Eric Weissberg (August 16, 1939 – March 22, 2020) was an American singer, banjo player, and
multi-instrumentalist
A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays two or more musical instruments at a professional level of proficiency.
Also known as doubling, the practice allows greater ensemble flexibility and more efficient employment of musicians, where ...
, whose most commercially successful recording was his banjo solo in " Dueling Banjos," featured as the theme of the film ''
Deliverance
''Deliverance'' is a 1972 American survival thriller film produced and directed by John Boorman, and starring Jon Voight, Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, and Ronny Cox, with the latter two making their feature film debuts. The screenplay was adapt ...
'' (1972) and released as a single that reached number 2 in the United States and Canada in 1973.
A member of the folk group the Tarriers for years, Weissberg later developed a career as a session musician. He played and recorded with leading folk, bluegrass, rock, and popular musicians and groups from the middle of the 20th century to its end.
Life and career
Weissberg was born in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
, New York City, the son of Cecile (Glasberg), a liquor buyer, and Will Weissberg, a publicity photographer. He attended The Little Red Schoolhouse in New York's
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 ...
and graduated from
The High School of Music & Art
The High School of Music & Art, informally known as "Music & Art" (or "M&A"), was a public specialized high school located at 443-465 West 135th Street in the borough of Manhattan, New York, from 1936 until 1984. In 1961, Music & Art and the High ...
in New York City. He went on to the
University of Wisconsin–Madison
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...
Bob Yellin
Anton Robert "Bob" Yellin (born June 10, 1936) is an American banjo player and founding member of The Greenbriar Boys bluegrass music group.
Biography
Yellin was born and raised in New York City. His father was an NBC studio pianist, his mother ...
,
John Herald
John Herald (September 6, 1939 – July 18, 2005) was an American folk and bluegrass songwriter, solo and studio musician and one-time member of The Greenbriar Boys trio.
Biography
Herald was born in Manhattan in 1939, to an Armenian born poet ...
and
Paul Prestopino
Paul may refer to:
*Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name)
* Paul (surname), a list of people
People
Christianity
*Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...
at
Washington Square Park
Washington Square Park is a public park in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Lower Manhattan, New York City. One of the best known of New York City's public parks, it is an icon as well as a meeting place and center for cultural activity. ...
to play on Sundays from 12-6pm. Public folk-singing in that park was forbidden by the city except for Sunday afternoons. John Herald the lead singer played guitar. Bob Yellin played guitar and 5-string. Weissberg usually played 5-string but also fiddle. Paul Prestopino played mandolin. Weissberg joined an early version of the
Greenbriar Boys
The Greenbriar Boys were an American northern bluegrass music group. who first got together in jam sessions in New York's Washington Square Park.
Biography
In 1958, guitarist and vocalist John Herald formed The Greenbriar Boys, along with Bob Y ...
(1958–59), but left before they made any recordings. He joined The Tarriers, replacing Erik Darling. At the time, the Tarriers had had a hit with "
Banana Boat Song
"Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)" is a traditional Jamaican folk song. The song has mento influences, but it is commonly classified as an example of the better known calypso music.
It is a call and response work song, from the point of view o ...
";
Harry Belafonte
Harry Belafonte (born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927) is an American singer, activist, and actor. As arguably the most successful Jamaican-American pop star, he popularized the Trinbagonian Caribbean musical style with an interna ...
's version, released soon afterward, became a bigger hit.
Weissberg was taken on as a string-bass player, but the group soon made use of his multi-instrumental talents as banjo player, fiddler,
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...
ist, mandolin player, and singer. He started performing with the Tarriers while still a student at Juilliard. His first album with The Tarriers, ''Tell The World About This'' (1960), has a much rougher feel than the smoothly produced sound of
The Weavers
The Weavers were an American folk music quartet based in the Greenwich Village area of New York City originally consisting of Lee Hays, Pete Seeger, Ronnie Gilbert, and Fred Hellerman. Founded in 1948, the group sang traditional folk songs fr ...
or
The Kingston Trio
The Kingston Trio is an American folk and pop music group that helped launch the folk revival of the late 1950s to the late 1960s. The group started as a San Francisco Bay Area nightclub act with an original lineup of Dave Guard, Bob Shane, ...
.
In 1964, he had one-year's service with the
National Guard
National Guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards.
Nat ...
, which he had earlier joined. After his return, the Tarriers re-formed. In 1965, the group accompanied Judy Collins on a tour of
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
and
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
, but disbanded soon after. Collins was sufficiently impressed with his musicianship to use Weissberg as a session musician on ''Fifth Album'' (1965) and several later albums.
Commercially, interest in acoustic folk groups was waning. Weissberg developed a career as a session musician, playing on albums by
The Clancy Brothers
The Clancy Brothers were an influential Irish folk music group that developed initially as a part of the American folk music revival. Most popular during the 1960s, they were famed for their Aran jumper sweaters and are widely credited with popu ...
,
Doc Watson
Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (March 3, 1923 – May 29, 2012) was an American guitarist, songwriter, and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues, and gospel music. Watson won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. W ...
