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Buffy Sainte-Marie: The Authorized Biography
Folk hero. Rock icon. Living legend. Buffy Sainte-Marie is all of these things, and Greystone is proud to celebrate the incredible Cree singer-songwriter, activist, and educator with her authorized biography.
For more than 50 years, Sainte-Marie has made her voice heard through her music, art, and activism, establishing herself among the ranks of folk greats such as Joni Mitchell and Bob Dylan. She’s released more than twenty albums and ten singles, survived being blacklisted by two U.S. presidents, and has received countless accolades, including the only Academy Award ever to be won by a First Nations artist. Her most recent album, Power in the Blood (2015), won the Polaris Music Prize and two Juno Awards. But Sainte-Marie is so much more than a musician; she is also an entrepreneur, a pioneer in digital art, and an important cultural activist who has worked tirelessly advocating for and protecting Indigenous rights and freedoms. Her incredible contributions to society will be recognized when she receives the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award at the 2017 Juno Awards, and will also come to light in her forthcoming biography.
Penned by leading music, culture, and feminist writer Andrea Warner, Buffy Sainte-Marie: An Authorized Biography will weave a powerful, intimate look at the life of a beloved artist and everything that she has accomplished in her 76 years (and counting).
For more than 50 years, Sainte-Marie has made her voice heard through her music, art, and activism, establishing herself among the ranks of folk greats such as Joni Mitchell and Bob Dylan. She’s released more than twenty albums and ten singles, survived being blacklisted by two U.S. presidents, and has received countless accolades, including the only Academy Award ever to be won by a First Nations artist. Her most recent album, Power in the Blood (2015), won the Polaris Music Prize and two Juno Awards. But Sainte-Marie is so much more than a musician; she is also an entrepreneur, a pioneer in digital art, and an important cultural activist who has worked tirelessly advocating for and protecting Indigenous rights and freedoms. Her incredible contributions to society will be recognized when she receives the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award at the 2017 Juno Awards, and will also come to light in her forthcoming biography.
Penned by leading music, culture, and feminist writer Andrea Warner, Buffy Sainte-Marie: An Authorized Biography will weave a powerful, intimate look at the life of a beloved artist and everything that she has accomplished in her 76 years (and counting).
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First published September 25, 2018
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January 6, 2019
Buffy Sainte- Marie: The Authorized Biography by Andrea Warner is a 2018 Greystone Books publication.
Between the ages of five and seven, I liked the am pop radio stations that came in clear enough in my small rural location. Those stations were more apt to play ‘These Boots are Made for Walking’ by Nancy Sinatra than anything remotely folk sounding. However, folk music was all over the television in prime time variety shows, the news and other mediums and we even sang some generic folk songs in our music class at school. I loved it, to be honest. My mother allowed me, at the ripe old age of seven to buy Judy Collins and Joan Baez records, and I nearly wore them out- before I fell in love with David Cassidy, Bobby Sherman and The Osmond Brothers, that is. 😊
I never really connected to folk music in the same way again, until I was much older. But, folk music was never a genre I was well versed in. I knew the heavy hitters from the sixties and seventies, but never scratched too far beneath the surface. So, to be perfectly honest, I had never heard of Buffy Sainte-Marie- although now, I realize I was marginally aware of one or two of her songs. Therefore, this is really my first introduction to her and her background.
For anyone else like me, who are mostly unfamiliar with this artist, Buffy is a Cree member- one of the largest groups of First Nations in Canada and has an Indigenous heritage. Her background has led her to focus on the rights and freedoms of the Indigenous people.
Her musical abilities are natural and self-taught, and her songs, while ever changing, usually stuck with themes of peace over war and the individual’s responsibility in helping to prevent further bloodshed. Her message truly resonated with the anti-war sentiment in the sixties and her signature song, ‘Universal Soldier’ became an anthem.
Yet, Buffy never did cross over into the mainstream the way her white counterparts did. She remained out of the public glare, while commanding the respect of many other folk musicians. Her songs were recorded and covered by Elvis, Glen Campbell, and Donavon, just to name a few. But, her personal life remained an enigma- maybe even to some of her biggest fans.
This book takes the reader back to Buffy’s troubled childhood, which explains a lot about her aversion to socializing and publicity tactics. We follow her through her early years in the music business, her struggles with publishing rights, and her activism. She was even a regular on Sesame Street for a time until budget cuts forced her out. Her private life was also examined, which was not always easy to read about, so be prepared for a few uncomfortable passages.
However, once most of these bad patches were behind her, Buffy carved out a niche for herself and although still active musically, she put a lot of her energy behind teaching and education, paving the way for indigenous people in more ways than she is credited for, opening doors for them in many areas, including music.
