Gracias a La Vida (Here's to Life)

Released in 1974—less than a year after the political assassination of Victor Jara, the Chilean folk singer, poet, and political activist—Gracias a La Vida is Joan Baez's first album to explicitly address her Latin heritage. The album was more successful in Latin America than in the U.S., where the language barrier made commercial aspirations difficult. Baez, however, sings beautifully in Spanish (and in Catalan on "El Rossinyol"), and the music is authentic and done with great care and effort. Despite Jara's murder, Baez shows no signs of backing down from her political commitments. Jara's song for his mother—"Te Recuerdo Amanda" (I Remember You Amanda)—is featured as a heartbreaking piece, with Spanish-style guitar and a spirited but mournful choir. Baez wrote two of the album's songs, including "Dida," a duet with Joni Mitchell, whose vocal improvisations are sublime. "Guantanamera" had been a top 10 hit for The Sandpipers in 1966, and Baez stays true to the music's enduring spirit.