View source for Judy Roderick

{{short description|American folk and blues singer-songwriter}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name                = Judy Roderick
| image               = Judy Roderick.png
| image_size          = 250px
| landscape           = <!-- yes, if wide image, otherwise leave blank -->
| alt                 =
| caption             = Judy Roderick in 1966
| background          = solo_singer
| birth_name          = Judith Allen Roderick
| native_name         =
| native_name_lang    =
| alias               =
| birth_date          = {{birth date|1942|12|14}}
| birth_place         = [[Wyandotte, Michigan]], USA
| origin              =
| death_date          = {{death date and age|1992|1|22|1942|12|14}}
| death_place         = [[Ravalli, Montana]], USA
| genre               = [[Folk music|Folk]], [[blues]], [[country music|country]]
| occupation          = Singer, songwriter, guitarist
| instrument          =
| years_active        = Early 1960s–1980s
| label               =
| associated_acts     = 60,000,000 Buffalo<br>The Big Sky Mudflaps<br>Judy Roderick & The Forbears
| website             = {{URL|www.judyroderick.com}}
}}
'''Judith Allen Roderick''' (December 14, 1942 – January 22, 1992) was an American [[folk music|folk]] and [[blues]] singer and songwriter, described by [[Allmusic]] as: "One of the finest white folk/blues singers of the early to mid-'60s."<ref name=allmusic/>
==Biography==
She was born in [[Wyandotte, Michigan]] to Howard and Emily Roderick, and grew up in [[Elkhart, Indiana]].<ref name=strong>{{cite book |last=Strong |first=Martin C. |date=2010 |title=The Great Folk Discography: Pioneers and Early Legends |url=https://archive.org/details/greatfolkdiscogr0000stro |url-access=registration |location=Edinburgh |publisher=Polygon Books |pages=[https://archive.org/details/greatfolkdiscogr0000stro/page/251 251]|isbn=978-1-84697-141-9}}</ref> She attended the [[University of Colorado]] in [[Boulder, Colorado|Boulder]], and began singing blues, folk and [[country music]] and playing guitar in clubs there and in [[Denver]].<ref name=allmusic>[http://www.allmusic.com/artist/judy-roderick-mn0000302112  Biography by William Ashford at Allmusic.com]. Retrieved April 10, 2014</ref><ref name=weissman>[https://books.google.com/books?id=BZdXMAA4x78C&dq=judy+roderick&pg=PA113  Dick Weissman, ''Which Side Are You On?: An Inside History of the Folk Music Revival in America'', Bloomsbury Publishing, 2006, p.113]</ref>
After moving to New York City in the early 1960s, she was heard by manager Lee Silberstein, who secured her a record deal with [[Columbia Records]].<ref name=roderick>[http://www.judyroderick.com  Biography at ''www.judyroderick.com''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190104184515/http://judyroderick.com/ |date=January 4, 2019 }}. Retrieved April 10, 2014</ref> Her first album, ''Ain't Nothin' But The Blues'', produced by [[Bobby Scott (musician)|Bobby Scott]], was released in 1964.  Described at [[Allmusic]] as "an eclectic mix of traditional acoustic folk tunes and large arrangements of blues tunes", it featured [[John Hammond Jr.]] on harmonica.  She performed at the 1964 [[Newport Folk Festival]],<ref name=strong/> and at many leading club venues in the eastern United States, developing a loyal following,<ref name=allmusic/> but a second album for Columbia was never completed after Roderick and Scott disagreed on the direction it should take.<ref name=weissman/><ref name=blues>[https://books.google.com/books?id=rk_A3-UHgEMC&dq=judy+roderick&pg=PA184 Dick Weissman, Richard Carlin, Craig Morrison, ''American Popular Music: Blues'', Infobase Publishing, 2005, p.184]</ref>