I liked the fact that this was an authorized biography. The author has the permission to print and publish anything she wished with her subject’s permission, which to me, says a lot. One thing I always look for in a biography is organization. This book has a nice presentation, mostly done in the traditional chronological way. She named each chapter after one of Buffy’s songs, which was a nice touch, I thought.
While Buffy’s life has certainly been extraordinary, her music important and emotional, the book, at times, is a bit dry. It is also rather brief, and I’m not entirely sure how well it fully captured Buffy’s persona or spirit.
Other than that, the book is certainly worth checking out. I knew little or nothing about this artist and am glad to have discovered her. I learned more insights into the music business, how Buffy survived on the fringes of major, household name, success and was impressed by her musical abilities after watching a few YouTube videos. However, I also learned a lot about First Nations and the many challenges facing Indigenous people.
From a personal standpoint, I admired Buffy’s forthrightness, and her boldness and courage. I see in her a little bit of a kindred spirit in that she sees through a lot of smoke and mirrors and refuses to play the required games. She was a true pioneer and a real life rebel- which always comes at a cost. She lives her life on her own terms and is someone who seems to need space away from the crowds and too much peopling. I can relate to that, but I’m happy she still performs, records, writes and is still a strong advocate.
This is a quick and easy read, but also an interesting outline of Buffy Sainte -Maire’s life and times.
4 stars
*I was provided an advance reader’s copy of this book as a part of LibraryThing’s early review program.
Between the ages of five and seven, I liked the am pop radio stations that came in clear enough in my small rural location. Those stations were more apt to play ‘These Boots are Made for Walking’ by Nancy Sinatra than anything remotely folk sounding. However, folk music was all over the television in prime time variety shows, the news and other mediums and we even sang some generic folk songs in our music class at school. I loved it, to be honest. My mother allowed me, at the ripe old age of seven to buy Judy Collins and Joan Baez records, and I nearly wore them out- before I fell in love with David Cassidy, Bobby Sherman and The Osmond Brothers, that is. 😊
I never really connected to folk music in the same way again, until I was much older. But, folk music was never a genre I was well versed in. I knew the heavy hitters from the sixties and seventies, but never scratched too far beneath the surface. So, to be perfectly honest, I had never heard of Buffy Sainte-Marie- although now, I realize I was marginally aware of one or two of her songs. Therefore, this is really my first introduction to her and her background.
For anyone else like me, who are mostly unfamiliar with this artist, Buffy is a Cree member- one of the largest groups of First Nations in Canada and has an Indigenous heritage. Her background has led her to focus on the rights and freedoms of the Indigenous people.
Her musical abilities are natural and self-taught, and her songs, while ever changing, usually stuck with themes of peace over war and the individual’s responsibility in helping to prevent further bloodshed. Her message truly resonated with the anti-war sentiment in the sixties and her signature song, ‘Universal Soldier’ became an anthem.
Yet, Buffy never did cross over into the mainstream the way her white counterparts did. She remained out of the public glare, while commanding the respect of many other folk musicians. Her songs were recorded and covered by Elvis, Glen Campbell, and Donavon, just to name a few. But, her personal life remained an enigma- maybe even to some of her biggest fans.
This book takes the reader back to Buffy’s troubled childhood, which explains a lot about her aversion to socializing and publicity tactics. We follow her through her early years in the music business, her struggles with publishing rights, and her activism. She was even a regular on Sesame Street for a time until budget cuts forced her out. Her private life was also examined, which was not always easy to read about, so be prepared for a few uncomfortable passages.
However, once most of these bad patches were behind her, Buffy carved out a niche for herself and although still active musically, she put a lot of her energy behind teaching and education, paving the way for indigenous people in more ways than she is credited for, opening doors for them in many areas, including music.
I liked the fact that this was an authorized biography. The author has the permission to print and publish anything she wished with her subject’s permission, which to me, says a lot. One thing I always look for in a biography is organization. This book has a nice presentation, mostly done in the traditional chronological way. She named each chapter after one of Buffy’s songs, which was a nice touch, I thought.
While Buffy’s life has certainly been extraordinary, her music important and emotional, the book, at times, is a bit dry. It is also rather brief, and I’m not entirely sure how well it fully captured Buffy’s persona or spirit.
Other than that, the book is certainly worth checking out. I knew little or nothing about this artist and am glad to have discovered her. I learned more insights into the music business, how Buffy survived on the fringes of major, household name, success and was impressed by her musical abilities after watching a few YouTube videos. However, I also learned a lot about First Nations and the many challenges facing Indigenous people.
From a personal standpoint, I admired Buffy’s forthrightness, and her boldness and courage. I see in her a little bit of a kindred spirit in that she sees through a lot of smoke and mirrors and refuses to play the required games. She was a true pioneer and a real life rebel- which always comes at a cost. She lives her life on her own terms and is someone who seems to need space away from the crowds and too much peopling. I can relate to that, but I’m happy she still performs, records, writes and is still a strong advocate.
