A Young Gypsy

Album: Where Are You Now, My Son? (1973)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Baez wrote this song about her son Gabriel; the giveaway is the last line, "For the gypsy is two years old."

    Joan Baez was born in New York in 1941, and met fellow antiwar activist David Harris after her October 1967 arrest for civil disobedience; they were both interned in the Santa Rita county jail, California. For a while the two lived together in his draft resistance commune; they married shortly, but Harris was arrested again while she was pregnant with their son, and her only child. Gabriel Harris was born in December 1969. Baez and Harris divorced amicably in 1973, and they shared custody. Although obviously intensely personal, this is a fairly light acoustic number in comparison with most of her political songs. >>>
    Suggestion credit:
    Alexander Baron - London, England

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Supertramp founder Roger Hodgson

Supertramp founder Roger HodgsonSongwriter Interviews

Roger tells the stories behind some of his biggest hits, including "Give a Little Bit," "Take the Long Way Home" and "The Logical Song."

Strange Magnetics

Strange MagneticsSong Writing

How Bing Crosby, Les Paul, a US Army Signal Corps Officer, and the Nazis helped shape rock and Roll.

David Paich of Toto

David Paich of TotoSongwriter Interviews

Toto's keyboard player explains the true meaning of "Africa" and talks about working on the Thriller album.

Justin Hayward of The Moody Blues

Justin Hayward of The Moody BluesSongwriter Interviews

Justin wrote the classic "Nights In White Satin," but his fondest musical memories are from a different decade.

Jules Shear - "All Through The Night"

Jules Shear - "All Through The Night"They're Playing My Song

Shears does very little promotion, which has kept him secluded from the spotlight. What changed when Cyndi Lauper had a hit with his song? Not much, really.

Director Nick Morris ("The Final Countdown")

Director Nick Morris ("The Final Countdown")Song Writing

Nick made some of the biggest videos on MTV, including "The Final Countdown," "Heaven" and "Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone)."