Tom Cole of NPR’s blog The Record is reporting that folk singer Richie Havens has died of a heart attack today at the age of 72. Havens, who opened the Woodstock Music and Art Fair in 1969, was known for his song “Freedom,” which was adapted from his performance at Woodstock and later used in a documentary about the festival.
Cole writes:
As a black performer, he was a rarity in the folk-dominated Greenwich Village scene. His sandpaper soft voice and percussive guitar playing caught the ear of folk impresario Albert Grossman, who first signed Bob Dylan and helped create Peter, Paul and Mary. Havens released his breakout album, Mixed Bag, in 1967.
Watch Havens perform “Freedom” at Woodstock above.
Read more at NPR’s The Record.
This news brief was written by Kaitlin Higgins, editorial assistant for The Burton Wire.
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