Richard and Mimi Fariña.

September 21, 2009 8:55 AM

Richard and Mimi Fariña. I doubt I'll ever forget his song, Bold Marauder, or his cult novel, Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up To Me. He and Mimi, Joan Baez's sister, made three fine albums before his tragic death. Youtube has a live version of "Bold Marauder." Also, a nice cover by Kendra Smith, and a fanvid for the pirate romance, "Frenchman's Creek," using a cover by John Kay of Steppenwolf.
posted by shetterly (13 comments total)

His novel was turned into a movie of the same name, though it sounds to be rather scarce. Among other anecdotes about the film:

The film passes hands quietly on the web from time to time, and is listed on Blockbuster's site as stocked in at least one fo their thousands of stores. I understand the state of Utah once refused Blockbuster's request to transport the film across their borders.

- Greg Pennell

See also: Pynchon on Fariña.

Furthermore: Richard and Mimi Fariña discography (fan-made and incomplete, but it indirectly points to Johnny Cash and June Carter's cover of "Pack Up Your Sorrows.")
posted by filthy light thief at 9:20 AM on September 21, 2009 [3 favorites]

House Unamerican Blues Activity Dream live on Pete Seeger's Rainbow Quest with Pete looking on.

Thanks for this! We need the old stuff around, now more than ever.
posted by wemayfreeze at 9:33 AM on September 21, 2009

They were a beautiful couple, inside and out. When I was a teenager, there was a tiny coffeehouse in our town, run by some kids on Saturday nights. At the height of their popularity, Mimi & Dick played there - more than once. I'm sure the operators of the place could not have paid them anything like what they were getting in the name venues, but there they were, playing great music for us, and obviously enjoying themselves. Richard's death was a greater tragedy to me than I can describe, made even more poignant by Mimi's devotion to him.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 10:26 AM on September 21, 2009 [2 favorites]

They will be unknown and of course not remember by those over a certain age. For those born earlier, a reflection of "our exciting and wonderful past." ...and so it goes (vonnegut)
posted by Postroad at 10:39 AM on September 21, 2009

As a dulcimer player (mostly jazz, not much Trad.), I've really enjoyed Farina's arrangements.
posted by reflecked at 11:14 AM on September 21, 2009

Thank you for this post, and the Pynchon on Farina link by filthy light thief. I was just the right age for "Been Down so long..", and was trying to convince a Cornell graduate to love me when I read it.
That book and their music took me far along the path, somehow. I miss 'em.
posted by Hobgoblin at 11:16 AM on September 21, 2009

Their music still resonates! Thanks for the links.

As a teenager back in the sixties I had just a few albums- theirs was one of them- and I played them over and over again. There wasn't anything on the radio worth listening to where I lived and we were still decades away from ipods etc.
posted by mareli at 12:24 PM on September 21, 2009

Mimi Fariña and Tom Jans's album Take Heart got me through some very hard times high school. It absolutely did.
posted by DesbaratsDays at 4:10 PM on September 21, 2009

Story I heard was that Richard F. gave Dylan the idea that deep lyrics were a whole lot more cool than retreading Woody Gurthrie stuff. And the rest is history....
posted by IndigoJones at 5:09 PM on September 21, 2009

...Then there's the Richard & Mimi Fariña website.
posted by y2karl at 8:43 AM on September 22, 2009

y2karl, their web site is the first link in this post, but the other links at that post are useful for folk fans. I should've made that a "previously." Thanks for adding it!
posted by shetterly at 9:56 AM on September 22, 2009

Joan Baez's recording of Children of Darkness is something I've loved since I was a child. She writes beautifully about Farina in her book Daybreak (1968), as well.
posted by jokeefe at 1:00 PM on September 22, 2009

Blue Marauder? OMG. I've wondered about that song for years. Someone played it for me in Seattle, in 1975. I couldn't remember the artists, yet I'm kind of blown away that I thought "Blue Marauder" the moment I read the name. Thanks for the connection.
posted by Goofyy at 7:47 AM on September 23, 2009