,
Melanie
Melanie is a feminine given name derived from the Greek μελανία (melania), "blackness" and that from μέλας (melas), meaning "dark".Billy Joel, Frankie Valli,
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
,
Loudon Wainwright III
Loudon Snowden Wainwright III (born September 5, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actor. He has released twenty-six studio albums, four live albums, and six compilations. Some of his best-known songs include "The Swimmin ...
,
Talking Heads
Talking Heads were an American rock band formed in 1975 in New York City and active until 1991.Talki ...
Jim Croce
James Joseph Croce (; January 10, 1943 – September 20, 1973) was an American folk and rock singer-songwriter. Between 1966 and 1973, he released five studio albums and numerous singles. During this period, Croce took a series of odd jobs to p ...
,
Art Garfunkel
Arthur Ira Garfunkel (born November 5, 1941) is an American singer, poet, and actor. He is best known for his partnership with Paul Simon in the folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel.
Highlights of Garfunkel's solo music career include one top-10 h ...
Ronnie Gilbert
Ruth Alice "Ronnie" Gilbert (September 7, 1926 – June 6, 2015), was an American folk singer, songwriter, actress and political activist. She was one of the original members of the music quartet the Weavers, as a contralto with Pete Seeger, Le ...
, and others.
He was well known for playing the banjo solo in " Dueling Banjos", used as the theme in the film ''
Deliverance
''Deliverance'' is a 1972 American survival thriller film produced and directed by John Boorman, and starring Jon Voight, Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, and Ronny Cox, with the latter two making their feature film debuts. The screenplay was adapt ...
'' (1972), produced by
Joe Boyd
Joe Boyd (born August 5, 1942) is an American record producer and writer. He formerly owned Hannibal Records. Boyd has worked on recordings of Pink Floyd, Fairport Convention, Sandy Denny, Richard Thompson, Nick Drake, The Incredible String Ba ...
and directed by John Boorman. It was released later as a single and became a hit; playing on Top 40, AOR, and country stations alike. It reached the Top Ten and hit #2 in the US and Canada."Arthur Smith passes" ''Bluegrass Today'', 4 August 2014, accessed 27 August 2014 The song also won the 1974 Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance.
Weissberg released a related album, called ''Dueling Banjos: From the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack 'Deliverance' '' (1973), which also became a hit. The album was made up mostly of tracks which Weissberg had recorded on ''New Dimensions in Banjo and Bluegrass'' (1963), with Marshall Brickman and
Clarence White
Clarence White (born Clarence Joseph LeBlanc; June 7, 1944 – July 15, 1973) was an American bluegrass and country guitarist and singer. He is best known as a member of the bluegrass ensemble the Kentucky Colonels and the rock band the Byrd ...
. (Also a screenwriter, Brickman later received an
Oscar
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People
* Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms.
* Oscar (Irish mythology) ...
for ''
Annie Hall
''Annie Hall'' is a 1977 American satirical romantic comedy-drama film directed by Woody Allen from a screenplay written by him and Marshall Brickman, and produced by Allen's manager, Charles H. Joffe. The film stars Allen as Alvy Singer, w ...
.'') They removed two tracks from the 1963 album and added the track for "Dueling Banjos," releasing it under the new name. One of the original 1963 tracks on the new album, "Shuckin' The Corn," was later sampled by Beastie Boys on the track "5-Piece Chicken Dinner" from their album ''
Paul's Boutique
''Paul's Boutique'' is the second studio album by American hip hop group Beastie Boys, released on July 25, 1989, by Capitol Records. Produced by the Dust Brothers, the album is composed almost entirely from samples, and was recorded over two ...
''.
Warner Brothers
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
was sued by
Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith
Arthur Smith (April 1, 1921 – April 3, 2014) was an American musician, songwriter, and producer of records, as well as a radio and TV host. Smith produced radio and TV shows; ''The Arthur Smith Show'' was the first nationally syndicated coun ...
, the composer of "Feudin' Banjos", which he had written and recorded in 1955. It was renamed as "Dueling Banjos" in the movie. He won a "substantial settlement,"Joe De Priest, "Charlotte’s Arthur Smith, who wrote ‘Dueling Banjos,’ died Thursday at 93" , '' Charlotte Observer'', 3 April 2014, accessed 27 August 2014 which included appended film credit for the song and a portion of royalties.
Continuing to play folk festivals, Weissberg was nearly as well known in that venue for his dobro guitar as for his bluegrass banjo playing. He also recorded with
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
musicians
Herbie Mann
Herbert Jay Solomon (April 16, 1930 – July 1, 2003), known by his stage name Herbie Mann, was an American jazz flute player and important early practitioner of world music. Early in his career, he also played tenor saxophone and clarinet (inclu ...
Nanci Griffith
Nanci Caroline Griffith (July 6, 1953 – August 13, 2021) was an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. She appeared many times on the PBS music program ''Austin City Limits'' starting in 1985 (season 10). In 1994 she won a Grammy Award f ...
's album, ''Other Voices Too''.
He often toured with Tom Paxton. They frequently played a variant of " Dueling Banjos" in the set, in addition to Paxton's material.
