1966

Recorded on a reel-to-reel tape recorder at Karen Dalton's Colorado cabin, 1966 is a wondrous find for fans of emotionally true folk music. A country mouse who had great difficulty adjusting to being a city rat, Dalton retreated with her then-husband from the NYC folk scene, where she'd made fast friends with Bob Dylan, Tim Hardin, and Fred Neil and settled into a country homestead with no actual address. Though the recordings are understandably lo-fi, the performances are warm and inviting, presenting works by Neil and Hardin, along with folk and blues classics that turn to putty in Dalton's capable hands. Her takes of "Reason to Believe" and "Don't Make Promises" are particularly gut-wrenching; her ability to tease out the emotion with an emphasis on a certain syllable is the sign of a gifted interpreter. Though her two studio albums come highly recommended, Dalton was never fully comfortable in formal recording studios. These casual recordings are a chance to hear this shy, gifted artist at her most relaxed.