This is a quick and easy read, but also an interesting outline of Buffy Sainte -Maire’s life and times.
4 stars
*I was provided an advance reader’s copy of this book as a part of LibraryThing’s early review program.
June 18, 2019
A powerful biography about a woman with a message. Buffy Sainte-Marie shines not only as an entertainer but as a humanitarian. Well-written and researched.
March 29, 2021
If you take a look at my review and say "Who is Buffy Sainte-Marie?" This 80-year-old indigenous singer/songwriter activist is definitely a woman I want my friends to know. 1)Her anti-war anthem "Universal Soldier" was written long before other folk singers started tackling that topic. 2)As a regular on Sesame Street, Buffy was the first woman to breastfeed on national television. 3)She pushed for Canada's Juno Awards to be more inclusive to indigenous artists, including when they decided to honour her own work. When she was asked to play an indigenous woman in a popular American show in the 1960s, her one request was that all the actors of that episode also be indigenous to reflect the issue being discussed in that episode. 4)Her song "Starwalker" was the first to feature powwow music in a pop song. 5) "Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee" took her 14 years to write and highlights her drive to always place indigenous issues in her music despite those on the outside asking "when are you going to stop talking about it?"
Goodreads review published 29/03/21
Goodreads review published 29/03/21
January 20, 2019
Buffy Sainte-Marie is a native Canadian singer-songwriter, member of the Cree First Nation, and a social activist. She has fought for the rights of indigenous people for the last 50 years. I grew up listening to her music in the early 1960s (early in my life and her career). I remember hearing her first album, It’s My Way featuring the haunting protest for peace song, “Universal Soldier” and falling in love both with her voice and with her message.
Sainte-Marie was born on a reserve in Canada, but was taken from her indigenous family and adopted by a family in Massachusetts. This was apparently a common event back then. I knew such things had happened in the past but I didn’t realize this was still going on in the 1950s. Sainte-Marie knew nothing of her birth family; she didn’t even know her birth date.
Living with abuse, Sainte-Marie turned to music from an early age. She taught herself to play the piano and expressed all her feelings through music and being in nature. She writes of how miserable she was at home and at school but how free she felt in nature and when making music. These things saved, if not her life, then at the very least her sanity. They kept her whole when the rest of her life would have fractured her.
I used to wonder why I didn’t see or hear her as much as my other favorites, Judy Collins or Joan Baez. I knew a little about her social activism but learned much more from this book. This book helped explain why she was lesser known then some of her counterparts. Partly because of her troubled childhood and partly because of her dedication to other causes, Sainte-Marie has not been comfortable being the focus of public attention for herself. Much more than the other singers I knew about, Sainte-Marie’s dedication to her causes, to the indigenous peoples, has driven her life—and continues to do so. She is now in her 70s and her voice is still beautiful. She gives concerts in which people are moved in a very personal way and seek her out to tell her. She says she is touched by how her songs express the feelings of so many. But she has dedicated herself as much to the cause of the indigenous peoples as she has to her career, one reason why she may not be as well known as some of her peers. But she has helped many others, particularly indigenous peoples, to better lives and, sometimes, to careers in music.
Her passion for both music and social justice remain strong. She is a singer/songwriter I have long loved and admired but, after reading this book, my respect and admiration for her has grown exponentially.
The biography is an easy read but full of information and insight. Buffy Sainte-Marie emerges as a fascinating, talented, and dedicated woman who has lived life (despite many difficulties) on her own terms.
I received this book from LibraryThing’s Early Reviewer program.
Sainte-Marie was born on a reserve in Canada, but was taken from her indigenous family and adopted by a family in Massachusetts. This was apparently a common event back then. I knew such things had happened in the past but I didn’t realize this was still going on in the 1950s. Sainte-Marie knew nothing of her birth family; she didn’t even know her birth date.
Living with abuse, Sainte-Marie turned to music from an early age. She taught herself to play the piano and expressed all her feelings through music and being in nature. She writes of how miserable she was at home and at school but how free she felt in nature and when making music. These things saved, if not her life, then at the very least her sanity. They kept her whole when the rest of her life would have fractured her.
I used to wonder why I didn’t see or hear her as much as my other favorites, Judy Collins or Joan Baez. I knew a little about her social activism but learned much more from this book. This book helped explain why she was lesser known then some of her counterparts. Partly because of her troubled childhood and partly because of her dedication to other causes, Sainte-Marie has not been comfortable being the focus of public attention for herself. Much more than the other singers I knew about, Sainte-Marie’s dedication to her causes, to the indigenous peoples, has driven her life—and continues to do so. She is now in her 70s and her voice is still beautiful. She gives concerts in which people are moved in a very personal way and seek her out to tell her. She says she is touched by how her songs express the feelings of so many. But she has dedicated herself as much to the cause of the indigenous peoples as she has to her career, one reason why she may not be as well known as some of her peers. But she has helped many others, particularly indigenous peoples, to better lives and, sometimes, to careers in music.
