Tom Winslow

Infobox musical artist
Name = Tom Winslow


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Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Thomas Griffin Winslow
Alias = Thomas Winslow, "Brother" Tom Winslow
Born = 1940
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Instrument = singer, guitar, banjo
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Genre = Blues, Folk, African American music
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Years_active = 1960 to present
Label = Biograph
Associated_acts = Thomasina Winslow, The Winslows, Rev. Gary Davis, Peter Seeger, Al Polito, Guy Davis
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Tom Winslow (born 1940) is a prominent American folk singer and writer, who is best known as a "disciple" of Reverend Gary Davis and a former member of Pete Seeger's band. He has performed with his family as The Winslows and recorded with Al Polito. His career as a performing artist has lasted over forty years. However, he is most notable as the author of "Hey Looka Yonder" (It's The Clear Water) (It's the Clearwater), a now-classic folk song that has been the anthem of the "Sloop Clearwater". While he has toured throughout the United States, he continues to perform in Upstate New York into his 60's.

Tom Winslow is also the father of two other notable performing artists, Thomasina Winslow and Gary Winslow.

Early career

Winslow was a band member - or "disciple" - of the Reverend Gary Davis, a legendary country-folk musician from the first half of the 20th century. He toured throughout the United States during the 1960s and 1970s, sometimes as a solo act, as well as with his family act, The Winslows. In the 1960s, he worked off-season as a construction worker at Albany, New York's Empire State Plaza. Fact|date=August 2007

"Hey Looka Yonder" (It's the Clearwater)

Winslow's great enduring fame comes from penning and performing the now-classic ballad, "Hey Looka Yonder", which is know also as "It's the Clearwater" and "It's the Clear Water". This song, recorded by Biograph Records in 1969, is about the fundraising for the sloop Clearwater, and in particular how "black and white" got together to create a floating environmental education school. Its mission was to clean up the water of then-polluted Hudson River. [ [http://www.wirz.de/music/biogrfrm.htm History of Biograph records web page] ] [ [http://bruce.orel.ws/seegersessions/songs/bring_them_home.html Seeger Sessions] ] [ [http://www.clearwater.org/music.html Clearwater Music web page] ]

This song is significant and historic in several ways:
* It was the first environmental song by an African-american song-writer, predating "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" by two full years.
* It was Peter Seeger's and Tom Winslow's major collaboration.
* It was first recording by the The Winslows -- which included Tom's entire family, including toddler Thomasina Winslow, now a notable blues singer in her own right, singing and playing instruments in the background.

A huge hit for a musical tradition outside of the popular music mainstream, the LP and single of "It's the Clearwater" are coveted still by collectors of old-time folk music. [ [http://guaranteedautographs.com/tomwiitclwas.html sample of autographed LP for sale] ]

Folk music circuit

Winslow has been part of the folk music circuit for four decades. His music has been described as "classic blues and spirituals" by "a seasoned craftsman". [ [http://www.caffelena.org/cal-2007-09.htm#16 Caffe Lena Web site] ] quote|Tom is an old-school country bluesman, picking and singing in a classic style. He studied with Rev. Gary Davis, collaborated with Pete Seeger, and released an album on the Biograph label. He first came to Saratoga to work with the horses and has for many years enjoyed playing gigs around the area, including at Lena’s.| [http://www.caffelena.org/cal-2007-09.htm#16 Caffe Lena Web site]

Winslow was a mentor for a number of musicians, including his children and Guy Davis.fact|date=January 2008

Recent career

In recent years, Tom has not travelled far from his home in New Baltimore, New York, due to care-taking for his wife, Edral, who passed away in January 2007. [See [http://www.legacy.com/TimesUnion-Albany/Obituaries.asp?Page=ObitFinderSSIResults Search engine for deaths] ] Often, he could be seen busking at street fairs such as on Lark Street in Albany, New York or the surrounding towns. [ [http://www.larkstreet.org/festivals.php Lark Street BID official web site Festivals web page] ]

Winslow played frequently at the People's Voices Cafe on 33rd St. in New York City in the 1980s. [ [http://peoplesvoicecafe.org/ People's Voice's Cafe web site] ] [ [http://peoplesvoicecafe.org/db3/00207/peoplesvoicecafe.org/_download/PeoplesVoiceCafHistory.docPeople's Voice's Cafe history web page] ] He has also performed at the Towne Crier Cafe in Beekman, New York. [ [http://www.townecrier.com/actlinks.htm Town Crier web site] ]

He was featured on WFMU's program, "Shrunken Planet", for a full show. [ [http://www.wfmu.org/artistkeywords.php/SP WFMU Programming list of artists web page] ]

