Bonnie Dobson is a Canadian singer-songwriter born on November 13, 1940 in Toronto, best known for writing the iconic folk song "Morning Dew", which became a standard covered by many artists. Active since the late 1950s, she emerged on the burgeoning North American folk scene, following in the tradition of protest song and intimate folk. She recorded several albums in the early 1960s, including Bonnie Dobson at Folk City (live, 1962), on which an early version of "Morning Dew" appears, followed by A Merry-Go-Round of Children's Songs (1963), She's Like a Swallow and Other Folk Songs (1964) and Dear Companion (1964), all of which demonstrate her attachment to traditional music while introducing her own compositions. His song "Morning Dew", written after seeing the film On the Beach (1959), poignantly evokes the consequences of a nuclear war. It was first recorded in 1962 and popularized in the following years by Fred Neil, Tim Rose, The Grateful Dead, The Jeff Beck Group, Nazareth, Robert Plant and many other folk, rock and psychedelic artists. The turn of the 1970s saw the release of the lavishly arranged and produced albums Bonnie Dobson (1969) and Good Morning Rain (1970). In the 1970s, Dobson moved to the UK, gradually withdrawing from the music scene and working at London University. She made a discreet comeback with occasional concerts in the 2000s, and in 2014 released a new album entitled Take Me for a Walk in the Morning Dew, mixing new versions of her old songs with previously unreleased compositions. In 2025, she teamed up with British band The Hanging Stars for her new album Dreams. Bonnie Dobson remains a cult folk figure for the purity of her voice, the intelligence of her lyrics and the enduring influence of "Morning Dew", which has become a pacifist and existential anthem over the decades.