Her passion for both music and social justice remain strong. She is a singer/songwriter I have long loved and admired but, after reading this book, my respect and admiration for her has grown exponentially.
The biography is an easy read but full of information and insight. Buffy Sainte-Marie emerges as a fascinating, talented, and dedicated woman who has lived life (despite many difficulties) on her own terms.
I received this book from LibraryThing’s Early Reviewer program.
Read
November 10, 2018In this volume, Andrea Warner paints a heartbreaking-yet-inspiring picture of Buffy Sainte Marie, the folk rock legend who’s mostly been erased from music history. Blacklisted by two US presidents, Buffy was an outspoken woman of color, and an activist, exactly the type of person that gets willfully forgotten.
When my baby boomer aunt saw this book, her face lit up. “I love Buffy!” she said. “Whatever happened to her?”
This book answers that question. Buffy only had one or two records that achieved hit status in the US. She never stopped producing music after that. However, much of her later works were not commercial successes, deemed too experimental. Other of her songs were covered by, and later attributed to, more famous musicians, including “Until It’s Time for You to Go,” a song Elvis Presley famously covered and allowed his fans to think he had written.
There’s even more to the story of why Buffy exists in relative obscurity today, despite being one of the most inventive, original artists of the 60s and 70s. This work makes a case for Buffy as one of the musical greats of the 60s.
Continue reading this review at The Furious Gazelle.
When my baby boomer aunt saw this book, her face lit up. “I love Buffy!” she said. “Whatever happened to her?”
This book answers that question. Buffy only had one or two records that achieved hit status in the US. She never stopped producing music after that. However, much of her later works were not commercial successes, deemed too experimental. Other of her songs were covered by, and later attributed to, more famous musicians, including “Until It’s Time for You to Go,” a song Elvis Presley famously covered and allowed his fans to think he had written.
There’s even more to the story of why Buffy exists in relative obscurity today, despite being one of the most inventive, original artists of the 60s and 70s. This work makes a case for Buffy as one of the musical greats of the 60s.
Continue reading this review at The Furious Gazelle.
January 6, 2019
At first I was unsure but as I became further engaged in the amazing story that is this life lived, I became surer of the writing. Want to learn and be inspired? Read this.
March 13, 2019
Inspirational, on many fronts.
June 12, 2019
This is a must read for anyone interested in Indigenous issues, women’s issues, social welfare issues, and music. What an amazing woman/person/artist that I have known about yet known very little about. I saw her play at Hillside Festival in Guelph ON a few years ago and I wish so much that I had known her music better! Thank you so much for this wonderful gift of a book!!
November 26, 2018
Like one reviewer commented, this is not the usual biography where the biographer fills in gaps with what they "think" should be added. This is Buffy Sainte-Marie's life as she chooses to share it. If you believe, as that reviewer does, that she should be forced to share more than she cares to in order to please those who want gossip and filler, then you may be disappointed and, more importantly, you also neither understand nor care for Sainte-Marie.
This is not all laughter and/or tears. The emotion some seem to find missing is very evident to some of us, probably because we find the events and beliefs that she sings about very emotional and personally impactful on our lives. Not just the music but the injustices she addresses for all of us.
If you're only familiar with her music then this book will give you a very good grasp of who she is and, more importantly, who she chooses to be. The hardships and the amazing ability to still seek a positive and goal-directed approach rather than simply a rage-filled confrontational approach. Make no mistake, the rage is there, but the desire to find solutions outweighs, for her, the need to simply rant and rave.
I would recommend this to fans of Buffy Sainte-Marie as well as those who like biographies. If you prefer a biography that uncovers the subject's secrets and fills gaps with gossip and pseudo-context, you might be middle of the road on this one.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via LibraryThing Early Reviewers.
This is not all laughter and/or tears. The emotion some seem to find missing is very evident to some of us, probably because we find the events and beliefs that she sings about very emotional and personally impactful on our lives. Not just the music but the injustices she addresses for all of us.
If you're only familiar with her music then this book will give you a very good grasp of who she is and, more importantly, who she chooses to be. The hardships and the amazing ability to still seek a positive and goal-directed approach rather than simply a rage-filled confrontational approach. Make no mistake, the rage is there, but the desire to find solutions outweighs, for her, the need to simply rant and rave.
I would recommend this to fans of Buffy Sainte-Marie as well as those who like biographies. If you prefer a biography that uncovers the subject's secrets and fills gaps with gossip and pseudo-context, you might be middle of the road on this one.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via LibraryThing Early Reviewers.
