Connie Converse
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth Eaton "Connie" Converse (1924-?) was a singer-songwriter
who was active in New York City
in the 1950s
. She disappeared
in 1974, after writing goodbye letters to her friends and family, and has not been heard from since. Her music has recently been rediscovered from tape recordings and an album How Sad, How Lovely was released in March 2009.
, in 1924. She grew up in Concord
as the middle child in a strict Baptist family; her father was a Baptist minister. She attended Concord High School
, where she was valedictorian and won eight academic awards. She was awarded an academic scholarship to Mount Holyoke College
in Massachusetts
. After two years' study, she left the College and moved to New York City
.
During the 1950s she worked for the Academy Photo Offset printing house in New York's Flatiron District and lived in Greenwich Village
. She started calling herself Connie, a nickname she had acquired in New York. She began writing songs and performing them for friends, accompanying herself on guitar.
Her music came to the notice of animator and amateur recording engineer Gene Deitch
, who had made tape recordings of artists like John Lee Hooker
and Pete Seeger
in the 1940s. Deitch made a number of tape recordings of Converse in the kitchen of his house in Hastings-on-Hudson in the mid-1950s. But she failed to attract any commercial interest in her music. Her only public performance was a brief television appearance in 1954 on "The Morning Show" on CBS
with Walter Cronkite
, which Deitch helped to arrange.
In 1961, she left New York for Ann Arbor, Michigan
, where her brother Philip was a professor of political science at the University of Michigan
. She worked in a secretarial job, and then as Managing Editor of the Journal of Conflict Resolution
from 1963. Her only musical involvement continued to be playing for friends at parties.
By 1973, Connie was burnt out and depressed. Her colleagues and friends pooled their money to finance a six-months' trip to England for her. The journal, which meant so much to her, had left Michigan for Yale
at the end of 1972, after being "auctioned off" without her knowledge. She was facing the need for major surgery.
In August 1974, she wrote a series of letters to her family and friends, talking about her intention to make a new life somewhere else. By the time the letters were delivered, she had packed her belongings in her Volkswagen Beetle
and driven away, never to be heard from again.
In January 2004, Gene Deitch – by then 80 years old and living in Prague
since 1961 – was invited by New York music historian David Garland to appear on his radio show Spinning on Air. Deitch played some of his own recordings, including one of Connie's songs, "One by One".
Two of Garland's listeners, Dan Dzula and David Herman, were inspired to try and put together an album of Connie's music. There were two sources: the tapes in Deitch's collection in Prague
, and her brother Philip's collection of recordings which she had sent him in the 1950s. In March 2009, How Sad, How Lovely, containing 17 songs by Connie Converse, was released by Lau derette Recordings. There have been indications that Converse's musical approach and singing style has had an impact on indie folk
artists such as Quinn Marston
.
The Australian singer-songwriter Robert Forster
, co-founder of the Go-Betweens
, describes the album as "making a deep and marvellous connection between lyric and song that allows us to enter the world of an extraordinary woman living in mid-twentieth-century New York."
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
who was active in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in the 1950s
1950s
The 1950s or The Fifties was the decade that began on January 1, 1950 and ended on December 31, 1959. The decade was the sixth decade of the 20th century...
. She disappeared
Missing person
A missing person is a person who has disappeared for usually unknown reasons.Missing persons' photographs may be posted on bulletin boards, milk cartons, postcards, and websites, along with a phone number to be contacted if a sighting has been made....
in 1974, after writing goodbye letters to her friends and family, and has not been heard from since. Her music has recently been rediscovered from tape recordings and an album How Sad, How Lovely was released in March 2009.
Biography
Elizabeth Eaton Converse was born in Laconia, New HampshireLaconia, New Hampshire
As of the census of 2000, there were 16,411 people, 6,724 households, and 4,168 families residing in the city. The population density was 809.3 people per square mile . There were 8,554 housing units at an average density of 421.8 per square mile...
, in 1924. She grew up in Concord
Concord, New Hampshire
The city of Concord is the capital of the state of New Hampshire in the United States. It is also the county seat of Merrimack County. As of the 2010 census, its population was 42,695....
as the middle child in a strict Baptist family; her father was a Baptist minister. She attended Concord High School
Concord High School (New Hampshire)
Concord High School is a high school in Concord, New Hampshire in the United States.- History :Concord's first public high school was established in 1846. The original building was the building on the corner of State and School Streets. A new school house was built in 1862, which stood until April...
, where she was valedictorian and won eight academic awards. She was awarded an academic scholarship to Mount Holyoke College
Mount Holyoke College
Mount Holyoke College is a liberal arts college for women in South Hadley, Massachusetts. It was the first member of the Seven Sisters colleges, and served as a model for some of the others...
in Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. After two years' study, she left the College and moved to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
During the 1950s she worked for the Academy Photo Offset printing house in New York's Flatiron District and lived in Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
. She started calling herself Connie, a nickname she had acquired in New York. She began writing songs and performing them for friends, accompanying herself on guitar.
