3 Folk Songs From 1975 That Still Shake the Ground We Stand On

Singles by Glen Campbell, David Bowie, America, Queen, Led Zeppelin, and other incredibly notable groups and musicians from the decade saturated the music market in 1975. That being the case, the market was saturated with mainly country, rock, pop, disco, and R&B, not folk music. However, 1975 hosted some iconic folk songs, you just have might have forgotten.

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When you look past the more notable bands most often associated with the 70s, you’ll come to find that there were still some heavy-hitting folk artists releasing music during the decade. With that in mind, here are three folk songs from 1975 that still shake the ground we stand on.

“Shelter From The Storm” by Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan‘s 1975 album, Blood On The Tracks, is one of the greatest albums of his career. The album itself is a culmination of Dylan’s early 60s folk music and mid-60s folk-rock music, and the product is truly magnificent, lyrically and musically. One song attesting to that perspective is “Shelter From The Storm”.

Spiritual salvation is the foundation of this Dylan track. The lyrics in this Dylan song don’t preach; they dance. In typical Dylan fashion, the folk singing bard delves into religious imagery, mystical elements, and ultimately delivers the sense that something divine is present between the listener’s ears.

“Diamonds and Rust” by Joan Baez

The masses typically view Joan Baez’s “Diamonds and Rust” as a song about her failed romance with Bob Dylan. For that reason, it has remained timeless, but it has also remained timeless for many other reasons as well. Particularly, it seems people keep crawling back to Baez’s 1975 single because, well, it’s relatable.

That might be a low-ball answer, but it is a true answer. Baez connects with her audience by highlighting the fond memories of the relationship(diamonds) and the bitter ones(rust). And at the end of the day, who doesn’t have some of those?

“Acadian Driftwood” by The Band

A common tradition in folk music is the retelling of a past event that is relevant to the age in which it is being sung. Seemingly every other folk musician has released a song that does this, and The Band is included in that list thanks to their 1975 single, “Acadian Driftwood”.

In short, The Band retells the tale of the British removing the Acadians, a Canadian native American tribe, from their homeland, Nova Scotia, in the mid-1700s. The story itself can be interpreted as a sweeping metaphor speaking on behalf of all displaced demographics across the world.

Photo by Gijsbert Hanekroot/Redferns