Once upon a time, amidst the rubble of World War II, a very sensual and talented boy was born. A survivor of polio, he grew up listening to haunting Irish ballads, and he left school at 14 to wander the country, camping on beaches and in forests, as real a troubadour as they come. This magical child was Donovan Leitch, whose psychedelic and distinct pop crooning shot him to fame in the 1960's, and he remains in the highest esteem to this day.
He was revered by such artists as John Lennon and Joan Baez, but had to face "Dylan or Donovan" criticism in his prime because of the similarities between their nasal singing and folksy guitar playing. In my opinion Donovan's poetry far surpasses his contemporary, and he's a much better guitarist. Also, footage of them jamming together confirms my hypothesis that Dylan is kind of a prat, all about the fame, whereas Don legitimately wants to play music and for everyone to have a good time.
I didn't even get interested in Donovan until a few years ago, when a college professor I had a crush on suggested him, and then I couldn't believe what I had been missing. He remains one of my top ten favorites to this day.
It is a bit silly to try and write about music, but Donovan permeates the world of visual art as well. In the documentary Sunshine Superman - The Journey of Donovan, he states "We dressed ourselves up in our dreams," in reference to his many wildly romanticized and theatrical music videos, wherein he is adorned in fairytale garb.
Ever inspired by Celtic poetry, many of his songs feature beautiful interludes of the stuff, pronounced with the rolling R's and sultry breath of the story teller, just as Donovan himself would have heard them recounted in his youth.
However nostalgic his songs are, they also combine other, seemingly incongruous elements. For instance, Mellow Yellow is basically a sort of New Orleans shuffle, and his use of harmonica is very old South blues-style.
Donovan was also deeply affected by music, having to stop and sit down when he first heard "Love Me Do" on the radio.
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| A little known fact is that Donovan was also present when the Beatles made their infamous spiritual trip to India. |
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