Mayor of Macdougal Street, The

This work presents a fascinating memoir of the '60s Greenwich Village folk revival through the eyes of one of its most legendary figures. Dave Van Ronk (1936 - 2002) was a leading founder of the '60s folk revival, as well as a pioneer of modern acoustic blues, a fine songwriter and arranger, a powerful singer, and one of the most influential guitarists of the '60s. He was also a marvellous storyteller, a peerless musical historian, and one of the most quotable figures on the Village scene. "The Mayor of MacDougal Street" is a unique first-hand account by a major player in the social and musical history of the '50s and '60s. Featuring encounters with some of the young stars-to-be that he mentored, like Bob Dylan, Tom Paxton, Phil Ochs, Joan Baez, and Joni Mitchell, as well as older luminaries like Reverend Gary Davis, Woody Guthrie, Mississippi John Hurt, and Odetta. Colourful, hilarious, engaging, and vivid, the book is a wonderful evocation of a fascinating time and place.