Illuminations (Buffy Sainte-Marie album)

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Illuminations
Illuminations (Buffy Sainte-Marie album).jpeg
Studio album by
Buffy Sainte-Marie
Released1969 (1969)
Recorded1969
StudioElectronic Music Studios at State University of New York, Albany, New York
GenreFolk
Length35:51
LabelVanguard
Producer
Buffy Sainte-Marie chronology
I'm Gonna Be a Country Girl Again
(1968) 		Illuminations
(1969) 		She Used to Wanna Be a Ballerina
(1971)
Singles from Illuminations
  1. "Better to Find Out for Yourself"
    Released: 1969
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic4.5/5 stars[1]
Pitchfork9.0/10[2]

Illuminations is the sixth album by Indigenous Canadian-American singer Buffy Sainte-Marie, released in 1969. Most of the tracks did away with the backing she had used on her previous two albums, and Illuminations had a completely different sound from anything she had previously done. From a basis of vocals and acoustic guitar, Sainte-Marie and producer Maynard Solomon used electronic synthesisers to create a sound that was much more experimental music than folk. Indeed, Illuminations was the first quadrophonic vocal album ever made, and on songs like the album's only single "Better to Find Out for Yourself", her voice is completely altered by a Buchla synthesiser.

Peter Schickele, however, did provide arrangements to "Mary", "Adam" and "The Angel", whilst the four tracks "Suffer the Little Children", "With You, Honey", "Guess Who I Saw in Paris" and "He's a Keeper of the Fire" were her first work not to be produced by Vanguard boss Maynard Solomon. Instead, they had a stripped-down rock sound and were produced by little known folk-jazz songwriter Mark Roth. Bob Bozina played guitar, John Craviotta drums and percussion, and Rick Oxendine played bass.

Reception[]

Illuminations has acquired a fan base quite distinct from that associated with any of Sainte-Marie's other albums. In addition to its being cited as a favourite album by a number of musicians (notably Steve Hackett),[3] a number of critics have seen its twisted, eerie soundscapes as laying the grounds for the evolution of gothic music as well as having an influence on New Weird America.[citation needed]

In 2000, just before Vanguard re-issued it on CD, Wire magazine listed Illuminations amongst its '100 Albums that Set the World on Fire While No-One was Listening'.[4]

Track listing[]

All songs composed by Buffy Sainte-Marie except where noted.

  1. "God Is Alive, Magic Is Afoot" (text by Leonard Cohen from his novel Beautiful Losers / music by Buffy Sainte-Marie) – 4:51
  2. "Mary" – 1:30
  3. "Better to Find Out for Yourself" – 2:12
  4. "The Vampire" – 2:05
  5. "Adam" (Richie Havens) – 5:05
  6. "The Dream Tree" – 2:34
  7. "Suffer the Little Children" – 2:53
  8. "The Angel" (Ed Freeman) – 3:41
  9. "With You, Honey" – 1:48
  10. "Guess Who I Saw in Paris" – 2:25
  11. "He's a Keeper of the Fire" – 3:21
  12. "Poppies" – 3:26

References[]

  1. ^ "Illuminations – Buffy Sainte-Marie – Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 12 May 2019.
  2. ^ Zoladz, Lindsay (February 4, 2020). "Buffy Saint-Marie: Illuminations". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  3. ^ "The Top 10 Albums Of Steve Hackett [November 2017]". rocknrolljournalist.com. 22 November 2017. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  4. ^ "RTX Archive: The Wire 175 [September 1998]". 13 June 2007. Archived from the original on 13 June 2007. Retrieved 12 May 2019.
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