Ian & Sylvia / Best Of The Vanguard Years

Ian & Sylvia

Along with Gordon Lightfoot, the team of Ian Tyson and Sylvia Fricker represented the best that Canada had to offer during the folk boom of the early and mid- '60s. The duo's earthy voices and wraparound harmonies helped them become one of the most commercially successful '60s folk acts. And while they gained much attention for their interpretations of songs by the likes of Bob Dylan ("This Wheel's on Fire"), Joni Mitchell ("The Circle Game"), and the aforementioned Lightfoot ("Early Morning Rain"), it's their originals that remain evergreens 20-odd years after their mid-'70s split- up. To wit: Tyson's "Four Strong Winds" (covered memorably by Neil Young) and "Someday Soon" (a longtime staple of Judy Collins's repertoire), and Fricker's "You Were on My Mind" (a mid-'60s hit for the We Five). All of these, and plenty more, are found on this highly satisfying 25-song collection. --Billy Altman

Price: $21.98