One of the last true links to the great folk traditions of this country, with over 40 albums under his belt, Ramblin' Jack Elliott is considered one of the country's legendary foundations of folk music.
And you can see him live Thursday night at Songbirds on the Southside at 35 Station Street.
Long before every kid in America wanted to play guitar - before Elvis, Dylan, the Beatles or Led Zeppelin - Ramblin' Jack had picked it up and was passing it along. From Johnny Cash to Tom Waits, Beck to Bonnie Raitt, Ry Cooder to Bruce Springsteen, the Grateful Dead to The Rolling Stones, they all pay homage to Ramblin' Jack Elliott.
In the tradition of roving troubadours Jack has carried the seeds and pollens of story and song for decades from one place to another, from one generation to the next. They are timeless songs that outlast the musical trends of any given day. He wrote one of the first trucking songs-Cup of Coffee-recorded by Johnny Cash, championed the works of new singer-songwriters such as Bob Dylan, Kris Kristofferson and Tim Hardin; and became a founding member of Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue. He continued the life of the traveling troubadour influencing Jerry Jeff Walker, Guy Clark, Tom Russell, The Grateful Dead and countless others.
Ramblin' Jack is a two-time GRAMMY winner, National Medal Of Arts recipient, and in 2016, received a Folk Alliance Lifetime Achievement Award. Featured in the recent Rolling Thunder Revue film by Martin Scorcese and also in the early 2019 PBS release of the Woody Guthrie All Star Tribute Concert Center, Ramblin' Jack is an icon of American roots and folk music.
A lover of storytelling and veteran troubadour style musician, on tour he is in his element and known for telling the tales gathered along his magnificent journey through the roots of Folk, Blues, Americana and Cowboy music and poetry. His permanently enshrined seat at Woody Guthrie Center Theater in Tulsa, OK., sits among other greats, including Lead Belly, Cisco Houston and Pete Seeger.
"Nobody I know—and I mean nobody—has covered more ground and made more friends and sung more songs than the fellow you're about to meet right now. He's got a song and a friend for every mile behind him. Say hello to my good buddy, Ramblin' Jack Elliott."~ Johnny Cash, The Johnny Cash Television Show, 1969.
Ticket info: wl.seetickets.us/event/An-Evening-with-Ramblin-Jack-Elliott/504160