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Timeline
11 events▣ Album 9◦ Birth 1★ Debut release 1
1940s
1960s
· Debut release
Debut release: She's Like A Swallow And Other Folk Songs
First documented Album in the MusicBrainz discography.
source: musicbrainz
1970s
2010s
2020s
Biography
English biography347 words · 4 sectionssource: wikipedia-en · licence CC BY-SA 4.0 · revision 1366232493
Biography
Bonnie Dobson (born November 13, 1940, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian folk music songwriter, singer, and guitarist, most known in the 1960s for composing the songs "I'm Your Woman" and "Morning Dew". The latter, augmented by Tim Rose (with a controversial co-writing credit), became a melancholy folk rock standard that has been covered by numerous artists.
Early life
Dobson was born in Toronto. Her father was a union organizer and opera lover. Her early music influences included Paul Robeson and The Weavers.
Career
Dobson became part of the active folk-revival scene in Toronto, performing in local coffee houses and at the Mariposa Folk Festival. She later moved to the United States where she performed in coffee houses across the country and recorded several albums, including 1962's Bonnie Dobson at Folk CityAt Folk CitySpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1Once My True Love3:48A2Love Henry5:37A3Irish Exile Song3:52A4Shule Aroon4:07A5Bonnie’s Blues4:07B1Peter Amberley6:52B2C’est l’aviron4:19B3The Holly Bears a Berry3:54B4Two Carols for a Nuclear Age: a. A Carol for Sheltered Shut‐Ins / b. A Carol for U.N. Delegates2:57B5Morning Dew4:46, which contained her song "Morning Dew".
Dobson has consistently questioned Tim Rose's right to a co-writing credit for "Morning Dew", stating that Rose first heard it as sung by Fred Neil, whose version appeared on his 1964 album Tear Down The Walls with Dobson credited as the composer.
After returning to Toronto in 1967 she continued to perform in coffee houses as well programs on the CBC. She married and in 1969 moved to London, England, where she took up university studies and later became an administrator of the Philosophy Department at Birkbeck College, part of the University of London.
After retiring in the 1980s, Dobson returned to performance in 2007 in London with Jarvis Cocker. She released a new album in 2013 on the Hornbeam label and that year performed a number of concert dates.
She performed with Combined Services Entertainment, and was one of the last performers at RAF Salalah, Oman.
Cover versions of "Morning Dew"
According to the website SecondHandSongs, "Morning Dew" has been covered by more than 70 artists, including several versions as recently as the early 2020s. Among those who have recorded the song are Fred Neil, Ralph McTell, Lulu, Nazareth, Grateful Dead, Jeff Beck Group, Robert Plant, Long John Baldry, DEVO, Einstürzende Neubauten, and Gregg Allman, Duane Allman, and Butch Trucks (of The Allman Brothers Band).
Discography & profile
Normalised profile
Percentiles are computed over every artist in the database, so a tier-3 artist can still sit in the 95th percentile on a single axis.
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 9 | 54.3th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 12 | 83.4th |
| Studio albums | 9 | 90th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 11 | 87.9th |
| Recording span (years) | 64 | 98.9th |
| Genres | 0 | 0th |
Percentiles are computed at render time; missing values mean the artist has no data on that axis.
Discography (12 release groups · 9 studio albums)
Albums · 9
She's Like A Swallow And Other Folk Songs
1961 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 14 tracks · 47:10
A1The Cruel War Is Raging3:55A2She's Like A Swallow3:05A3The Silkie Of Sule Skerry5:49A4Across The Blue Mountain2:46A5The Prickle Holly Bush4:08A6Mistress Bond1:43A7Envoyons De L'Avant2:35B1Will Ye Go Laddie Go3:17B2Frankie Slide3:39B3Monsieur Le Curé2:18B4The Jam At Gerry's Rock4:47B5The First Time3:27B6The Road To Grandmère2:48B7The Old Maid's Lament2:531962 · studio album
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Tracklist · 12 tracks
A1Dear CompanionA2My Mother Chose My HusbandA3Girl of Constant SorrowA4VranyankaA5Ben's LullabyA6The Bonnie Lass of Kenmore TownB1When I Was in My PrimeB2Ah! Si Mon MoineB3Blues Jumped a RabbitB4Dink's SongB5Vertsa DievchaB6The Cruel MotherSings a Merry-Go-Round of Children's Songs
1963 · studio album
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Tracklist · 18 tracks
A1The Bayberry TreeA2BabiesA3Jigalong HomeA4Mistress BondA5Have You Seen the Ghost of John?A6Riding in the Buggy, Miss Mary JaneA7Don't You Push Me DownA8If I Were a DuckA9Mail Myself to YouB1The Merry-Go-RoundB2Three Little PiggiesB3Little Sacka SugarB4This Old ManB5Rose, Rose, Rose RedB6The CuckooB7Donkey RidingB8The Rich Man and the Poor ManB9Hush, Little Baby1964 · studio album
