The Manny Greenhill Collection on Joan Baez spans the years 1958-1995 and contains undated materials. The collection details Baez's career--and, from a surface level, her life--through clippings correspondence, legal, financial and tour documents, promotional materials, and information on Baez's former husband, David Harris. The collection as a whole provides insight not only into Baez's career, including the international critical and fan response to her music, performance, and social justice work, but also the artist management, promotional and tour operations of Folklore Productions, Inc.
The collection is loosely arranged into six series by format or subject, but because all of the files were processed in original order, many files could be placed in more than one series. For example, a file with mostly clippings also may contain correspondence and tour documents. In these cases, a general note describes in more detail the contents of the file. Some damaging fasteners have been removed from the collection; in those cases, materials have been kept together in archival sleeves; except where the individual pages were damaged, fragile, or chemically reactive, in which case the pages have been sleeved individually and retain their original order.
Biography / Administrative History
Manuel A. "Manny" Greenhill, through Folklore Productions Inc., was a manager for folk singers, including Pete Seeger and Joan Baez. A native New Yorker, Greenhill first worked as a union organizer. After Army service in World War II, however, he moved to Boston and went into business, eventually establishing Folklore Productions in 1957. He organized concerts for Seeger, Bob Dylan, Odetta, Flatt and Scruggs, Mahalia Jackson, and Lightnin' Hopkins. Baez became Greenhill's first managerial client, which allowed him to use music as a political force--writing the first contracts to specify racial integration in concert seating and negotiating concert venues with organizations ranging from the Daughters of the American Revolution to the Mormon Church. When Baez became an anti-Vietnam War activist, Greenhill helped present her public performances and speeches. Greenhill died in April 1996 in Los Angeles of heart failure during chemotherapy for leukemia. He was 80 years of age. Joan Chandos Baez (b. January 9, 1941) is an American folk singer, songwriter, musician, and activist, whose contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest or social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 59 years, releasing over 30 albums. She is regarded as a folk singer, although her music has diversified since the counterculture days of the 1960s and now encompasses everything from folk rock and pop to country and gospel music. Although a songwriter herself, Baez generally interprets other composers' work, having recorded songs by the Beatles, Leonard Cohen, Woody Guthrie, the Rolling Stones, Pete Seeger, Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder, the Allman Brothers, Ryan Adams, Steve Earle, and Natalie Merchant. Phil Ochs' "There But For Fortune," the Band's "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down," and her own "Diamonds and Rust" are among her best known performances. Baez has displayed a lifelong commitment to political and social activism in the fields of nonviolence, civil rights, human rights, and the environment. Baez was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017.
Notes
: Courtesy of Folklore Productions/FLi Artists and the Family of Manny Greenhill, Joan Baez's manager 1959-1976.
Acquisition Note: The Manny Greenhill Collection on Joan Baez was received by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, Inc., as a gift from Mitch Greenhill on behalf of Folklore Productions, Inc. on March 24, 2017.
Citation: [Identification of Item], Manny Greenhill Collection on Joan Baez, Library and Archives, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.
Language Note: Collection is primarily in English; materials in other languages are indicated at the file level.
Processing Information: Processed by Jennie Thomas, Director of Archives; Stasia Karel, Archivist & Assistant Curator; Andy Kenen and Elaine Minch, Roadies. Completed September 29, 2017. Descriptive sources and standards used to create this inventory: DACS and local processing manual.
Exhibition History: April 2019-July 2020, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum: Woodstock at 50.
Access
Collection is open for research. Patrons must sign the Acknowledgment of Legal Responsibilities and Privacy Rights statement on the Researcher Registration form before using this collection. Consult the Library and Archives in advance of your visit to ensure access to these materials is available.
Use
The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, Inc. For more information, please consult the staff of the Library and Archives.
