Joel Rafael, a San Diego County-based folk musician who has performed his Woody Guthrie-influenced tunes for more than 50 years, has donated his personal archive to Cal State San Marcos, it was announced Monday.
The singer-songwriter, who has performed both solo and with his Joel Rafael Band for more than five decades, was convinced to donate his works and archive to CSUSM's special collections.
"For a few years now, I've thought about and wondered what will become of my life's work spanning 60 years," Rafael said. "I am honored to have found a permanent home for my archives in the Kellogg Library Special Collections at Cal State San Marcos.
"North San Diego County has been my home for more than half a century. I have watched the evolution of the campus since its founding in 1989. I am heartened that the CSUSM core values of inclusion, culture and stewardship align with my own. Knowing that my work will be protected and available to the public gives me a feeling of peace, resolution and gratitude."
Rafael began his career performing in showcases and small clubs around Southern California in the early 1970s, opening throughout the southwest for artists such as Crosby, Stills and Nash, Sheryl Crow, Laura Nyro, Taj Mahal, Iris DeMent, Emmylou Harris and John Lee Hooker.
"Joel Rafael's songs are filled with passion and compassion; passion for social justice and compassion for those among us who have to struggle for a place at the table of American prosperity," singer-songwriter Jackson Browne broke. "His voice is unmistakably his own — big, warm and strong — and a conductor for the human emotions that connect us all."
Guthrie is Rafael's biggest influence. Rafael has been a featured performer at the Woody Guthrie Folk Festival in Oklahoma for all but one of its 28 years, and he has five "co-writes" with the late folk legend using lyrics given to him by Guthrie's daughter, Nora, according to CSUSM.
Rafael and his wife Lauren (a CSUSM alumna), began discussions of donating the collection last spring with CSUSM music professor Merryl Goldberg.
The collection includes master recordings in various formats; documentation of all of Rafael's (and collaborators') performances and contracts; scrapbooks and news articles of his life and musical history; flyers, posters and photographs for/of performances and festivals; and fan interactions including letters, email messages and social media posts, according to a school statement.
"I feel fortunate to know Joel and Lauren and to have the opportunity to steward Joel's collection," said Jen Fabbi, a special collections librarian. "Joel has dedicated his life to social justice and activism through music, and that commitment, along with his talent and persistence, shines throughout this collection. I am excited for students and scholars to have access to it."
The library recently recorded the first part of an oral history interview with Rafael, in which he discusses "his early musical influences, his participation in the 1960s counterculture movement and the beginnings of his success in the music industry."
