Review of Ian & Sylvia : Best of the Vanguard Years
Along with Gordon Lightfoot, the team of Ian Tyson and Sylvia Fricker represented the best that Canada had to offer during the folk boom of the early and mid- '60s. The duo's earthy voices and wraparound harmonies helped them become one of the most commercially successful '60s folk acts. And while they gained much attention for their interpretations of songs by the likes of Bob Dylan ("This Wheel's on Fire"), Joni Mitchell ("The Circle Game"), and the aforementioned Lightfoot ("Early Morning Rain"), it's their originals that remain evergreens 20-odd years after their mid-'70s split- up. To wit: Tyson's "Four Strong Winds" (covered memorably by Neil Young) and "Someday Soon" (a longtime staple of Judy Collins's repertoire), and Fricker's "You Were on My Mind" (a mid-'60s hit for the We Five). All of these, and plenty more, are found on this highly satisfying 25-song collection. --Billy Altman

Users's Reviews - Ian & Sylvia : A great folk duo
I may be a minority of one but Ian and Sylvia are my favorite of the 60s folk groups. Sylvia has an earth-mother voice, Ian is a good picker and writes great songs, and they had a Canadian accent to their music which made them different from the legions of American groups. Cowboys are Ian's favorite subject and his "Four Strong Winds" is one of the greatest folk songs ever. It's about a drifter, and his girl, and goin' out to Alberta in the Fall. He also wrote the definitive rodeo song: "Some Day Soon." Judy Collins possibly did it better than Ian and Sylvia, but just barely.
One of the best songs is "The Renegade" by Ian, a defiant declaration by an American -- or rather Canadian -- Indian. Sylvia does a Dylan song, "This Wheel's on Fire," and makes it sound like a song that Dylan didn't write. "Nancy Whiskey" is a anti-drinking song, that made me want a drink. "Rocks and Gravel" is a bluesey, bass-heavy chain gang song. Ian and Sylvia's version of "Early Morning Rain" is one of the best. "Ninety Degrees by Ninety Degrees" is incomprehensible and un-folk, but the vocal harmonies are intriguing.
Ian bought a ranch in Alberta with the money he made from "Four Strong Winds." Just like in the song, Sylvia chose not to live out there where the "winds blow lonely" and there "ain't too much to do." That was the end of Ian and Sylvia. Life imitates art.

Your latest reviews - Ian & Sylvia : Ian & Sylvia - The Real Deal
Folk music has been attracting more interest from both ends of the critical spectrum. Vanguard had good reason to reissue this 4 CD set of one of the greatest folk duos of all time. On the other hand some critics have reacted to the recent interest in the period (as indicated by the movie, A Mighty Wind) to poke gentle fun at or write off folk music and its key players as out of date (f ex the Sunday Times of London, which referred to the music of the era as "better left dead and buried" and Ian & Sylvia as "an obscure Canadian folk singing group" ).There's no better way to decide where you are on the divide than to buy this terrific collection and give it the many hours of listening that are due. To be clear, Ian & Sylvia were never part of the Burle Ives, Kingston Trio faux folk scene. They were and always have been, all apologies to the Kerry campaign, the Real Deal. Here's why : the music - a collection of originals from their best albums by both Ian and Sylvia, who continue their excellent songwriting today, traditional songs, covers of Dylan and other artists, and progressive expansions into folk rock and country music, has lasted and it endures. The quality, uniqueness and professionalism of Ian & Sylvia were compelling in its time and continue to captivate listeners globally ; and indeed there are very few duos out there today which have this range or depth in vocals and energy. Since the music itself is primarily traditional, what separates Ian & Sylvia from the rest is their distinctive combination of voices, their sublime harmonies, and their studio work, which was flawless. You can hear a number of these songs by other folk artists, but few of them stick to the mind and soul as these versions do, and their own classics such as "Some Day Soon" and "Four Strong Winds" continue to resonate through their own recordings and those of artists who covered them. This set succeeds in preserving and promoting for the future a powerful legacy of remarkable music which the group's many fans (as can be seen on numerous web sites on the group)and newcomers will appreciate. And if you are interested in what happened since their break up, take a look at Ian Tyson's remarkable career as a country and cowboy song artist starting with his Canadian platinum "Cowboyography" album throuhg the latest "Live at Longview" and Sylvia's work as leader of the all women Canadian group 'Quartet'. The combined work over 40 years including this seminal collection is simple awesome.