A Chat with Legendary Producer Joe Boyd

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Bob Boilen talks with legendary music producer Joe Boyd about his work with artists like Pink Floyd, Nick Drake and Eric Clapton in the 1960s. Joe Boyd has a new book detailing his lifelong work in the studio, on stage and what it was like to be part of musical revolution.

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Much of the music featured on this edition of All Songs Considered and discussed in Joe Boyd's new book is available on a companion CD, also titled White Bicycles.

Various Artists

CD: White Bicycles
Label: Fledg'ling UK

Joe Boyd

Book: White Bicycles
Publisher: Serpent's Tail

Joe Boyd talks about his time working with some of the most influential artists in rock history in his new book, White Bicycles.

This track originally appeared on a compilation LP from Elektra Records in 1966, featuring a number of the label's artists. Eric Clapton recorded it with his band The Powerhouse with Joe Boyd producing.

Eric Clapton and The Powerhouse

CD: What's Shakin' (Various Artists)
Song: "Crossroads"
Label: Elektra

Listen to "Crossroads"

This was Pink Floyd's first single, released in 1967. Though it wasn't included in the band's debut album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, it later appeared on the LP Relics in 1971.

Pink Floyd

CD: Relics
Song: "Arnold Layne"
Label: Capitol

Listen to "Arnold Layne"

Note: This is a 60 second sample. We do not have the label's permission to play the entire track.

This incredibly popular song first appeared on The Band's album Music from Big Pink. Although producer Joe Boyd did not work on this album, he says it's impossible to overstate the importance and influence The Band's album had on British folk.

The Band

CD: Music From Big Pink
Song: "The Weight"
Label: Capitol

Listen to "The Weight"

Note: This is a 60 second sample. We do not have the label's permission to play the entire track.

The Band, Fairport Convention was the first major British folk-rock group. It featured guitarist Richard Thompson and, later, singer Sandy Denny. This album was originally released in 1969.

Fairport Convention

CD: Liege and Leaf
Song: "The Deserter"
Label: A&M

Listen to "The Deserter"

Producer Joe Boyd, who worked with Nick Drake from the beginning of the artist's career, says he regrets not doing more to help draw attention to Drake's music. Though popular now, Drake died in 1974 and never got to see his music reach a major audience.

Nick Drake

CD: Bryter Layter
Song: "Poor Boy"
Label: Universal

Listen to "Poor Boy"

Vashti Bunyan recorded these songs in 1969. The Incredible String Band appears on some of the tracks. Just Another Diamond Day was a commercial flop when it was released in 1970 and Bunyan disappeared from the music business. The album finally found an audience when it was rediscovered and reissued in 2000, prompting Bunyan to return to the studio for a long overdue follow-up, Lookaftering in 2005.

Vashti Bunyan

CD: Just Another Diamond Day
Song: "Come Wind Come Rain"
Label: Dicristina Stair

Listen to "Come Wind Come Rain"

Note: This is a 60 second sample. We do not have the label's permission to play the entire track.

The Scottish group, The Incredible String Band, were pioneers of world music and, later, psychedelic folk. This track first appeared on the album The 5000 Spirits or the Layers of the Onion in 1967. It imagines someone from the future looking back at the '60s.

The Incredible String Band

CD: The 5000 Spirits or the Layers of the Onion
Song: "Way Back in the 1960s"
Label: Elektra

Listen to "Way Back in the 1960s"

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