Ramblin' Jack Elliott (born Elliot Charles Adnopoz; August 1, 1931) is an American folk singer and songwriter.

Life and career

Elliott was born in 1931 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 New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, United States, the son of Florence (Rieger) and Abraham Adnopoz, an eminent doctor. His family was

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

. He attended Midwood High School in Brooklyn and graduated in 1949. Elliott grew up inspired by the

rodeo Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working vaq ...

s at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylv ...

, and wanted to be a cowboy. Encouraged instead to follow his father's example and become a surgeon, Elliott rebelled, running away from home at the age of 15 to join Col. Jim Eskew's Rodeo, the only rodeo east of the Mississippi. They traveled throughout the Mid-Atlantic states and New England. He was with them for only three months before his parents tracked him down and had him sent home, but Elliott was exposed to his first singing cowboy, Brahmer Rogers, a rodeo clown who played guitar and five-string banjo, sang songs, and recited poetry. Back home, Elliott taught himself guitar and started

busking Street performance or busking is the act of performing in public places for gratuities. In many countries, the rewards are generally in the form of money but other gratuities such as food, drink or gifts may be given. Street performance is pr ...

for a living. Eventually he got together with

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspire ...

and stayed with him as an admirer and student. With banjo player

Derroll Adams Derroll Adams (November 27, 1925 – February 6, 2000) was an American folk musician. Biography He was born Derroll Lewis Thompson in Portland, Oregon, United States. At 16, he served in the Army, but was discharged when his true age of 16 was ...

, he toured the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

and Europe. By 1960, he had recorded three folk albums for the UK

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the pr ...

Topic Records Topic Records is a British folk music label, which played a major role in the second British folk revival. It began as an offshoot of the Workers' Music Association in 1939, making it the oldest independent record label in the world.M. Brocken, ...

. In London, he played small clubs and pubs by day and West End

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dinin ...

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gen ...

s at night. When he returned to the States, Elliott found he had become renowned in American folk music circles. Woody Guthrie had the greatest influence on Elliott. Guthrie's son, Arlo, said that because of Woody's

illness A disease is a particular abnormal condition that negatively affects the structure or function of all or part of an organism, and that is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical conditions that a ...

and early death, Arlo never really got to know him, but learned his father's songs and performing style from Elliott and, according to Arlo, Woody Guthrie once said that Jack Elliot "Sounds more like me than I do

Elliott's guitar and his mastery of Guthrie's material had a big impact on

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 ...

when he lived in Minneapolis. When he reached New York, Dylan was sometimes referred to as the 'son' of Jack Elliott, because Elliott had a way of introducing Dylan's songs with the words: "Here's a song from my son, Bob Dylan." Dylan rose to prominence as a songwriter; Elliott continued as an interpretative troubadour, bringing old songs to new audiences in his idiosyncratic manner. Elliott also influenced

Phil Ochs Philip David Ochs (; December 19, 1940 – April 9, 1976) was an American songwriter and protest singer (or, as he preferred, a topical singer). Ochs was known for his sharp wit, sardonic humor, political activism, often alliterative lyrics, and ...

, and played guitar and sang harmony on Ochs' cover of the song "Joe Hill" from the '' Tape from California'' album. Elliott also discovered singer-songwriter Guthrie Thomas in a bar in Northern California in 1973, bringing Thomas to Hollywood where Thomas' music career began. Elliott appeared in Dylan's 1975-1976 Rolling Thunder Revue concert tour, and played "Longheno de Castro" in Dylan's movie '' Renaldo and Clara'' accompanied by guitarist Arlen Roth. In the movie, he sings the song "South Coast" by Lillian Bos Ross and Sam Eskin, from whose lyric the character's name is derived. Elliott also appears briefly in the 1983 film '' Breathless,'' starring

Richard Gere Richard Tiffany Gere ( ; born August 31, 1949) is an American actor. He began in films in the 1970s, playing a supporting role in '' Looking for Mr. Goodbar'' (1977) and a starring role in ''Days of Heaven'' (1978). He came to prominence with ...

and directed by Jim McBride. Elliott plays guitar in both a traditional flatpicking style and a traditional fingerpicking style, depending on the song, which he matches with his laconic, humorous storytelling, often accompanying himself on

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica in ...