On February 12, 2009, Weissberg performed at the Riverside Church in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
's 200th birthday. Directed by
Maurice Peress
Maurice Peress (March 18, 1930 – December 31, 2017) was an American orchestra conductor, educator and author.
After serving as assistant conductor of the New York Philharmonic under Leonard Bernstein beginning in 1961, Peress went on to stand ...
, they performed Earl Robinson's '' The Lonesome Train: A Music Legend for Actors, Folk Singers, Choirs, and Orchestra,'' in which Weissberg played solo banjo.
On March 22, 2020, Weissberg died at the age of 80 from Alzheimer's disease at a nursing home in
White Lake Township, Michigan
White Lake Charter Township is a charter township of Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Together with its two unincorporated communities, the township makes up part of the Detroit metropolitan area outskirts. As of the 2010 census, th ...
, near
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
.
Discography
Albums
Singles
Partial list of sessions recordings
* '' The Boys Won't Leave the Girls Alone'' (The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem, 1962)
* "Sunny's Gallery of Folk Songs" (Sunny Schwartz, 1963)
* ''Fifth Album'' (Judy Collins, 1965)
* ''Live At Newport (1959–1966)'' (Judy Collins)
* ''Ballads From Deep Gap'' (Doc and Merle Watson, 1967) ′′ Bombs Over Puerto Rico (Jim & Ingrid Croce 1969)
* ''Sweet Moments With The Blue Velvet Band '', Warner Bros. Seven Arts Records WS 1802 (1969 - As member of The Blue Velvet Band, with Bill Keith,
Richard Greene
Richard Marius Joseph Greene (25 August 1918 – 1 June 1985) was a noted English film and television actor. A matinée idol who appeared in more than 40 films, he was perhaps best known for the lead role in the long-running British TV series ' ...
, Jim Rooney)
* ''The Good Book'' (Melanie, 1971)
* ''Barbra Joan Streisand'' (Barbra Streisand, 1971)
* ''Lay It All Out'' (Barry Mann, 1971)
* ''
Aerie
Aerie (a variant of eyrie) is the bird nest of an eagle, falcon, hawk, or other bird of prey.
Aerie may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities
* Aerie (Baldur's Gate), Aerie (''Baldur's Gate''), a character in ''Baldur' ...
'' (John Denver, 1971)
* ''Stoney End'' (Barbra Streisand, 1971)
* '' Poems, Prayers & Promises'' (John Denver, 1971)
* ''Rocky Mountain High'' (John Denver, 1972)
* ''Careful Man'' (Jim Croce 1973)
* ''Portfolio'' (Richie Havens, 1973)
* ''True Stories and Other Dreams'' (Judy Collins, 1973)
* '' Farewell Andromeda'' (John Denver, 1973)
* '' Piano Man'' (Billy Joel, 1973)
* '' Back Home Again'' (John Denver, 1974)
* '' Blood on the Tracks'' (Bob Dylan, 1974)
* ''Judith'' (Judy Collins, 1975)
* ''Free Beer'' (Free Beer, 1975)
* ''Closeup'' (Frankie Valli, 1975)
* ''Sing Children Sing: Songs of the United States of America'' (UNICEF, 1977)
* ''Two Days Away'' (Elkie Brooks, 1977)
* ''Say It in Private'' (Steve Goodman, 1977)
* ''Final Exam'' (Loudon Wainwright III, 1978)
* ''Return of the Wanderer'' (Dion DiMucci, 1978)
* ''None But One'' (Jean Ritchie, 1981)
* ''Chaka Khan'' (Chaka Khan, 1982)
* '' Cabbage Patch Dreams'' (Cabbage Patch Kids, 1984)
* '' Little Creatures'' (Talking Heads, 1985)
* ''The Animals' Christmas'' (Art Garfunkel, Amy Grant, 1986)
* '' The Wanderer'' (Kevin Rowland, 1988)
* ''Rei Momo'' (David Byrne, 1989)
* ''Album III'' (Loudon Wainwright III, 1990)
* ''Heroes'' (Tom Paxton, 1992)
* ''Judy Sings Dylan ... Just Like a Woman'' (Judy Collins, 1993)
* ''Shameless'' (Judy Collins, 1994)
* ''Take The Fifth'' (compilation; Bridget St John, 1995)
* ''Songs from a Parent to a Child'' (Art Garfunkel, 1997)
* ''Other Voices Too'' (Nanci Griffith, 1998)
* ''Bathhouse Betty'' (Bette Midler, 1998)
* ''Live For The Record'' (Tom Paxton, 1999)
* ''Times Like These'' (Rick Danko, 2000)
* ''Cowboy Dreams'' (
Prefab Sprout
Prefab Sprout are an English pop band from Witton Gilbert, County Durham who rose to fame during the 1980s. Formed in 1978 by brothers Paddy and Martin McAloon and joined by vocalist, guitarist and keyboard player Wendy Smith in 1982, they re ...
Brian Keane
Brian Keane (born January 18, 1953) is a multi Emmy and Grammy award-winning American composer, music producer, and guitarist. Keane has been described as "a musician's musician, a composer's composer, and one of the most talented producers of a ...