Judy Collins Returns to The Suffolk

The Suffolk welcomes back Grammy Award-winning folk icon Judy Collins on Thursday, July 10, for an 8 p.m. concert.

Judy Collins has long inspired audiences with sublime vocals, boldly vulnerable songwriting, personal life triumphs and a firm commitment to social activism. In the 1960s, she evoked both the idealism and steely determination of a generation united against social and environmental injustices. Five decades later, her luminescent presence shines brightly as new generations bask in the glow of her iconic 55-album body of work, and heed inspiration from her spiritual discipline to thrive in the music industry for half a century.

Collins is a singer-songwriter who is esteemed for her imaginative interpretations of traditional and contemporary folk standards and her own poetically poignant original compositions. Her stunning rendition of Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now” from her landmark 1967 album, “Wildflowers,” has been entered into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Collin’s dreamy and sweetly intimate version of “Send in the Clowns,” a ballad written by Stephen Sondheim for the Broadway musical “A Little Night Music,” won Song of the Year at the 1975 Grammy Awards. She’s garnered several top-ten hits gold- and platinum-selling albums. Recently, contemporary and classic artists such as Rufus Wainwright, Shawn Colvin, Dolly Parton, Joan Baez, and Leonard Cohen honored her legacy with the album “Born to the Breed: A Tribute to Judy Collins.”

Collins’s 55th album, “Spellbound,” was released in February 2022. The 13-song album is a special entry in her oeuvre. It marks the first time ever she wrote all the songs on one of her albums. It features 12 new recently-written modern folk songs, and a bonus track of her evergreen, “The Blizzard.” “Spellbound” is an introspective and impressionistic album. It unfolds as if Collins curated a museum exhibit of her life, and welcomed us into a retrospective of her most formative moments, some big and public, and some intensely personal and intimate. “Spellbound” was nominated in the Best Folk Album category at the 65th Recording Academy Grammy Awards in 2023.

While maintaining her rigorous touring schedule, Collins recently released her first book of poetry with Andrews McMeel Publishing. Written with the bold vulnerability that Judy Collins is best known for, “Sometimes It’s Heaven” is a timeless collection of poetry that captures the ethereal and inspiring nature of her artistry in an all-new way. Biographical and relatable, “Sometimes It’s Heaven” is a must-read for fans of poetry, fans of Collins and fans of truth.

Tickets for the show are $75 to $129 at thesuffolk.org. The Suffolk is at 118 East Main Street in Riverhead.