It's My Way!
| It’s My Way! | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Buffy Sainte-Marie | ||||
| Released | 1964 | |||
| Genre | Folk | |||
| Length | 40:35 | |||
| Label | Vanguard | |||
| Producer | Maynard Solomon | |||
| Buffy Sainte-Marie chronology | ||||
| ||||
It’s My Way! is the first album by folk singer Buffy Sainte-Marie. Though the album did not chart it proved influential in the folk community. It is most famous for two widely covered folk standards, "Universal Soldier" and "Cod'ine", as well as "Now That the Buffalo's Gone", a lament about the continued confiscation of Indian lands, as evidenced by the building of the Kinzua Dam in about 1964. The cover features a mouthbow, which was to be a trademark of her sound on her first three albums.
Cod'ine was also lyrically altered by Janis Joplin and appears on This is Janis Joplin 1965.
In 2016, It's My Way! was inducted by the Library of Congress into the National Recording Registry.[1]
Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |  |
Writing for Allmusic, music critic William Ruhlman gave the album 5 of 5 stars and wrote "This is one of the most scathing topical folk albums ever made... Even decades later, the album's power is moving and disturbing."[2]
Track listing
All tracks written by Buffy Sainte-Marie, except where noted.
| Side one | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
| 1. | "Now That the Buffalo's Gone" | 2:45 | |
| 2. | "The Old Man's Lament" | 3:55 | |
| 3. | "Ananias" | Adapted by Buffy Sainte-Marie | 2:35 |
| 4. | "Mayoo Sto Hoon" | 1:19 | |
| 5. | "Cod'ine" | 5:01 | |
| 6. | "Cripple Creek" | Folk song | 1:45 |
| 7. | "The Universal Soldier" | 2:15 | |
| Side two | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
| 8. | "Babe in Arms" | 2:30 | |
| 9. | "He Lived Alone in Town" | 4:35 | |
| 10. | "You're Gonna Need Somebody on Your Bond" | Traditional | 2:45 |
| 11. | "The Incest Song" | 4:11 | |
| 12. | "Eyes of Amber" | 2:16 | |
| 13. | "It's My Way" | 3:29 | |
Personnel
- Buffy Sainte-Marie - vocals, guitar, arrangements
- Patrick Sky - guitar on "He Lived Alone in Town"
- Art Davis - bass on "Now That the Buffalo's Gone"