Seems to have been missed but I’m told that Eric Weissberg died yesterday (22 March).
Seems to have been missed but I’m told that Eric Weissberg died yesterday (22 March).
He did, in fact, die of Alzheimer's Disease yesterday. He was 80. He was certainly a classic.
David Hopkins
2001 Gibson F-5L mandolin
Breedlove Legacy FF mandolin; Breedlove Quartz FF mandolin
Gibson F-4 mandolin (1916); Blevins f-style Octave mandolin, 2018
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The older I get, the less tolerant I am of political correctness, incompetence and stupidity.
Eric Weissberg was a wonderful and inspiring musician who played many instruments at the highest level. There was a time not long ago when he, Bill Keith, and Billy Faier all lived in Woodstock NY, making a powerful banjo triumvirate for such a small town. All three are gone now. RIP.
Larry Wexer has had Eric's Loar F-5 for a long time now! Oh yes I love all the Loar F-5's! All are indeed special in their own ways.
Ever since New Dimensions In Banjo & Bluegrass came out in the '60's, Weissberg (a Julliard grad, who was formerly in the Tarriers and an early version of the Greenbriar Boys) has been a major contributor to the "folk" side of bluegrass, and to the prominence of the dreaded banjo in pop music. His version of Dueling Banjos, written and performed first by Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith as Feuding Banjos, made it to #2 on the charts in 1972-3, based on its feature role in a scene from the movie Deliverance, and is probably the most popular banjo recording ever. Weissberg also played guitar, mandolin, Dobro and fiddle, was a decent singer and a frequent sideman and studio musician. He once recounted to a local audience how his record company owed him an album, but instead of having him again record Dueling Banjos, took a cut from the New Dimensions album, which had been used on the movie soundtrack, and then didn't want to pay him royalties from the mega-popularity of the song, arguing that he'd been paid back in the '60's for the original album! Apparently there was a settlement, and Weissberg (and Arthur Smith, who hadn't received composer's royalties either) made out OK in the end.
I only saw him perform once, in a duo booking with Tom Paxton, who did a creditable job playing guitar on Dueling Banjos, although lead guitar isn't Tom's strong suit. Weissberg was affable, super-talented, but never flashy, obviously enjoying backing Paxton up as much as playing his solo pieces. One by one, the instrumental idols of a half-century ago pass on.
For anyone who'd like to sample his influential early album:
Allen Hopkins
Gibsn: '54 F5 3pt F2 A-N Custm K1 m'cello
Natl Triolian Dobro mando
Victoria b-back Merrill alumnm b-back
H-O mandolinetto
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Sobell'dola Washburn b-back'dola
Eastmn: 615'dola 805 m'cello
Flatiron 3K OM
Man, I'm saddened to hear of his passing. My dad had a copy of Dueling Banjo's soundtrack. L oved it. It was my introduction to bluegrass. I liked it so much I taped it to a 90 minute tape. The flip side was Prince's Purple rain. You can say that's a odd mix but, they were both fantastic to speed around my home town on my 10 speed and 21 speed with my walkman. I still love that record. Rest in peace!
Jamie
There are two things to aim at in life: first, to get what you want; and, after that, to enjoy it. Only the wisest of mankind achieve the second. Logan Pearsall Smith, 1865 - 1946
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Must look out for "New Dimensions ....". My personal favourite is the 1973 release "Rural Free Delivery" by "Eric Weissberg & Deliverance". One of the most boring record sleeves known to mankind, very little mandolin (one break on "Scalded Cat" if my memory serves me) but the only known recording of the Goffin & King song "Blessed is the man". I've always thought "Cocrete Canyon Boogie" would make a great finale to my funeral!
EDIT - It looks like most of the tracks on "New dimensions ...." were re-released on the "Dueling Banjos/Deliverence" record. In fact the only "soundtrack" tune on the latter seems to have been "Duelling Banjos"!
My dad wore that record out when I was a kid. it was in his rotation of Dillards and Flatt and Scruggs.
Go Vandals!
Wasn't the GREAT Clarence White on that old record with Eric?
I had the honor of doing a gig with Eric Weissberg once. Back in 1991, my jug band played the Winnipeg Folk Festival. We had the great fortune to open the Friday night concert. Also playing that night were Guy Clark and Townes Van Zandt. Bumping into those two in the green room, swapping stories while sharing a bottle of whiskey, was a real thrill. So was hanging out with Patty Larkin on the shuttle bus, and teaching her and the other Four Bitchin' Babes the third verse of "These Boots Are Made For Walking," and hearing them bring that out on stage.
But the high point of the weekend was doing a jug band workshop with The Jug Band on Sunday afternoon. That meant everyone from the Jim Kweskin Jug Band except Kweskin: Geoff and Maria Muldaur, Fritz Richmond, Bill Keith, and Eric Weissberg as their utility guy. We played a short set, they played a short set, and then we played a few songs all together.
Now let me back up a bit before going on. My band had shared the bill with Geoff and Fritz a few times whenever their duo came to Connecticut. So we knew each other pretty well. And Geoff doesn't travel with a mandolin, as he only plays it on a couple of songs. So he borrowed my mandolin for their set. He played it on just one song, “Minglewood Blues.”
When we combined bands for the finale, and I picked up my axe, it was in some weird open tuning. Even the E strings were tuned separately, in a minor third, as I recall. Eric saw the look of consternation on my face and said, “That's Geoff’s Minglewood tuning. Here, let me tune it back for you.” He had it back in correct tuning in no more than 20 seconds, perfect pitch. I've never seen anything like it before or since.
For years thereafter, whenever I had to tune it in public, my running joke was something to the effect that Eric Weissberg had tuned it so well, it shouldn't need to be tuned again, ever. At some point, I stopped because I got tired of having to explain who Eric Weissberg was. Not everybody knows who that extraordinary multi-talented musician was. But you fine people do.
RIP, Eric Weissberg.
But that's just my opinion. I could be wrong. - Dennis Miller
Furthering Mandolin Consciousness
Finders Keepers, my duo with the astoundingly talented and versatile Patti Rothberg. Our EP is finally done, and available! PM me, while they last!
So sad to learn of his passing.
A lot of folks don't know that Eric Weissberg, Jim Rooney, Bill Keith, and Richard Greene cut a country album in 1969 for Warner Brothers. Complete with some great "Hank" songs sung by Rooney, "Sweet Moments With The Blue Velvet Band" was not promoted by WB and never got anywhere near the charts, however it has always been one of my all-time favorites. This one features Eric Weissberg singing lead and playing bass, with Richard Greene on electric fiddle (superb), and Bill Keith on pedal steel!
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