June 22, 2019
Being Canadian, I was aware of Buffy Sainte-Marie due to our habit of claiming everyone who was born here or spent any length of time here as one of our own. History being whitewashed, I did not realize that she was not just a folk singer, but also a tireless activist, unpaid educator, author of sings by more commercially successful (white, not banned) artists like Elvis and Janis Joplin and early adopter of both sampling and using Mac products in her home studio. This book was a fun read and I'm glad it exists to tell her story, which the author does through a mix of research and one on one conversations. It teaches us both about the experiences of Indigenous people in the US and Canada from the days of Residential Schools through various activities by the Indigenous sovereignty movement, as well as lessons from her experience as a woman in a male-dominated field.
January 5, 2021
The OTHER Saskatchewan girl and her story is interesting, inspirational and gripping but unfortunately Warner comes across as a too starry-eyed for my taste: while it might be unfair to her (the subject, after all, is very fascinating) the book would gain from a slightly distanced perspective. She fawns and worships Sainte-Marie so much that it unbalances the book - we have no other witnesses, memories or testimonies to confirm the statements. Interestingly, I found artist's own voice and thoughts much more eloquent and fascinating than authoress of this authorised biography.
February 13, 2019
Wow! Really enjoyed this. Her stories are historical. She’s truly fascinating. Beautifully written by Andrea Warner.
June 27, 2019
When this book was chosen for my book club, I was worried it wouldn’t hold my interest because I didn’t know any of Buffy Sainte-Marie’s music. Doesn’t matter-she’s a fascinating and lovely human whose story deserves to be told and enjoyed. She’s a passionate and progressive woman who is open about her life and doesn’t take her fame too seriously. Her activism about decolonization and Indigenization is downright lovely, focused on drawing people to the beauty of her history rather than insulting people for the failings. And amazingly, after enjoying the book, it was the afterward that made me fall totally in love with her, when author Andrea Warner reveals that Sainte-Marie encouraged her via gifs of Shaq.
September 21, 2021
I prefer autobiography to biography but I learned a lot about the singer-songwriter and activist from this book. More details about BSM's career and the music industry and her actions to help Indigenous nations than on her personal life but I guess it was intended that way.
"I wasn't trying to disrupt the power agenda," Sainte-Marie says, "but I'm awfully glad I did."
"I wasn't trying to disrupt the power agenda," Sainte-Marie says, "but I'm awfully glad I did."
September 8, 2020
Oh cool, I have a new idol! Well written and fascinating look into the intersectionality of a musician and activist who has been labeled many things, but has only ever looked beyond. I am very grateful to have read this book.
April 4, 2023
I owned It's My Way, Buffy's first album (1964). I loved that album. I've been to two of her concerts, one in Boston, while I was in college and an outdoor concert in New Haven, sometime in the 80s or 90s. Loved her stuff. Well, I had a lot of catching up to do. Buffy has put out 19 albums; the most recent (Medicine Songs) came out in 2017. Buffy is an amazing Indigenous woman, who has written tons of music, including "Up Where We Belong" (won an Oscar for that!), started educational initiatives, a plain-speaking activist and feminist. She was on Sesame Street for many years. I went up to my neighborhood music store and picked up a few of her albums (category: folk!). READ THIS BOOK! You won't regret it.
November 16, 2019
Four words immediately come to mind when describing Buffy Sainte-Marie: courage, independence, intelligence, prescience. A pioneer singer-songwriter, Native American/First Nations and Women’s Rights Activist, Electronica Diva, visual artist and Oscar-winning film composer, St. Marie wrote many classic songs of the 1960’s such as The Universal Soldier, Now that the Buffalo’s Gone, and Until It’s Time For You To Go.
Sainte-Marie overcame the traumas of adoption, child emotional and sexual abuse and racial discrimination to create an iconic and wide ranging body of work.
Because the author, Andrea Warner, relies almost exclusively on interviews with Sainte-Marie, the book’s subtitle should have read “the authorized interviews.” The book is a synthesis of interviews with Sainte-Marie; critical details are missing or barely touched. Sainte-Marie was adopted away from the Cree tribe and her native Canada to live with a white family in rural Maine. Warner doesn’t explain how Buffy became an orphan. I had to go to the web to learn that she was put up for adoption after her mother was killed in a car accident. It seems odd that Warner didn’t try to locate death records, newspaper accounts of the accident or adoption papers that might shed more light on Sainte-Marie’s origins.
Warner failed to interview anyone other than Sainte-Marie. The lack of interviews with Sainte-Marie’s colleagues makes some of her claims hard to assess. At one point, Sainte-Marie says that Vanguard Records, the label that released her first record, belittled, “edited” and exploited her. Vanguard’s reputation has always been that of the “white hat” of record labels. It has a track record of recording brilliant performers who don’t fit into the recording industry either because they are too idiosyncratic, too leftist, or of the wrong race. Paul Robeson, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, Merle Haggard, The Weavers, Odetta, Big Mama Thornton, Linda Ronstadt, Mississippi John Hurt, Junior Wells, Buddy Guy and Patrick Sky all recorded for Vanguard.