. His singing has a strained, nasal quality which the young Bob Dylan emulated. His repertoire includes American traditional music from various genres, including

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whi ...

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the ...

, bluegrass and folk. Elliott's nickname comes not from his traveling habits, but rather the countless stories he relates before answering the simplest of questions. Folk singer Odetta claimed that her mother gave him the name, remarking, "Oh, Jack Elliott, yeah, he can sure ramble on!" His authenticity as a folksy, down-to-earth country boy, despite being a Jewish doctor's son from Brooklyn, and his disdain for other folk singers, were parodied by the Folksmen (

Christopher Guest Christopher Haden-Guest, 5th Baron Haden-Guest (born February 5, 1948) is an American-British screenwriter, composer, musician, director, actor, and comedian. Guest is most widely known in Hollywood for having written, directed, and starred in h ...

Michael McKean Michael John McKean (; born October 17, 1947) is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, composer, singer, and musician known for various roles in film and television such as Lenny Kosnowski in ''Laverne & Shirley'', David St. Hubbins in ''T ...

, and

Harry Shearer Harry Julius Shearer (born December 23, 1943) is an American actor, comedian, writer, musician, radio host, director and producer. Born in Los Angeles, California, Shearer began his career as a child actor. From 1969 to 1976, Shearer was a member ...

) in the satirical documentary ''

A Mighty Wind ''A Mighty Wind'' is a 2003 American mockumentary comedy film about a folk music reunion concert in which three folk bands reunite for a television performance for the first time in decades. Co-written (with Eugene Levy), directed, and compo ...

'' in the name of their "hit" album ''Ramblin'.'' ''A Mighty Wind'' also referred to a former member of the New Main Street Singers, Ramblin' Sandy Pitnick, a somewhat geeky-looking white man in a cowboy hat, apparently in parody of Elliott. Elliott's first recording in many years, ''South Coast'', earned him his first

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

in 1995. He was awarded the

National Medal of Arts The National Medal of Arts is an award and title created by the United States Congress in 1984, for the purpose of honoring artists and patrons of the arts. A prestigious American honor, it is the highest honor given to artists and arts patrons ...

in 1998. His long career and strained relationship with his daughter Aiyana were chronicled in her 2000 film documentary, ''The Ballad of Ramblin' Jack''. At the age of 75, he changed labels and released '' I Stand Alone'' on the

ANTI- Anti- is an American record label founded in 1999 as a sister label to Epitaph Records. While Epitaph's focus has mostly been on punk rock, Anti-'s roster includes gospel (Mavis Staples), country (Merle Haggard), hip hop ( Sage Francis, The C ...

label, with an assortment of guest backup players including members of Wilco, X, and the

Red Hot Chili Peppers Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates elements of alternative rock, funk ...

. The album was produced by Ian Brennan. Jack said his intention was to title the album ''Not for the Tourists'', because it was recorded partially in response to his daughter's request for songs he loved but never played in concert. When asked why he did not, he told her, "These songs are not for the tourists." In 2012 he was featured on the song "Double Lifetime" on the album '' Older Than My Old Man Now'' by Loudon Wainwright III. Elliott appeared with the Ramblin' Jackernacle Choir, adding vocals, yodels, hollers, to Bob Weir's 2016

solo album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...

'' Blue Mountain'', on the track "Ki-Yi Bossie".

Discography

Studio

*1956: '' Woody Guthrie's Blues'' *1957: '' Jack Elliot Sings'' *1958: '' Jack Takes the Floor'' *1959: '' Ramblin' Jack Elliott in London''

EMI Records EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company of the same name in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succ ...

*1960: '' Ramblin' Jack Elliott Sings Songs by Woody Guthrie and Jimmie Rodgers'' *1960: '' Jack Elliott Sings the Songs of Woody Guthrie'' *1961: '' Songs to Grow On by Woody Guthrie, Sung by Jack Elliott'' (

Folkways Records Folkways Records was a record label founded by Moses Asch that documented folk, world, and children's music. It was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution in 1987 and is now part of Smithsonian Folkways. History The Folkways Records & Service ...