She was signed for [[Vanguard Records]] by [[Maynard Solomon]], and recorded her second and best-regarded album, ''Woman Blue'', released in 1965.  Again a mixture of blues and folk material, from a variety of sources, it featured musicians [[Artie Traum]], [[Dick Weissman]], [[Russ Savakus]], Todd Sommer and [[Paul Griffin (musician)|Paul Griffin]].<ref>[https://acerecords.co.uk/woman-blue  ''Woman Blue'' at Ace Records]. Retrieved April 10, 2014</ref> The song "Woman Blue" was a folk song recorded by many artists, usually titled "[[I Know You Rider]]", and made more popular by the [[Grateful Dead]].<ref name="grateful">{{cite web|title=I Know You Rider|publisher=Grateful Dead Lyric & Song Finder|url=http://www3.clearlight.com/~acsa/introjs.htm?/~acsa/songfile/I1KNOWYO.HTM|accessdate=December 10, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110708164320/http://www3.clearlight.com/~acsa/introjs.htm?%2F~acsa%2Fsongfile%2FI1KNOWYO.HTM|archive-date=July 8, 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> The album was issued by [[Fontana Records|Fontana]] in the UK in 1966, and Roderick went to Britain to promote the record.<ref name=roderick/> She was also featured on an album of Newport Folk Festival performances issued by Vanguard.<ref name=allmusic/><ref name=strong/> However, by the time of the Vanguard releases, her style of music was being overtaken by the emergence of [[folk rock]], and sales of her records were disappointing.<ref name=weissman/><ref name=blues/>
She began writing songs in collaboration with Bill Ashford, and returned to [[Colorado]] in 1969, forming a new band, 60,000,000 Buffalo.  Their album of original material, ''Nevada Jukebox'', produced by [[Bill Szymczyk]], was released on the [[Atco Records|Atco]] label in 1972.<ref>[http://recordcollectormag.com/reviews/nevada-jukebox  Review of ''Nevada Jukebox'', "Female-fronted rock from Colorado, 1972", ''Record Collector'']. Retrieved April 10, 2014</ref> However, the band broke up the following year.<ref name=allmusic/>
Roderick moved to [[Hamilton, Montana]], where she continued to perform, often with partner Dexter Payne in his [[swing music|swing]] band, The Big Sky Mudflaps; she sang some of the songs on two of the band's albums.  In 1982, she and Payne formed a new band, Judy Roderick & The Forbears, and recorded a self-titled album with musicians including [[Mac Rebennack]] (Dr. John).  The album received a limited independent release on [[Compact Cassette|cassette]] only in 1984.<ref name=strong/><ref name=roderick/>
A [[diabetes mellitus|diabetic]] since childhood, Judy Roderick died of a heart attack from complications due to the disease in 1992 at the age of 49.<ref name=allmusic/><ref name=strong/>
==Legacy==
The album ''Woman Blue'' was remastered and reissued by Vanguard in 1993. One of Roderick and Ashford's songs, "Floods of South Dakota", was later recorded by [[Tim O'Brien (musician)|Tim]] and [[Mollie O'Brien]]; their performance was nominated for a [[Grammy]].<ref name=strong/><ref name=weissman/> The cassette album ''Judy Roderick & The Forbears'' was remastered for digital release and issued on CD by Dexofon Records, in 2008.<ref name=roderick/>
==Discography==
'''Source:'''<ref name=strong/>
* ''Ain't Nothin' but the Blues'' (Columbia, 1964)
* ''Woman Blue'' (Vanguard, 1965)
* ''Nevada Jukebox'' (with 60,000,000 Buffalo, Atco, 1972)
* ''Judy Roderick & The Forbears'' (Raw Deal, 1984)
==References==
{{Reflist|2}}
== External links ==
* {{AllMusic|id=judy-roderick-mn0000302112|title=Judy Roderick}}
* {{Discogs artist|2094876-Judy-Roderick}}
* {{MusicBrainz artist|511a081a-f913-4fc6-8e89-daf7f5e2a960}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roderick, Judy}}
[[Category:1942 births]]
[[Category:1992 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century American singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:American blues singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:People from Elkhart, Indiana]]
[[Category:People from Hamilton, Montana]]
[[Category:People from Wyandotte, Michigan]]
[[Category:Singer-songwriters from Michigan]]
[[Category:University of Colorado Boulder alumni]]
[[Category:Singer-songwriters from Indiana]]