Summary

A young Canadian folk singer's song, "Morning Dew," inspired by the film "On The Beach," gained popularity through covers by various artists, leading to the song's true origins being recognized and the original artist, Bonnie Dobson, receiving her due credit and royalties after decades.

Abstract

Sixty years ago, Bonnie Dobson, a Canadian folk singer, was so moved by the film "On The Beach" that she wrote her first song, "Morning Dew." Despite the song's subsequent fame through covers by artists like Tim Rose, The Grateful Dead, and the Jeff Beck Group, Dobson's contribution was largely overlooked. The song's message about the post-nuclear era resonated with audiences, and it was transformed into a rock classic by British artists. Over the years, the song was covered by numerous legendary musicians, with some altering its title. It wasn't until 2002 that Robert Plant discovered the song's true origins and helped restore Dobson's credit and royalties. Tim Rose had previously claimed co-authorship, which Dobson had contested. The recognition of her work culminated in Dobson's induction into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2018, with the song's ownership and royalties finally returning to her.

Opinions

The article suggests that Bonnie Dobson did not initially receive the credit she deserved for writing "Morning Dew."
The song's evolution through various artists' interpretations is seen as significant, with each artist adding their own style while maintaining the song's core message.
Robert Plant is portrayed as playing a pivotal role in acknowledging the song's true origins and ensuring that Dobson received proper recognition and compensation.
There is an implication that Tim Rose's claim to co-authorship of "Morning Dew" was unfounded, as he did not hear the song until several years after Dobson had written and performed it.
The induction of Bonnie Dobson into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame is presented as a long-overdue acknowledgment of her musical contribution.

LOVE NOTES

The Song Does NOT Remain The Same

Yet the original artist finally gets her due

Sixty years ago, a young Canadian folk singer watched On The Beach, a film that explored the aftermath of a post-nuclear holocaust. She was so affected by the film’s message that she went back to her Los Angeles apartment that night and wrote a song.

The young woman had never written a song before, although she’d been performing in coffee houses across the continent. Eventually, she debuted her newfound talent at the Mariposa Folk Festival in 1961.

Although she enjoyed a brief musical career, she never really got the credit she deserved for writing and performing her song. As the psychedelic era unfolded, several rock artists found the tune, and so it evolved.

Tim Rose and then The Grateful Dead made the song a hit in 1968 during the anti-Vietnam War era, and then the Jeff Beck Group with Rod Stewart picked up the music for the Truth album. As only Beck can, the song transformed into a rock classic.

The music took on a distinctly British flavour, but the message continued to resonate.

But there’s more!

Several other legendary artists have covered this song through the years, including Nazareth, Lulu, The Allman Brothers, DEVO, and Long John Baldry. Some even changed the title of the song.

In 2002, Robert Plant gave Morning Dew another interpretation.

But Plant did something no other artist thought about, or even knew about.

The former Led Zeppelin frontman discovered the song’s true origins quite by accident.

Please indulge me one more time.

Plant made good on a promise long overdue and long forgotten. Let’s hear him tell the story in his own words…

This stirring version of Bonnie Dobson’s song not only returned original intent. Thanks to Robert Plant, the song’s ownership returned to Bonnie, who had lost royalties for all those years.

Tim Rose claimed part ownership for writing Morning Dew. Bonnie left the folk scene, married, and emigrated to England, where she became a Philosophy Administrator at the University of London.

She always questioned Tim’s claims that he co-wrote the song. He hadn’t actually heard it first until 1964.

Finally, on July 7, 2018, Bonnie Dobson was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame by none other than Canadian Folk legend Gordon Lightfoot.

Thank you for listening along:

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Twisting With The Wind

An argument for every argument

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