Full-Length Documentary Film The Songpoet Premiers at Santa Barbara Film Festival
RECORDINGS FEATURE SPECIAL GUESTS JOHN SEBASTIAN, ERIC BAZILIAN, GARTH HUDSON, HAPPY TRAUM, ARTIE TRAUM, INGE ANDERSEN, JOE FLOOD, RICK DANKO, JONAS FJELD, GARY BURKE, & ROBERT AARON
“Eric Andersen is a great ballad singer and writer.” – Bob Dylan
“A singer and songwriter of the first rank.” —The New York Times
Y&T Music will release Eric Andersen’s ‘Woodstock Under the Stars’ 3CD set on June 19, featuring thirty-six tracks (including an introduction track) drawn from concerts and a webcast (live stream), as well as two from studio sessions. Recorded between 1991 and 2011, the performances feature special guests Rick Danko (of The Band), John Sebastian (of The Lovin’ Spoonful), Garth Hudson (of The Band), Eric Bazilian (The Hooters, Dar Williams, Joan Osborne, Taj Mahal), Happy Traum (Bob Dylan), Artie Traum (The Band, James Taylor), Inge Andersen (singer/songwriter, Eric Andersen’s wife and harmony singer), Joe Flood (The Bottle Rockets, Blues Traveler), Jonas Fjeld (Judy Collins, Steve Young), Gary Burke (Bob Dylan, Joe Jackson), and Robert Aaron (Blondie, Wyclef Jean, Willie Nelson, David Bowie). With the exception of three previously released songs and the briefly available (by subscription only) stream, the performances on this compilation were never released to the public.
‘Woodstock Under the Stars’ includes two live versions of six of the same titles recorded at different venues with different musicians accompanying Andersen. It features more recent songs as well as some of his early classics “Thirsty Boots” (which has been recorded by Bob Dylan and Judy Collins), two versions of “Violets of Dawn” (which Leonard Cohen told Andersen had inspired him to write songs himself) and “Close the Door Lightly” (which Johnny Cash & June Carter Cash recorded). Discs two and three come from a 2011 live stream performance; all were recorded in Woodstock, NY except for two Danko/Fjeld/Andersen tracks from the Molde International Jazz Festival in Norway. Andersen reflects, “Living or performing in Woodstock is very special. More than just crossing a musical river, it represents one of America’s great fountains of music.”
‘Woodstock Under the Stars’ is Andersen’s first release since 2018’s ‘The Essential Eric Andersen’ compilation on SONY Legacy / Real Gone. The Songpoet, the full-length documentary film on Andersen’s life and music, premiered at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival in January, just as Paste Magazine posted Eric’s video session: https://www.pastemagazine.com/noisetrade/music/eric-andersen/jan-22-2020-paste-studio-nyc-new-york-ny
Andersen’s songs have been covered by many other artists, including Linda Ronstadt, The Grateful Dead, John Denver, Rick Nelson, Gillian Welch, Pete Seeger, Fairport Convention, and Mary Chapin Carpenter. Andersen’s work has always been at the center of the cultural zeitgeist, from the songwriting circles of 1960s Greenwich Village to recording in Nashville in the 1970s; from appearing on TV’s The Johnny Cash Show to living in the Chelsea Hotel with Patti Smith, Kris Kristofferson, Sam Shepard, and Leonard Cohen; from teaching open tunings to a young Joni Mitchell to having a verbal commitment to join the roster from Beatles’ manager Brian Epstein before his untimely passing; from collaborating musically with Lou Reed, The Grateful Dead (on “Weather Report Suite”), Townes Van Zandt, and Rick Danko to responding to the global rise of fascism with the powerful album opener “Rain Falls Down In Amsterdam.”
All songs written by Eric Andersen except where noted.
Disc One
1. Rain Falls Down in Amsterdam (recorded live in 2001)
2. Sudden Love (recorded live in 2001)
3. Wind and Sand (recorded live in 2001)
4. Lie with Me (recorded live in 2001)
5. Down at the Cantina (recorded live in 2003)
6. Liza Light the Candle (studio track recorded in 2006)
7. Moonchild River Song (recorded live in 2004)
8. Violets of Dawn (recorded live in 2003)
9. Belgian Bar (recorded live in 2003)
10. I Shall Go Unbounded (recorded live in 2001)
11. Salt on Your Skin (recorded live in 2004)
12. The Dolphins (studio track recorded in 2006, written by Fred Neil)
13. Goin’ Gone (recorded live in 2003)
14. Blue River (recorded live in 1991 – performed by Danko/Fjeld/Andersen)
15. Come Runnin’ Like a Friend (recorded live 1991 – performed by Danko/Fjeld/Andersen)
Disc Two (from live stream recorded in 2011)
1. Welcome (Introduction)
2. Rain Falls Down in Amsterdam
3. Dance of Love and Death
4. Is it Really Love at All
5. Eyes of the Immigrant
6. Singin’ Man
7. Mary I’m Comin’ Back Home
8. Buckets of Rain (performed by Happy Traum, written by Bob Dylan)
9. Moonchild River Song
10. Sinking Deeper into You
11. Woman, She Was Gentle
Disc Three (from live stream recorded in 2011)
1. Before Everything Changed
2. Niagara (performed by Joe Flood, written by Joe Flood, Artie Traum, and Jim Weider)
3. Betrayal (written and performed by Inge Andersen)
4. Don’t it Make You Wanna Sing the Blues
5. Blue River
6. Violets of Dawn
7. Goin’ Gone
8. Salt on Your Skin
9. Close the Door Lightly
10. Thirsty Boots
