Richard Meyer (September 6, 1952 – May 14, 2012) was an American

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fo ...

singer-songwriter, writer, painter, and

set design Scenic design (also known as scenography, stage design, or set design) is the creation of theatrical, as well as film or television scenery. Scenic designers come from a variety of artistic backgrounds, but in recent years, are mostly trained ...

er. Meyer was active in the

Greenwich Village Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...

folk music scene of the 1980s and 1990s and did much to promote other artists. As one of the leaders of a musicians

cooperative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-contro ...

in the Village he handled booking at the

SpeakEasy A speakeasy, also called a blind pig or blind tiger, is an illicit establishment that sells alcoholic beverages, or a retro style bar that replicates aspects of historical speakeasies. Speakeasy bars came into prominence in the United States ...

and edited '' Fast Folk Musical Magazine'' (1986–1997). Later, he wrote reviews for various media such as

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

. He also worked extensively as a lighting/scenery designer in theater. Since the summer of 2008, Meyer's advancing

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...

made it impossible for him to live independently, and spent his last years at a nursing home in the New York area.

Discography

* ''The January Cold'' (1984) * ''Laughing/Scared'' (1987, Old Forge) * ''The Good Life!'' (1992, Shanachie) * ''A Letter from the Open Sky'' (1994, Shanachie) * ''First Aid for the Choking Victim'' (?) * ''Works in Progress'' (?) * ''Strange Generosity/Bitter Moon'' (2001, Old Forge) -CDref>McGrath, T J, "Recordings: Richard Meyer – ''Strange Generosity/Bitter Moon''", ''

Dirty Linen ''Dirty Linen'' was a bi-monthly magazine of folk and world music based in Baltimore, Maryland. The magazine ceased publication in the spring of 2010. The magazine offered extensive reviews of folk music recordings, videos, books, and concert ...

'', 93, April–May 2001, p.65

Video

"Richard Meyer at Cabin Concerts"
is a 57:50 video of a house concert performance in Wayne, NJ 3/10/96.

Discography

Video

References

Further reading