''What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid'' is the debut album from Scottish singer-songwriter

Donovan Donovan Phillips Leitch (born 10 May 1946), known mononymously as Donovan, is a Scottish musician, songwriter, and record producer. He developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelic rock and world mus ...

. It was released in the UK four days after his nineteenth birthday on 14 May 1965, through

Pye Records Pye Records was a British record label. Its best known artists were Lonnie Donegan (1956–1969), Petula Clark (1957–1971), the Searchers (1963–1967), the Kinks (1964–1971), Sandie Shaw (1964–1971), Status Quo (1968–1971) and Brotherhoo ...

(catalog number NPL 18117). Terry Kennedy,

Peter Eden Peter Eden (born 1943) is a British former record producer and record label executive, best known for his work in the mid-1960s with Donovan, and later with jazz musicians such as John Surman. Biography Eden was born in Hadleigh, Essex. In his ...

, and

Geoff Stephens Geoffrey Stephens (1 October 1934 – 24 December 2020) was an English songwriter and record producer, most prolific in the United Kingdom in the 1960s and 1970s. He wrote a long series of hit records, often in conjunction with other British so ...

produced the album. The album was released in the US as ''Catch the Wind'' on

Hickory Records Hickory Records is an American record label founded in 1954 by Acuff-Rose Music, which operated the label up to 1979. Sony Music Publishing (then Sony/ATV) revived the label in 2007. Originally based in Nashville, and functioning as an independe ...

in June 1965. Hickory Records changed the title to match that of Donovan's debut single.

History

In late 1964, Peter Eden and Geoff Stephens offered Donovan a recording contract with

in the UK. Donovan had performed around Britain and had become well known in British folk circles before his record contract. His 1964 demo tapes (released as '' Sixty Four'' in 2004) show a great resemblance to both

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspired ...

and

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

, which probably prompted the "British answer to Bob Dylan" press line that was subsequently released. ''What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid'' is notable because it captures Donovan at a point where his style and vision were starting to diverge significantly from those of Guthrie and Dylan. The music primarily consists of Donovan singing and playing mouth harp and

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

, much like his live performances of the time. He still had some vestiges of

's style, and here covers Guthrie's " Riding In My Car" (titled here as "Car Car"). ''What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid'' also includes British

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

("Tangerine Puppet") and even some

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

("Cuttin' Out"). Donovan re-recorded "Catch the Wind" for the album, which was initially released as his debut single in the UK on 12 March 1965. Other musicians featured on the album are

Brian Locking Brian Locking (22 December 1938 – 8 October 2020) was an English musician and songwriter known for his brief tenure as bassist with ''Marty Wilde, The Wildcats'' in 1956 and The Shadows, between 1962 and 1963. During his time with the Shadow ...

on bass,

Skip Alan Skip or Skips may refer to: Acronyms * SKIP (Skeletal muscle and kidney enriched inositol phosphatase), a human gene * Simple Key-Management for Internet Protocol * SKIP of New York (Sick Kids need Involved People), a non-profit agency aidi ...

(who joined

the Pretty Things ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

later the same year) on drums, and Gypsy Dave on

kazoo The kazoo is an American musical instrument that adds a "buzzing" timbral quality to a player's voice when the player vocalizes into it. It is a type of '' mirliton'' (which itself is a membranophone), one of a class of instruments which modifi ...

Reissues

* On 13 September 1968, ''What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid'' was reissued in an edited form (

Marble Arch Records Marble Arch Records was a subsidiary of Pye Records that released budget records from 1964 to around 1980. Compact discs were also released from the late 1980s to around 1994. Background Pye Records created this subsidiary label with in a type o ...

MAL 795) in the UK. "Car Car" and "Donna Donna" were both removed from the album, possibly because they were not written by Donovan. * On 26 February 1996,

Sequel Records Sanctuary Records Group Limited was a record label based in the United Kingdom and is as of 2013 a subsidiary of BMG Rights Management solely for reissues. Until June 2007, it was the largest independent record label in the UK and the largest m ...

reissued ''What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid'' in the US under its US title ''Catch the Wind'' on compact disc. Three bonus tracks were added to the track listing. The first bonus track, "Why Do You Treat Me Like You Do?", was released as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

to Donovan's UK debut single. The second bonus track is the

A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

of Donovan's UK debut single. The third bonus track, "Every Man Has His Chain", was originally released on Donovan's ''Catch the Wind'' EP in France. * On 22 January 2002,