In 2001, he performed at a Lincoln Center Out of Doors Reverend Gary Davis tribute show, performing with an all-star line-up. [ [http://www.tmcny.com/newsletters/10lincolnoutofDoors.htm Lincoln Center Out of Doors web page] ]

Winslow has performed frequently at Caffe Lena, the folk and blues venue in Saratoga Springs, New York. [ [http://www.caffelena.org/cal-2007-09.htm#16 caffe Lena write-up] ] His most recent show was on September 16, 2007, at which he was joined by his daughter Thomasina Winslow. [ [http://www.caffelena.org/cal-2007-09.htm Caffe Lena web site calendar page] ]

He plays regularly in Troy, New York at Washington Park [ [http://wpa-troy.org/ Washington Park Association official web site] ] [ [http://wpa-troy.org/calendar/month.php?user=__public__ Public web calendar] ] [ [http://www.wpa-troy.org/2005.11.WPA-newsletter.pdf Washington Park Association newsletter] pdf format] and the Troy Farmer's Market, [ [http://rpibcon.blogspot.com/2007/07/troy-doings-midweek-farmers-market-rchs.html RPI Blog] ] [ [http://crlmag.com/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=267 Capital Region Living Magazine] ] [ [http://www.troyrecord.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=18624624&BRD=1170&PAG=461&dept_id=7010&rfi=6 "Troy Record" web site] ] most recently on April 26, 2008. [ [http://www.troymarket.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=29&Itemid=45 Troy Market official web site] . Accessed April 28, 2008.] Tom has been called an "Edu-tainer Par Excellence!" [ [http://www.city-of-troy.com/collarcitylive/2007_Wednesdays.html City of Troy official web site] ] His shows at the Troy Farmer's Market helped earn it the "Best Farmer's Market - Best Goods" awards from "Metroland", the Capital District weekly newspaper, and his performance was lauded specifically. [ [http://www.metroland.net/guides/2007_best_of/best_of_goods.htm Metroland Best of 2007 article] ] He also shared in a "Best live regional entertainment" award. [ [http://www.readmedia.com/news/show/Troy_s_Riverfront_Park_Concert_Series_Presented_by_COLLAR_CITY_LIVE_WellCare/2306 Read Media web site] ]

Discography

"Tom Winslow" (Biograph 1969)
* Includes "Bring Them Home" (a Peter Seeger tune). [ [http://bruce.orel.ws/seegersessions/songs/bring_them_home_notes.html Seeger Sessions notes] ] [ [http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x1415707 Democratic Underground web site] ]

"Its the Clear Water" (Biograph 1969, re-released 1992) BLP-12018
*Available at many places on line. [ [http://www.recordsbymail.com/static/artistSearch.php/artistFirst/TOM/artistLast/WINSLOW records by mail web site] ] [ [http://music.msn.com/artist/?artist=16088732 MCN.com Music web site] ] [ [http://www.ibiblio.org/keefer/wp11.htm I-Biblio web site] ] [ [http://www.earthplatform.com/pete/seeger? Earth Platform web site about Pete Seeger/Tom Winslow's collaboration] ] [ [http://www.wirz.de/music/biogrfrm.htm Biograph Records music history web site] ]
* This is still sold on Vinyl in 2nd hand stores. [ [http://www.lastvestige.com/vinyl/folk.htm Last Vestige web site] ]
* This is available on MP3 format. [ [http://www.mp3.com/albums/46003/summary.html MP3 web site] ]
* This is featured on the Clearwater site. [ [http://www.clearwater.org/music.html Clearwater official web site Music page] ]

"Sunday Morning in Exile" (compilation)
* Tom Winslow performs "I The Living". [ [http://www.digitalpodcast.com/detail.php?id=17285 Digital Podcast of Sunday Morning in Exile] ]

"Al Polito"
* Played with Al Polito (guest guitarist). [ [http://alpolito.net/4.html Al Polito official web site] ] [ [http://www.indie911.com/directory/singersongwriter/al-polito Indie 911 directory] ] [ [http://www.broadjam.com/artists/artist_playlist_view_song.asp?artistID=12809&song_id=106460&page=3&sessionID=EF106DD6A2D04313B184FAEDB74BE340&sessionINDEX=29402 Broad Jam web site] ]

"PBS documentary, 'Til the River Runs Clear" (soundtrack)
* Anthem or theme music. [ [http://www.shoppbs.org/sm-pbs-til-the-river-runs-clear-dvd--pi-2766756.html Shop PBS official web site] ]

With Gary Winslow:
*See [http://cdbaby.com/cd/garywinslow Gary Winslow on CD Baby] .

References

ee also

* Reverend Gary Davis
* Peter Seeger
* Thomasina Winslow

External links

* [http://www.clearwater.org/music/clearwaterii1.mp3 MP3 of "Hey Looka Yonder"]