was named after Collins' recording of the Joni Mitchell song.)
Activism
Like other folk singers of her generation, Collins was drawn to social activism. She is a representative for UNICEF and campaigns on behalf of the abolition of landmines. Following the 1992 death of her son Clark Taylor at age 33 after a long bout with depression and substance abuse, she has also become a strong advocate of suicide prevention. Her 2003 book, Sanity & Grace, chronicles her recovery from her son's suicide and attempts to provide some comfort and guidance to other families dealing with the loss of a loved one to suicide. She describes the "Seven T's" as a means for going through this process of recovery: Truth, Therapy, Trust, Try, Treat, Treasure, and Thrive. The Truth is that there should be no guilt in suicide; Therapy helps people express their emotions and seek grief counseling; Trust is the effort to believe that one can make it through the loss and keep a belief in life and in the future; Try means to stay away from drugs and alcohol or any excess--including overeating--as a means to deal with the loss and pain; Treat means to take care of the mind, body, and spirit with exercise and meditation; Treasure means to keep the memory of the moments to be treasured, and for this Collins recommends writing and keeping a journal; and Thrive means to be positive, hopeful, open to love and others, and continuing to know that you can rebuild your life on a basis of hope.
Awards and recognition
Grammy Award, Best Folk Performance or Folk Recording, "Both Sides Now", 1968
Grammy Award, Song of the Year, "Send in the Clowns", 1975
Nominated with Jill Godmillow for an Academy Award for the documentary "Antonia: A Portrait of the Woman" (1975), about her classical piano instructor, conductor Antonia Brico.
Discography
Maid of Constant Sorrow (1961)
The Golden Apples of the Sun (1962)
Judy Collins #3 (1964)
The Judy Collins Concert (1964)
Judy Collins' Fifth Album (1965)
In My Life (1966)
Wildflowers (1967)
Who Knows Where The Time Goes? (1968)
Whales and Nightingales (1970)
Both Sides Now (1971)
Living (1971) (Live)
Colors of the Day (1972) (Greatest Hits)
True Stories, and Other Dreams (1973)
Judith (1975)
Bread and Roses (1976)
So Early in the Spring (1977) (15th anniversary collection)
Hard Times for Lovers (1979)
Running for My Life (1980)
Times of Our Lives (1982)
Home Again (1984)
Trust Your Heart (1987)
The Stars Of Christmas (Selected Especially For Avon) (1988)
Sanity and Grace (1989)
Fires of Eden (1990)
Baby's Bedtime (1990)
Baby's Morningtime (1990)
Judy Sings Dylan... Just Like a Woman (1993)
Come Rejoice! A Judy Collins Christmas (1994)
Shameless (1994)
Voices (1995)
Christmas at the Biltmore Estate (1997)
Forever: An Anthology (1997)
Both Sides Now (1998)
Classic Broadway (1999)
All on a Wintry Night (2000)
Judy Collins Live at Wolf Trap (2000)
Judy Collins Sings Leonard Cohen: Democracy (2004)
The Essential Judy Collins (2004)
Portrait of an American Girl (2006)
Videography
Baby's Bedtime (1992)
Baby's Morningtime (1992)
Junior playing the operator of a home for unwed mothers opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger
Christmas at the Biltmore Estate (1998)
The Best of Judy Collins (1999)
Intimate Portrait: Judy Collins (2000)
Judy Collins Live at Wolf Trap (2003)
Wildflower Festival (2003) (DVD with guest artists Eric Andersen, Arlo Guthrie, and Tom Rush)
Bibliography
Trust Your Heart (1987)
Amazing Grace (1991)
Sanity and Grace: A Journey of Suicide, Survival and Strength (2003)
Cat
Judy Collins Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He came to the world in the usual way.
But there were planes to catch and bills to pay.
He learned to walk while I was away.
And he was talking 'fore I knew it, and as he grew,
He'd say, "I'm gonna be like you, dad.
You know I'm gonna be like you."
Little boy blue and the man in the moon.
"When you coming home?"
"I don't know when,
We'll get together then, son.
You know we'll have a good time then."
My child turned ten the other day.
He said, "Thanks for the ball, dad come on let's play.
Can you teach me to throw?" I said, "Not today,
I've got a lot to do." He said, "That's ok."
He turned away, but his smile never dimmed,
"I'm gonna be like him," he said.
Yes, I'm gonna be like him."
And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon,
Little boy blue and the man in the moon.
"When you coming home?"
"I don't know when,
We'll get together then, son.
You know we'll have a good time then."
Well, he came from college the other day,
So much like a man I just had to say,
"I'm proud of you, son. Will you sit for a while?"
He shook his head and he said with a smile,
"What I'd really like to do is borrow the car keys.
I'll see you later. Can I have them please?"
And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon,
Little boy blue and the man in the moon.
