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Mary Jane and Winston Young

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mary Jane and Winston Young
OriginToronto, Ontario, Canada
GenresFolk
Years active1960s
Past members
  • Mary Jane Young
  • Winston Young

Mary Jane and Winston Young were a Toronto-based folk music singing duo. They were active as early as 1960 in the early days of the North American urban Folk Revival.[1][2] They were part of the movement that tied folk music to a socially progressive view of the world.

The Youngs performed various kinds of folk based music, including Irish tunes and political tunes and American tunes and songs from Ewen McColl.

History

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In November 1960 the Youngs' music was featured on the BBC program Roundabout.[3]

The pair were regular performers at Toronto's folk club and cultural centre, the Bohemian Embassy Coffee House[4] which was run by actor/cultural animator Don Cullen.[5][6] The Youngs didn't record anything but a few live recordings. They appeared alongside many Canadian acts, Gordon Lightfoot, Ian and Sylvia, Joni Mitchell and Stan Rogers. They were to a significant part of the Toronto folk scene in the late fifties and early sixties.

The Youngs performed at the first Mariposa Folk Festival.[7][8] In 2001 they performed as part of a Bohemian Embassy reunion night fundraiser for the Humanist Association of Toronto.[9]

References

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  1. ^ "Founding Folkies" A History of Folk Music in English Canada, chapter 19 by Gary Cristall
  2. ^ "Folk Music Revival" Canadian Encyclopedia
  3. ^ "ROUNDABOUT Light Programme, 3 November 1960". Genome
  4. ^ "A selective guide to Toronto night life by David Secter". The Varsity, September 28, 1963 - Mar 20, 1964
  5. ^ "Bohemian Embassy Night". Artword Theatre Bulletin, April–May, 2001]
  6. ^ https://www.thestar.com/article/173256 "Bohemian". Toronto Star, 2007/01/21
  7. ^ John Einarson (6 September 2011). Four Strong Winds: Ian and Sylvia. McClelland & Stewart. p. 47. ISBN 978-0-7710-3040-6.
  8. ^ Michael Hill (6 May 2017). The Mariposa Folk Festival: A History. Dundurn. pp. 17–. ISBN 978-1-4597-3774-7.
  9. ^ http://humanist.toronto.on.ca/newsletters/Newsletter46.html "Bohemian Embassy Night Was a Sell-Out Success!". Humanist newsletter May/June, 2001 Number 46 [dead link] Archived