Sanctuary Records Sanctuary Records Group Limited was a record label based in the United Kingdom and is as of 2013 a subsidiary of BMG Rights Management solely for reissues. Until June 2007, it was the largest independent record label in the UK and the largest m ...

reissued the complete ''What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid'' for the first time on compact disc. The US version of the CD titled ''Catch the Wind'' was released six years earlier. The CD features four bonus tracks. The first two tracks are Donovan's debut single "Catch the Wind" (a different take than the album track) and its b-side "Why Do You Treat Me Like You Do?". The third bonus track "Every Man Has His Chain" was once a rare track in Donovan's discography, and was originally released on the French EP ''Catch the Wind'' in 1965. Donovan's second single "Colours" is also released here, in a version different from the one included on the ''

Fairytale A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story, magic tale, or wonder tale) is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic, enchantments, and mythical or fanciful beings. In most cul ...

'' album.

Track listing

Original album (UK)

Side 1 #" Josie" (Donovan Leitch) – 3:28 #"

Catch the Wind "Catch the Wind" is a song written and recorded by Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. Pye Records released "Catch the Wind" backed with "Why Do You Treat Me Like You Do?" as Donovan's debut release (Pye 7N.15801) in the United Kingdom on 28 ...

" (Donovan Leitch) – 2:56 #" Remember the Alamo" (

Jane Bowers Jane Bowers (May 29, 1921 – June 18, 2000) was a Texas folk singer and songwriter best known for her composition " Remember the Alamo". Many of her songs were primarily recorded by the Kingston Trio The Kingston Trio is an American folk ...

) – 3:04 #"Cuttin' Out" (Leitch) – 2:19 #" Car Car" (

) – 1:31 #"Keep on Truckin'" (traditional; arranged by Leitch) – 1:50 Side 2 #"Goldwatch Blues" (

Mick Softley Michael Softley (26 September 1939 – 1 September 2017) was an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. A figurehead during the British folk scene, Softley set up his own folk club, released three albums and worked with performers such as Mac ...

) – 2:33 #"To Sing for You" (Leitch) – 2:45 #"

You're Gonna Need Somebody on Your Bond "You'll Need Somebody on Your Bond" (later titled "You're Gonna Need Somebody on Your Bond") is a gospel song that is attributed to both tradition and to gospel blues musician Blind Willie Johnson. Johnson first recorded the song in December 1930 ...

" (traditional; arranged by Leitch) – 4:04 #"Tangerine Puppet" (Leitch) – 1:51 #" Donna Donna" (

Aaron Zeitlin Aaron Zeitlin (3 June 1898 – 28 September 1973) was a Jewish American educator and writer. He authored several books on Yiddish literature, poetry and parapsychology. Biography Zeitlin was born in Uvarovichi, Russia (now Belarus) to Hillel Z ...

Sholom Secunda Sholom Secunda (, Oleksandriia, Alexandria, Kherson Governorate, Russian Empire13 June 1974, New York City, New York) was an American composer of History of the Jews in Ukraine, Ukrainian-Jewish descent, best known for the tunes of ''Bei Mir Bistu ...

, Arthur S Kevess, Teddi Schwartz) – 2:56 #"Ramblin' Boy" (Leitch) – 2:33

1996 Sequel Records CD-reissue (Title: ''Catch the Wind'')

The original album plus the following bonus tracks: #"Why Do You Treat Me Like You Do?" (Leitch) – 2:56 #"Catch the Wind" (Leitch) – 2:18 #"Every Man Has His Chain" (Leitch) – 2:09

2002 Sanctuary Records CD-reissue

The original album plus the following bonus tracks: #"Catch the Wind" (Single version with strings) (Leitch) – 2:18 #"Why Do You Treat Me Like You Do?" (Single b-side) (Leitch) – 2:56 #"Every Man Has His Chain" (French EP track) (Leitch) – 2:12 #"Colours" (Single version) (Leitch) – 2:45

Personnel

– vocals, acoustic guitar, harmonica *

– bass *

(Alan Skipper) – drums *

Gypsy Dave Gyp Mills (born David John Mills, 9 July 1946 – 18 June 2019),

(David Mills) – kazoo

References

External links

''What's Bin Did And What's Bin Hid'' – Donovan Unofficial Site

Sanctuary Records
{{DEFAULTSORT:What's Bin Did And What's Bin Hid 1965 debut albums Donovan albums Pye Records albums Hickory Records albums Sanctuary Records albums