"When you coming home?"
"I don't know when,
We'll get together then, son.
You know we'll have a good time then."
Well, I've long since retired and my child moved away.
I called him up just the other day.
I said, "I'd like to see you if you don't mind."
He said, "I'd love to, dad, if I could find the time."
He said, "My new job's a hassle, and the kids got the flu,
But it's so nice talking to you, dad.
It's so nice talking to you."
And as I hung up the phone,
It occurred to me,
My boy's a lot like me.
My boy's a lot like me.
And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon,
Little boy blue and the man in the moon.
"When you coming home?"
"I don't know when,
We'll get together then, son.
You know we'll have a good time then."
"We'll get together then, son.
You know we'll have a good time then."
The song Cat's in the Cradle by Judy Collins is a melancholic narrative about a father and his son, the relationship between them, and how it evolves over time. The father is busy with work, always has an excuse for not spending time with his son, while the son is eager to connect with his father but is always turned down. The first verse shows how the father is consumed with his responsibilities, and he misses his son's essential learning milestones such as walking and talking. The chorus, "And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon, Little boy blue and the man in the moon…," signifies the disconnect, and there is a metaphorical distance between the father and son. The father is far away, almost unreachable, while the child is looking to the moon for his father's presence.
As the song progresses, the child grows, and the father retires. The son becomes very similar to his father, and their roles are reversed, indicating that the son is now busy with life's responsibilities, and the father is yearning for his son's attention.
The song provides a powerful message about how absent fathers affect their children negatively. Despite the father's financial support, his son is still yearning for his father's emotional presence, and by the time they both have the luxury of time, it is too late to fix the relationship.
Overall, the song highlights the importance of the presence of a father in a child's life, guiding him and creating memories that will last a lifetime. It's also a warning to parents to be mindful of the time they spend making money rather than spending it with their children.
Line by Line Meaning
My child arrived just the other day,
My son was born recently
He came to the world in the usual way.
I gave birth to him in the normal way
But there were planes to catch and bills to pay.
I was busy with work and had to travel
He learned to walk while I was away.
I wasn't there to see him take his first steps
And he was talking 'fore I knew it, and as he grew,
He started speaking and growing up quickly
He'd say, "I'm gonna be like you, dad.
He would tell me he wanted to be like me when he grew up
You know I'm gonna be like you."
He wanted to follow in my footsteps
And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon,
The cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon is a metaphor representing a life of luxury
Little boy blue and the man in the moon.
Little boy blue and the man in the moon is a metaphor representing childhood and growing up
"When you coming home?"
Asking when I would come home
"I don't know when,
I don't know when I will come home
We'll get together then, son.
We will spend time together when I get back
You know we'll have a good time then."
We'll enjoy our time together
My child turned ten the other day.
My son turned ten years old
He said, "Thanks for the ball, dad come on let's play.
Thanked me for the ball and wanted to play with me
Can you teach me to throw?" I said, "Not today,
He asked me to teach him how to throw, but I declined
I've got a lot to do." He said, "That's ok.
He understood that I was busy
He turned away, but his smile never dimmed,
He was still happy despite my refusal
"I'm gonna be like him," he said.
He still wanted to be like me
Yes, I'm gonna be like him."
He was determined to follow my example
Well, he came from college the other day,
My son came back from college
So much like a man I just had to say,
He looked like a grown man
"I'm proud of you, son. Will you sit for a while?"
I was proud of him and wanted to spend time with him
He shook his head and he said with a smile,
He declined but was still happy
"What I'd really like to do is borrow the car keys.
He wanted to borrow my car
I'll see you later. Can I have them please?"
He wanted to use it later and asked for my permission
Well, I've long since retired and my child moved away.
I have retired and my son has moved out
I called him up just the other day.
I called him recently
I said, "I'd like to see you if you don't mind."
I asked if we could meet up
He said, "I'd love to, dad, if I could find the time."
He expressed his desire to meet up but was busy
He said, "My new job's a hassle, and the kids got the flu,
He couldn't meet up because of work and his kids' illness
But it's so nice talking to you, dad.
He enjoyed talking to me
It's so nice talking to you."
He appreciated our conversation
And as I hung up the phone,
I ended the phone call
It occurred to me,
I realized
My boy's a lot like me.
My son has become like me
And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon,
The metaphor of the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon is repeated
Little boy blue and the man in the moon.
The metaphor of Little boy blue and the man in the moon is repeated
"When you coming home?"
The question of when I will come home is repeated
"I don't know when,
The answer of not knowing when I will come home is repeated
We'll get together then, son.
The hope of getting together when I return is repeated
You know we'll have a good time then."
The certainty of enjoying our time together is repeated
Lyrics © Songtrust Ave, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Sandy Chapin, Harry F. Chapin
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind