Donovan

“It’s an interesting subject, bohemia,” says flower-power icon Donovan. What follows is nothing short of a dissertation on the history of bohemianism—from 19th-century France to the age of the internet—complete with his sociological interpretation of the movement as a reaction to nascent industrialization and Europe and its current residence in cyberspace.

“The bohemian movements, especially those of the last 200 years, have influenced society and have always been there to create a necessary phase in nearly every aspect of lifestyle and living. … Slowly, it was adopted by the whole western world, up through the ’40s and ’50s, where I am focusing this project called Beat Café,” he says of his first album in eight years—a 12-song set that attempts to capture the sound and excitement of that seminal American moment through playful jazz-folk and the improvisational skills of legendary session bassist Danny Thompson and drummer Jim Keltner.

The now 58-year-old Scotsman has come full circle with Beat Café. Embarking on a tour of small clubs specifically designed to mirror the atmosphere shared by painters, songwriters and poets who found freedom on the fringes of society, he recorded Beat Café in hopes that a new generation of artists will embrace the freedom and spontaneity he’s exploring through its freeform wordplay, elastic arrangements and highly stylized live performances.

“[Bohemianism is] more than a subject,” he says. “For me, it’s a living organism that is an essential part of modern society.” Still, the one topic that he seems somewhat hesitant to elaborate on is himself—the role his music played in reinvigorating a generation of Brit-pop bands and neo-psych folkies, the six-disc boxed set that is due for release, or the greatest hits tour that he’ll mount in the coming year.

“Oh, me?” he says, shrugging audibly. “Yeah. I guess I’m historical. I’m part of the fabric now.”