The death of John Prine following complications brought on by Covid-19 has not just robbed the Americana world of one of its finest talents, it has robbed music more widely of a true original and an inspiration to so many. Giants such as Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and Johnny Cash have all cited Prine as someone whose work they admired. Continue reading “The Song Remains: John Prine 1946-2020”
Category: Obituaries
The Song Remains: Adam Schlesinger 1967 – 2020
Regular and recent readers of this website will have seen from his current posts following Adam Schlesinger’s death on April 1st, from complications with Covid-19, that our esteemed editor is a particular fan of the artist and his band Fountains Of Wayne. In these, he shared his personal feelings on what Adam’s music has meant to him and acknowledging that while they weren’t a country band, Fountains Of Wayne recorded, in his opinion, a great country track with ‘Fire In The Canyon’, which just happens to be his favourite track of all time. Fountains Of Wayne were the most obvious outlet for Adam Schlesinger’s talents as songwriter, with his college friend and lead vocalist Chris Collingwood, producer, bassist and multi-instrumentalist, but they are only part of his rich legacy. Continue reading “The Song Remains: Adam Schlesinger 1967 – 2020”
The Song Remains: Steve Weber 1943-2020
The death of Steve Weber, one half of the fabled Holy Modal Rounders, progenitors of underground then psychedelic and eventually freak-folk has, for the most part gone unnoticed. The Rounders, a guitar, banjo and fiddle duo featuring Weber and co-founder Peter Stampfel, were a bellwether of sorts back in the sixties, blazing trails and opening the doors for acts such as The Lovin’ Spoonful while they became a touchstone for many in the freak-folk movement at the turn of the century. They were irreverent, sometimes obscene, always euphoric, putting the alt in folk and country long before the term was coined. As Rolling Stone called them at one point, they were gonzo traditionalists, they made folk music weird. Continue reading “The Song Remains: Steve Weber 1943-2020”
The Song Remains: Eric Weissberg 1939-2020
To many, Eric Weissberg, who died on March 22nd, 2020, from Alzheimer’s Disease, was a one-hit wonder with ‘Duelling Banjos’ from John Boorman’s 1972 film ‘Deliverance’. However, he was so much more than that, being one of the first young urban musicians to join the ‘50s folk revival, a populariser of bluegrass and the banjo and a major session and touring musician, adept on any stringed instrument including banjo, dobro, guitar, fiddle, mandolin and pedal steel. Continue reading “The Song Remains: Eric Weissberg 1939-2020”
The Song Remains: Eric Taylor 1949-2020
I heard from a colleague, who has contact with associates of Eric Taylor, that he had died on March 9th 2020 following a period of illness. I immediately checked the web for confirmation but there was no surge in posts commenting on his death and then I saw that The Houston Chronicle had announced “Houston loses quintessential folk songwriter, Eric Taylor”. This web response was not suprising given that while Eric Taylor was a Continue reading “The Song Remains: Eric Taylor 1949-2020”
The Song Remains: Chris Darrow 1944-2020
Chris Darrow’s death on 15th January from complications following a stoke received coverage across the American music press reflecting his involvement with some of the most influential artist of the ‘60s and early ‘70s. Recognised by those in the know as one of the architects of west coast country rock and by a wider audience for his founding of Kaleidoscope with David Lindley and his membership of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, his lasting claim to fame was as one of the most sought after studio multi-instrumentalists of the late ’60s and early ’70s. Continue reading “The Song Remains: Chris Darrow 1944-2020”