Cliff Eberhardt
is an American folk singer/songwriter who currently lives in the Pioneer Valley, in Massachusetts. His songs have been covered by Richie Havens, Buffy St. Marie, Erasure, Lucy Kaplansky and Cry Cry Cry. His albums have appeared on Shanachie Records, Windham Hill, and Red House Records.
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CLIFF EBERHARDT TICKETS
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Biography
Cliff Eberhardt knew by age seven that he was going to be a singer and songwriter. As a child Cliff taught himself to play guitar, piano, bass, and drums. In his teens Eberhardt was fortunate enough to live close to one of the best folk clubs on the East Coast, the Main Point. He cut his teeth listening to the likes of
James Taylor,
Joni Mitchell,
Bruce Springsteen,
Howlin' Wolf,
Muddy Waters,
Bonnie Raitt, and
Mississippi John Hurt. At the same time, he was listening to great pop songwriters like
Cole Porter,
Ira Gershwin and
George Gershwin, and
Rodgers and Hart, which explain his appetite for great melodies and clever lyrical twists.
At fifteen, Cliff and his brother Geoff began touring as an acoustic duo, playing the Eastern club circuit until Cliff turned twenty-one and moved to Carbondale, Illinois. There he developed his own voice within a vibrant, supportive music scene that included
Shawn Colvin. After a couple of years there and a short stay in Colorado, Cliff moved to New York in 1978.
Because the clubs were great (the Bitter End, the Speakeasy, Kenny’s Castaway, Folk City) and the company amazing (
John Gorka,
Suzanne Vega,
Lucy Kaplansky,
Julie Gold,
Steve Forbert,
Christine Lavin, and
Shawn Colvin), New York was an ideal musician’s boot camp. Though he put in long hours as a taxi driver, Cliff worked steadily on his music throughout the 80’s, doing solo gigs and studio work, and playing guitar on the road with
Richie Havens, Melanie (
Melanie Safka) and others. Singing advertising jingles for products like Coke, Miller Beer and Chevrolet (“The Heartbeat of America”) let him to devote more time to songwriting.
In 1989 Cliff’s song "My Father’s Shoes", appeared on
Windham Hill’s
Legacy
collection, leading to a deal with the label. Windham Hill released Cliff’s first album,
The Long Road
(1990), which featured a duet with
Richie Havens. The critical response to this debut was outstanding. He followed with two more records on Windham Hill before releasing
12 Songs of Good and Evil
(1997)
[1] on
Red House Records, which stemmed from a chance meeting with Red House founder Bob Feldman at
John Gorka’s wedding. Since then, Cliff has released three albums on the label. His latest, done after a serious autombile accident,
The High Above and the Down Below
, was recorded in Minneapolis with noted jazz players
Gordon Johnson, J. T. Bates, and
Richard Dworsky.
Long one of the most respected songwriters on the club scene, Cliff's peers often mine his catalog for themselves. His song "Memphis" was included on
Cry Cry Cry
, an album of collaborative covers by the "folk supergroup" of the same name (comprised of
Dar Williams,
Lucy Kaplansky and
Richard Shindell). Other performers who have recorded his songs include
Richie Havens,
Shawn Colvin,
Russ Taff, and
Buffy Sainte Marie. A collection of his songs has been published in
The Cliff Eberhardt Songbook
(Cherry Lane Publishing)
[2].
Like a lot of folk artists, Cliff Eberhardt is a singer-songwriter who schleps an acoustic guitar or two around the country for a living. Just don't expect him to sing about trains or rivers, or much other standard folk fare.
[3]
Discography
- The Long Road
(1990)
- Now You Are My Home
(1993)
- Mona Lisa Café
(1995)
- 12 Songs of Good And Evil
(1997)
- Borders
(1999)
- School For Love
(2002)
- The High Above and the Down Below
(2007)
References
- Red House Records
- Biblio Books
- The Washington Times