''It's My Way!'' is the first
studio album
An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...
by the folk musician
Buffy Sainte-Marie
Buffy Sainte-Marie (born Beverley Jean Santamaria; February 20, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and social activist.
Sainte-Marie's singing and writing repertoire includes subjects of love, war, religion, and mysticism, and h ...
. It was released in April 1964 through
Vanguard Records
Vanguard Recording Society is an American record label set up in 1950 by brothers Maynard and Seymour Solomon in New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the so ...
.
It was later released in Britain in early 1965 by
Fontana Records
Fontana Records is a record label that started in the 1950s as a subsidiary of the Dutch Philips Records. Fontana Distribution, an independent label distributor, takes its name from the label.
History
Fontana began in the 1950s as a subsidi ...
.
The album would become 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. The cover features a
mouthbow, which was to be a trademark of her sound on her first three albums.
In 2016, ''It's My Way!'' was inducted by the
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...
into the
National Recording Registry
The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation ...
.
In 2020 the album was named as one of two jury vote winners, alongside
Main Source's ''
Breaking Atoms'', of the Polaris Heritage Prize at the
2020 Polaris Music Prize
The 2020 edition of the Canada, Canadian Polaris Music Prize was presented on October 19, 2020. The longlist was announced on June 15, 2020, with the shortlist following on July 15, 2020 and the winner announced on October 19, 2020. Due to the CO ...
. This award was rescinded in 2025, following the revocation of Sainte-Marie's membership in the
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit.
To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...
.
[Kevin Maimann]
"Buffy Sainte-Marie stripped of Juno, Polaris music awards"
CBC News
CBC News is the division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the news gathering and production of news programs on the corporation's English-language operations, namely CBC Television, CBC Radio, CBC News Network, and CBC ...
, March 7, 2025.
Reception
Writing for
Allmusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
, 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."
Track listing
Personnel
*Buffy Sainte-Marie – vocals, guitar, arrangements
*
Patrick Sky
Patrick Sky (born Patrick Linch; October 2, 1940May 26, 2021) was an American musician, folk singer, songwriter, and record producer. He was of Irish and Native American ancestry, and played Irish traditional music and uilleann pipes in the ...
– second guitar on "He Lived Alone in Town"
*
Art Davis – bass on "Now That the Buffalo's Gone"
References
{{Authority control
1964 debut albums
Buffy Sainte-Marie albums
Albums produced by Maynard Solomon
Vanguard Records albums
United States National Recording Registry albums