) *1961: '' Ramblin' Jack Elliott'' ( Prestige/Folklore) *1962: ''

Country Style Country Style Food Services, Inc., formerly Country Style Donuts, is a fast/casual chain of coffee shops operating primarily in the Canadian province of Ontario (where it ranks second among coffee chains), which serves oatmeal, soup, sandwiches, ...

'' ( Prestige/Folklore) *1964: '' Jack Elliott'' (

Vanguard The vanguard (also called the advance guard) is the leading part of an advancing military formation. It has a number of functions, including seeking out the enemy and securing ground in advance of the main force. History The vanguard derives f ...

) *1968: ''

Young Brigham ''Young Brigham'' is an album by American folk musician Ramblin' Jack Elliott, released in 1968. History ''Young Brigham'' was Elliott's first major-label release on the Reprise label. The liner notes were written by his friend Johnny Cash. The ...

'' ( Reprise) *1970: '' Bull Durham Sacks & Railroad Tracks'' ( Reprise) *1981: '' Kerouac's Last Dream'' (Folk Freak/re-release by Conträr Musik, Germany) *1995: ''

South Coast South Coast is a name often given to coastal areas to the south of a geographical region or major metropolitan area. Geographical Australia *South Coast (New South Wales), the coast of New South Wales, Australia, south of Sydney * South Coast (Q ...

'' ( Red House) *1998: '' Friends of Mine'' ( HighTone) *1999: '' The Long Ride'' ( HighTone) *2006: '' I Stand Alone'' (

) *2009: '' A Stranger Here'' (

)

Live

*1957: '' The Lost Topic Tapes: Isle of Wight 1957'' *1962: '' Jack Elliott at the Second Fret''

With Derroll Adams

*1958: ''

The Rambling Boys ''The Rambling Boys'' is an album by American folk musicians Ramblin' Jack Elliott and Derroll Adams, released in 1958 in England. Background Elliott had been performing in England with some success. He and his wife June invited Adams to join t ...

'' *1963: ''Roll On Buddy'' *1969: ''Folkland Songs'' *1969: ''Riding in Folkland'' *1975: ''America''

Compilations

*1963: '' Talking Woody Guthrie'' (Topic) *1964: ''Muleskinner'' (Topic) *1976: '' The Essential Ramblin' Jack Elliott'' (Vanguard) *1989: ''Hard Travelin''' (reissue of ''Jack Elliott Sings the Songs of Woody Guthrie'' and ''Ramblin' Jack Elliott'') *1989: ''Talking Dust Bowl: The Best of Ramblin' Jack Elliott'' *1990: ''Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Spider John Koerner, U. Utah Phillips: Legends of Folk'' (Red House) *1990: ''Jack Elliott Plus / Jack Elliott'' *1995: ''Me and Bobby McGee'' (reissue of ''Young Brigham'' and ''Bull Durham Sacks & Railroad Tracks'') *1995: ''Jack Elliott: Ramblin' Jack, The Legendary Topic Masters'' *1999: ''Ramblin' Jack Elliott: Early Sessions'' *2000: '' Best of the Vanguard Years'' *2004: '' The Lost Topic Tapes: Cowes Harbour 1957'' *2004: '' The Lost Topic Tapes: Isle of Wight 1957'' *2007: '' Vanguard Visionaries'' Additionally, '' Three Score and Ten'', Topic Records' 70th-anniversary boxed set released in 2009, included "Talking Dustbowl Blues" from ''Woody Guthrie's Blues'' as track twelve on the seventh CD.

References

External links

*
Illustrated Ramblin' Jack Elliott discography
*
Anti- Records page featuring Jack's 2006 "I Stand Alone" CD.

Ramblin' Jack Elliott Discography
at

Smithsonian Folkways Smithsonian Folkways is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution. It is a part of the Smithsonian's Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, located at Capital Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. The label was fo ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elliott, Ramblin Jack American street performers American country singer-songwriters American folk singers American harmonica players American male singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from New York (state) Grammy Award winners Jewish American musicians United States National Medal of Arts recipients 1931 births Living people Jewish folk singers American folk guitarists American country guitarists American acoustic guitarists American male guitarists Guitarists from New York (state) 20th-century American guitarists Country musicians from New York (state) 20th-century American male musicians Red House Records artists 21st-century American Jews Anti- (record label) artists