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Tracklist · 10 tracks · 36:33
1After the Show4:072Guantanamera3:043Un Canadien Errant4:034Lord Gregory3:535Peggy Gordon3:236For the Love of Him4:297Lovin' Johnny3:058Le Roi3:539Country Girl Blues3:0910So Early in the Spring3:271969 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 12 tracks · 36:16
1I Got Stung2:572Morning Dew3:203Let’s Get Together3:084I’m Your Woman3:005Time3:096Rainy Windows2:407Everybody’s Talkin’3:268Bird of Space2:509You Never Wanted Me3:1110Pendant que3:0111Elevator Man2:5312Winter’s Going2:411970 · studio album
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Tracklist · 11 tracks · 39:18
A1Light of Love3:51A2Sweet Man3:38A3You Don’t Know3:59A4Clown3:20A5Good Morning Rain2:23A6Milk and Honey3:15B1White Song3:21B2Do What You Gotta Do2:57B3Factory Girl4:30B4Streets of London3:45B5A Taste of Honey4:191972 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 12 tracks · 37:07
A1Thyme4:10A2Long River3:23A3Farewell to Nova Scotia2:55A4Un Canadien errant4:11A5Poor Little Girls of Ontario2:27A6Four Strong Winds3:35B1Vive la Canadienne2:36B2Land of the Silver Birch2:45B3Ise the Bye2:01B4Sixteen Miles to Seven Lakes2:37B5À la claire fontaine3:54B6Someday Soon2:33Take Me For A Walk In The Morning Dew
2014 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 15 tracks · 59:34
1I Got Stung3:182Morning Dew4:153Southern Bound4:254Come On Dancing3:585Living On Plastic2:206Peter Amberley5:297Dink's Song2:398Winter's Going7:149Mean And Evil3:1710Rainy Windows4:0411V'la L'Bon Vent2:4512Sandy Boys3:1613Born In The Country4:3414Who Are These Men?4:1715JB's Song3:432025 · studio album
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Tracklist · 8 tracks
1Baby's Got the Blues2Trouble3Don't Look Down4On A Morning Like This5You Don't Know6Stay With Me Tonight7Get Together8Dreams
Album · 2
| Cover | Year | Title | Notes | First release |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | At Folk CitySearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 10 tracks · 44:19A1Once My True Love3:48 A2Love Henry5:37 A3Irish Exile Song3:52 A4Shule Aroon4:07 A5Bonnie’s Blues4:07 B1Peter Amberley6:52 B2C’est l’aviron4:19 B3The Holly Bears a Berry3:54 B4Two Carols for a Nuclear Age: a. A Carol for Sheltered Shut‐Ins / b. A Carol for U.N. Delegates2:57 B5Morning Dew4:46 | Live | August 1962 | |
| 2010 | Vive La CanadienneSearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 24 tracks1After the Snow 2Guantanamera 3Un Canadian Errant 4Lord Gregory 5Peggy Gordon 6For the Love of Him 7Lovin' Johnny 8Le Roi 9Country Girl Blues 10So Early in the Spring 11Thyme 12Long River 13Farewell to Nova Scotia 14Un Canadian Errant 15Poor Little Girls of Ontario 16Four Strong Winds 17Vive La Canadienne 18Land of the Silver Birch 19Ise the Bye 20Sixteen Miles to Seven Lakes 21A La Claire Fontaine 22Someday Soon 23Sweet Somerset 24Special Sense of Kind | Compilation | 2010 |
Other · 1
| Cover | Year | Title | Notes | First release |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Looking BackSearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 13 tracks · 49:321Morning Dew4:02 2Land of the Silver Birch3:32 3Days of Reckoning4:37 4Un Canadien Errant4:19 5Times To Get Better2:48 6Stay With Me Tonight3:13 7The Woman You Call Your Wife2:57 8The Door Is Open2:54 9Going Solo4:13 10Come Any Closer3:31 11Thyme4:23 12Someday Soon3:14 13Again And Again5:49 | 2010 |
Stats & PK
Percentile within all 23,672 published artists.Put Bonnie Dobson head-to-head →
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 9 | 54.3th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 12 | 83.4th |
| Studio albums | 9 | 90th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 11 | 87.9th |
| Recording span (years) | 64 | 98.9th |
| Genres | 0 | 0th |
Awards & honours
Where this record comes from
aliases/urls—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/f469afbc-132f-4a6a-b10b-bc31ab5288e2discography—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/f469afbc-132f-4a6a-b10b-bc31ab5288e2core—wikidata · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q433442seed-list—wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonnie_Dobsonbiography—wikipedia-en · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonnie_Dobson
Why this artist is in the database
- List of Canadian musicians
- List of folk musicians
- List of singer-songwriters
Tier rule: curated genre/region list
Image: no portrait (not displayed: the licence credit is missing)
Wikidata: Q433442 · MusicBrainz: f469afbc-132f-4a6a-b10b-bc31ab5288e2
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