Her music came to the notice of animator and amateur recording engineer Gene Deitch
Gene Deitch
Eugene Merril "Gene" Deitch is an American illustrator, animator and film director. He has been based in Prague, capital of Czechoslovakia and the present-day Czech Republic, since 1959. Since 1968, Deitch has been the leading animation director for the Connecticut organization Weston...
, who had made tape recordings of artists like John Lee Hooker
John Lee Hooker
John Lee Hooker was an American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist.Hooker began his life as the son of a sharecropper, William Hooker, and rose to prominence performing his own unique style of what was originally closest to Delta blues. He developed a 'talking blues' style that was his trademark...
and Pete Seeger
Pete Seeger
Peter "Pete" Seeger is an American folk singer and was an iconic figure in the mid-twentieth century American folk music revival. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, he also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of The Weavers, most notably their recording of Lead...
in the 1940s. Deitch made a number of tape recordings of Converse in the kitchen of his house in Hastings-on-Hudson in the mid-1950s. But she failed to attract any commercial interest in her music. Her only public performance was a brief television appearance in 1954 on "The Morning Show" on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
with Walter Cronkite
Walter Cronkite
Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr. was an American broadcast journalist, best known as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years . During the heyday of CBS News in the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll...
, which Deitch helped to arrange.
In 1961, she left New York for Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2010 census places the population at 113,934, making it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 344,791 as of 2010...
, where her brother Philip was a professor of political science at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
. She worked in a secretarial job, and then as Managing Editor of the Journal of Conflict Resolution
Journal of Conflict Resolution
The Journal of Conflict Resolution is a peer-reviewed academic journal that publishes scholarly articles and book reviews dealing with international conflict and conflict resolution. Its scope is similar to that of the Journal of Peace Research...
from 1963. Her only musical involvement continued to be playing for friends at parties.
By 1973, Connie was burnt out and depressed. Her colleagues and friends pooled their money to finance a six-months' trip to England for her. The journal, which meant so much to her, had left Michigan for Yale
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
at the end of 1972, after being "auctioned off" without her knowledge. She was facing the need for major surgery.
In August 1974, she wrote a series of letters to her family and friends, talking about her intention to make a new life somewhere else. By the time the letters were delivered, she had packed her belongings in her Volkswagen Beetle
Volkswagen Beetle
The Volkswagen Type 1, widely known as the Volkswagen Beetle or Volkswagen Bug, is an economy car produced by the German auto maker Volkswagen from 1938 until 2003...
and driven away, never to be heard from again.
In January 2004, Gene Deitch – by then 80 years old and living in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
since 1961 – was invited by New York music historian David Garland to appear on his radio show Spinning on Air. Deitch played some of his own recordings, including one of Connie's songs, "One by One".
Two of Garland's listeners, Dan Dzula and David Herman, were inspired to try and put together an album of Connie's music. There were two sources: the tapes in Deitch's collection in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, and her brother Philip's collection of recordings which she had sent him in the 1950s. In March 2009, How Sad, How Lovely, containing 17 songs by Connie Converse, was released by Lau derette Recordings. There have been indications that Converse's musical approach and singing style has had an impact on indie folk
Indie folk
Indie folk is a music genre that arose in the 1990s from singer/songwriters in the indie rock community showing heavy influences from folk music scenes of the 50s, 60s and early 70s, country music, and indie rock. A few early artists included Lou Barlow, Beck, Jeff Buckley and Elliott Smith...
artists such as Quinn Marston
Quinn Marston
Quinn Marston is an American indie folk singer-songwriter based in New York City. Her music has been featured on TV shows such as One Tree Hill, Ghost Whisperer, and The Gates, as well as being aired on radio stations such as 101.5 FM...
.
The Australian singer-songwriter Robert Forster
Robert Forster (musician)
Robert Forster is an Australian singer-songwriter, best known for his work with songwriting partner Grant McLennan, with whom he co-founded The Go-Betweens.Forster grew up in Brisbane, Australia attending Brisbane Grammar School...
, co-founder of the Go-Betweens
The Go-Betweens
The Go-Betweens were an indie rock band formed in Brisbane, Australia in 1977 by singer-songwriters and guitarists, Robert Forster and Grant McLennan. They were later joined by Lindy Morrison on drums, Robert Vickers on bass guitar and Amanda Brown on violin, oboe, guitar, and backing vocals,...
, describes the album as "making a deep and marvellous connection between lyric and song that allows us to enter the world of an extraordinary woman living in mid-twentieth-century New York."
Sources
- Converse, Elizabeth, "A Posteditorial", Journal of Conflict Resolution 16 (1972), 617-619.
- Converse, Elizabeth, "The War of All against All: A review of The Journal of Conflict Resolution, 1957-1968", Journal of Conflict Resolution 12 (1968), 471-532.
- Forster, Robert, "Lost Women Found", The Monthly June 2009, 60-64.
External links
- http://www.connieconverse.com
- http://cdbaby.com/cd/connieconverse
- http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/03/08/PKRD161UOU.DTL&type=music
- http://www.wnyc.org/shows/spinning/episodes/2009/03/15