Music Historian Sam Charters writes that at Vanguard,
It would have been great if Warner had taken the time to interview some of the Vanguard artists to ascertain whether the treatment Sainte-Marie received was common at that time or whether she was singled out.
Sainte-Marie believes she was singled out and she advances a fascinating theory that I wish Warner had investigated. Sainte-Marie says in the early 1960s, a female, non-white performer who flaunted her independence by titling her first album It’s My Way! would have been a hard, almost toxic act to market. Vanguard’s publicists used stereotypes to fit her into a narrative that would make her acceptable to the public. They took her Cod’ine song and synthesized the popular culture archetype of the proud, doomed Indian with the classic opera plot -- La traviatta, La bohème -- of a flawed but noble heroine wasting away from a disease, (in this case addiction). She claims that she provided the template for Janis Joplin before there was Janis.
The book appears to have been written in a hurry. It is often repetitious and there are lots of sloppy, little mistakes that make Warner’s voice seem less convincing. At one point, for example, she writes that, Sainte-Marie “headed to Greenwich Village” and “soon after moved to New York City.”
Warner’s hero worshipping is a bigger problem. Her need to celebrate Buffy frequently gets in the way of the narrative. Warner also quotes extensively from published praise of Sainte-Marie from artists such as Joni Mitchell and Taj Mahal. How I wish she’d interviewed them as well!
_____
* https://www.uncut.co.uk/reviews/album...
Sainte-Marie overcame the traumas of adoption, child emotional and sexual abuse and racial discrimination to create an iconic and wide ranging body of work.
Because the author, Andrea Warner, relies almost exclusively on interviews with Sainte-Marie, the book’s subtitle should have read “the authorized interviews.” The book is a synthesis of interviews with Sainte-Marie; critical details are missing or barely touched. Sainte-Marie was adopted away from the Cree tribe and her native Canada to live with a white family in rural Maine. Warner doesn’t explain how Buffy became an orphan. I had to go to the web to learn that she was put up for adoption after her mother was killed in a car accident. It seems odd that Warner didn’t try to locate death records, newspaper accounts of the accident or adoption papers that might shed more light on Sainte-Marie’s origins.
Warner failed to interview anyone other than Sainte-Marie. The lack of interviews with Sainte-Marie’s colleagues makes some of her claims hard to assess. At one point, Sainte-Marie says that Vanguard Records, the label that released her first record, belittled, “edited” and exploited her. Vanguard’s reputation has always been that of the “white hat” of record labels. It has a track record of recording brilliant performers who don’t fit into the recording industry either because they are too idiosyncratic, too leftist, or of the wrong race. Paul Robeson, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, Merle Haggard, The Weavers, Odetta, Big Mama Thornton, Linda Ronstadt, Mississippi John Hurt, Junior Wells, Buddy Guy and Patrick Sky all recorded for Vanguard.
Music Historian Sam Charters writes that at Vanguard,
“The level of recording was very high, the recordings were beautifully presented and they treated artists with the same level of respect musically – they weren’t out to make hits. Vanguard not only believed in artistry, it was willing to fight for it. They had standards, and they never accepted anyone who didn’t have high standards too.” *
It would have been great if Warner had taken the time to interview some of the Vanguard artists to ascertain whether the treatment Sainte-Marie received was common at that time or whether she was singled out.
Sainte-Marie believes she was singled out and she advances a fascinating theory that I wish Warner had investigated. Sainte-Marie says in the early 1960s, a female, non-white performer who flaunted her independence by titling her first album It’s My Way! would have been a hard, almost toxic act to market. Vanguard’s publicists used stereotypes to fit her into a narrative that would make her acceptable to the public. They took her Cod’ine song and synthesized the popular culture archetype of the proud, doomed Indian with the classic opera plot -- La traviatta, La bohème -- of a flawed but noble heroine wasting away from a disease, (in this case addiction). She claims that she provided the template for Janis Joplin before there was Janis.
The book appears to have been written in a hurry. It is often repetitious and there are lots of sloppy, little mistakes that make Warner’s voice seem less convincing. At one point, for example, she writes that, Sainte-Marie “headed to Greenwich Village” and “soon after moved to New York City.”
Warner’s hero worshipping is a bigger problem. Her need to celebrate Buffy frequently gets in the way of the narrative. Warner also quotes extensively from published praise of Sainte-Marie from artists such as Joni Mitchell and Taj Mahal. How I wish she’d interviewed them as well!
_____
* https://www.uncut.co.uk/reviews/album...
