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Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular MusicA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZHAVENS, Richie(b 21 January !941, Brooklyn; d 22 April 2013) African-American folk singer; bringing a soul feeling to the folk-rock genre: eleven albums charted in the USA, one re-entered; long a popular live act. From a large family in the Bedford-Stuyvesant ghetto, he left school to pursue music; made two albums on Douglas, switched to Verve; played the Newport Folk Festival '66, then Monterey '67, Miami '68, Isle of Wight and Woodstock '69. At Woodstock he had to fill in on stage while other artists were stuck in traffic; he improvised a passionate 'Freedom' and became one of the highlights of the festival and the subsequent film. He subsequently often covered other people's songs, but never imitated, making each song his own interesting variant. The Verve album Something Else Again just made top 200 LPs '68, whereupon the earlier Verve Mixed Bag and the Douglas Electric Havens also made it. Two-disc Richard P. Havens 1983 made no. 80 '69; six albums on a Stormy Forest label '70-4 charted including two-disc On Stage '72 at no. 55, biggest hit Alarm Clock '71 at no. 29 (incuding his only hit single, a cover of George Harrison's 'Here Comes The Sun', no. 16 '71). He went out of fashion, but always attracted plenty of fans on tour. The End Of The Beginning '76 on A&M made the bottom of the album chart; Mirage '77 on A&M, Connections '79 on Asylum were followed by Special on Polydor. Single 'Death At An Early Age'/'Moonlight Rain' was issued in the UK '83. Later albums were Sings Beatles And Dylan '86 and Collection '87 on Rykodisc, Cuts To The Chase on Forward. He underwent kidney surgery in 2010 and never recovered his strength; he died of a heart attack. |