July 26, 2019
I remember her from Sesame Street. I knew her face and voice and a few of her songs, because she's a Canadian celebrity, and we like to list off and claim even the obscurest talent, no matter if only slightly Canadian, as "ours". I did not know the her story, but was intrigued after catching two CBC interviews with her - one on Tapestry, all about belief and meaning and Spirit, which surprised and delighted me. I also learned how Canadian she really is. This biography, by Andrea Warner (whose other books I'm looking to read), is gripping, insightful, informative, and a mind-blowing re-frame of a warrior woman's life's work. Who knew she's always been ahead of her time musically/ creatively/ politically/ personally - and that to her, it's all really one in the same? I loved and relate strongly to her story, and I've learned more about the work of indigenization and de-colonization through this book. Education and a call to action - now that you know, what will you do? - are two parts of Ms. Sainte-Marie's approach. I will be recommending this book to everyone I know.
August 22, 2019
It’s so refreshing to read a music biography about an artist whose career hasn’t followed the predictable narrative arc (get famous--do drugs--spiral out of control--get clean--repeat). Buffy Sainte Marie dropped some radical music on the world in the 1960s and always continued to challenge herself and experiment in order to keep things new. Buffy comes across as such a pure and positive individual, through her actions (e.g. Sesame Street appearances, Cradleboard educational initiatives) and her wise and straight-up words. It was such a pleasure to learn more about this inspiration Cree icon!
November 5, 2018
A powerhouse bio of powerhouse who is miles ahead of everyone, both as a musician that pushes the boundaries of the medium, and as a First Nations activist who puts achieving results ahead of everything else. There's so much we can learn from this legend, and this book catalogs her life thus far in an engaging, easy to read format.
August 17, 2018
Really great look into the life of such and icon of so many things. Very well worth the read.
January 13, 2019
What an amazing person Buffy is. And what a wonderful revealing and captivating biography. Though a fan of her music for over 50 years, I now have a much fuller appreciation of an incredible human.
May 13, 2019
Learned a lot about her I didn't know. A 'standard' rock bio, but about someone who's way more interesting than most rock stars.
Can't wait to see her in September!
Can't wait to see her in September!
January 18, 2024
I loved Buffy (Bluffy?) so much. Unfortunately she is just other pretendian (with pilgram roots) who built her career off of other people’s tragedies. 💔
November 30, 2021
The author is a super-fan of Buffy Sainte-Marie and writes about her with unabashed enthusiasm: her music, activism, and personal choices. I don't blame her. I've long considered Buffy to be one of the best songwriters of the 20th century and maybe beyond. I've seen her a number of times, and she's also a great performer. She's always supported good causes, indigenous and other, and her own nonprofit did excellent things.
The book gives details about her personal life, including childhood abuse, how she reconnected with her birth family, her path to not being a doormat for men, and, interestingly, how her creativity has worked, starting in her childhood. It is, of course, even more about her career in singing, songwriting, musicianship, and entertainment (Sesame Street!). And the ups and downs; a period where two presidential administrations effectively had her blacklisted, and one where an abusive husband kept her mostly sidelined.
Even with those gaps, Buffy's career has been impressive, unique, and trailblazing. As noted in the book, she has been an innovator, with stylings in the 1970s that foreshadowed modern electronic music, incorporating native chants into her music in the 1980s (the author says she was the first to do that), then in the 1990s being the first (the author says) to produce a whole album digitally, creating all the music herself (and imo, that album was a masterpiece). She also stayed out of much of the artifice of the music industry and commercialism, preferring to maintain her authenticity. (But I think she has maybe enjoyed celebrity more than the author represents. And why not?)
Buffy has always been an activist, and the book celebrates her activism and the causes she stands for, mainly Native issues, which are important and crucial, but also a broader view including pacifism, ending corporate hegemony, and feminism.
The book was easy to read and has a lot of substance. The author's positivity is nice, but sometimes awkward or gushing. Having lived through the times and known the music when it was new, I find it interesting to see her perspective as she writes about times before she was alive or aware of the music scene and the general cultural atmosphere. It's almost abstract or mythical to her, though she does make it come alive.
I'd recommend the book to anyone interested in Buffy Sainte-Marie and her work.
The book gives details about her personal life, including childhood abuse, how she reconnected with her birth family, her path to not being a doormat for men, and, interestingly, how her creativity has worked, starting in her childhood. It is, of course, even more about her career in singing, songwriting, musicianship, and entertainment (Sesame Street!). And the ups and downs; a period where two presidential administrations effectively had her blacklisted, and one where an abusive husband kept her mostly sidelined.
Even with those gaps, Buffy's career has been impressive, unique, and trailblazing. As noted in the book, she has been an innovator, with stylings in the 1970s that foreshadowed modern electronic music, incorporating native chants into her music in the 1980s (the author says she was the first to do that), then in the 1990s being the first (the author says) to produce a whole album digitally, creating all the music herself (and imo, that album was a masterpiece). She also stayed out of much of the artifice of the music industry and commercialism, preferring to maintain her authenticity. (But I think she has maybe enjoyed celebrity more than the author represents. And why not?)
Buffy has always been an activist, and the book celebrates her activism and the causes she stands for, mainly Native issues, which are important and crucial, but also a broader view including pacifism, ending corporate hegemony, and feminism.
The book was easy to read and has a lot of substance. The author's positivity is nice, but sometimes awkward or gushing. Having lived through the times and known the music when it was new, I find it interesting to see her perspective as she writes about times before she was alive or aware of the music scene and the general cultural atmosphere. It's almost abstract or mythical to her, though she does make it come alive.
I'd recommend the book to anyone interested in Buffy Sainte-Marie and her work.
August 17, 2020
This beautiful and masterfully written
biography chronicles Buffy Sainte-Marie’s life long activism, her musical journey, and provides a candid glimpse into both her personal and professional life.
.
Buffy Sainte-Marie was born in the Qu’Apelle Valley of Saskatchewan and adopted by a white family in the United States. Few details are known about her birth or early infancy including the reason for her adoption. This type of negligence and displacement on behalf of the government was the devastating reality for many indigenous children and families around this time. “The combination of religious hubris and colonizer supremacy shaped the belief that Indigenous people needed to adapt to white society, and while many Indigenous children were sent to residential schools, others were taken from their parents and adopted into white homes.”
.
Growing up removed from her culture she often felt alienated and spent many years of her childhood enduring different forms of abuse but found solace and comfort being surrounded by nature and animals. Sainte-Marie is a natural creative, a self taught musician, who made it a priority to reconnect with her culture and has since spent her life as an advocate, activist, and leader for indigenous rights throughout the United States and Canada. She founded and financed the Nihewan Foundation for American Indian Education and became the 1st First Nations artist to win an Academy Award, to name just a few of her accomplishments.
.
I’ve loved Buffy’s music since the 1st I listened to it, but the powerful insight provided by this book helped me to fully appreciate this incredible woman. Buy this book. Buy her music. Support and honor indigenous people.
biography chronicles Buffy Sainte-Marie’s life long activism, her musical journey, and provides a candid glimpse into both her personal and professional life.
.
Buffy Sainte-Marie was born in the Qu’Apelle Valley of Saskatchewan and adopted by a white family in the United States. Few details are known about her birth or early infancy including the reason for her adoption. This type of negligence and displacement on behalf of the government was the devastating reality for many indigenous children and families around this time. “The combination of religious hubris and colonizer supremacy shaped the belief that Indigenous people needed to adapt to white society, and while many Indigenous children were sent to residential schools, others were taken from their parents and adopted into white homes.”
.
Growing up removed from her culture she often felt alienated and spent many years of her childhood enduring different forms of abuse but found solace and comfort being surrounded by nature and animals. Sainte-Marie is a natural creative, a self taught musician, who made it a priority to reconnect with her culture and has since spent her life as an advocate, activist, and leader for indigenous rights throughout the United States and Canada. She founded and financed the Nihewan Foundation for American Indian Education and became the 1st First Nations artist to win an Academy Award, to name just a few of her accomplishments.
.
I’ve loved Buffy’s music since the 1st I listened to it, but the powerful insight provided by this book helped me to fully appreciate this incredible woman. Buy this book. Buy her music. Support and honor indigenous people.
July 3, 2019
If memory serves, I think this might actually be the first biography I've read, and what a place to start. Andrea Warner has done a great job chronicling the life of Buffy Sainte-Marie - an incredible human being. Her activism has been tireless, her accomplishments so inspiring, and her approach to life is one we should all strive to adopt. This is a crucial read for anyone who wants to decolonize their brain - and their bookshelves. And to know that Warner and Sainte-Marie developed a true friendship over the course of creating this book, and that Sainte-Marie was involved every step of the way, just adds so much authenticity to the experience of reading it.
February 8, 2022
I heard an interview with Buffy Saint Marie and was very interested in reading her biography. But the book lacks what her interview didn’t, a real sense of her as a person. Her rise as a Native American singer and big act and fall as a blacklisted singer which causes her to perform in Europe mostly. She also won an Oscar for the Officer and a Gentleman theme song. But everything seems ready superficial in the book.
October 2, 2019
An honest and fascinating look into the life of Cree singer-songwriter, Buffy Sainte-Marie. Overcoming many obstacles, she has triumphed as an artist, activist, and person. Her music career started in the 1960s, New York folk scene and is still going strong. This often over-looked, innovative talent has been blacklisted by two U.S. presidents and is the only First Nations artist to win an Academy Award! Check out her story and her music.
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