Eric Andersen featuring Scarlet Rivera

Eric will be joined by violinist Scarlet Rivera, a veteran of tours with Dylan, and incredibly gifted percussionist Jagoda. Eric will deliver a master class on the art of songwriting, with “Dusty Box Car Wall,” “Violets of Dawn,” “Foghorn” and an amazing “Sinking Deeper Into You."Get yourself set for a treasure trove of intriguing and poetic set of songs and stories. In 2018, Sony/Legacy Recordings issued THE ESSENTIAL ERIC ANDERSEN – a 42-track retrospective release covering fifty years of his recorded history. The double CD and digital download included the important classics which span across all his albums, including his early classics “Thirsty Boots” “Violets of Dawn” and “Close the Door Lightly.” Guests on this career-spanning, 2-disc compilation included Joni Mitchell, David Bromberg, Leon Russell, Joan Baez, Richard Thompson, Rick Danko Phil Ochs and Lou Reed. 

Andersen first came to prominence as a performer in Greenwich Village in the early 1960s and immediately became part of the Village folk and songwriter scene along with Phil Ochs, Tom Paxton, Dave Van Ronk, Bob Dylan, and was at the epicenter of the Greenwich Village singer-songwriter explosion in New York City.

With over 25 albums to his credit, Eric has been making extraordinary music since his early days in the Greenwich Village folk scene. This period produced some of his best known songs including: "Violets of Dawn", "Come to My Bedside", and "Thirsty Boots." His songs have been recorded by Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Judy Collins, Linda Ronstadt, The Grateful Dead and many others.

Andersen was seemingly involved in every scene of counter-cultural significance, even as his songwriting bona fides mounted over the course of twenty-plus albums: seeing Buddy Holly, Elvis Presley, and The Everly Brothers in concert as a kid outside Buffalo, NY; spotting John and Jackie Kennedy leaving a church in southern Massachusetts; playing and trading songs in Greenwich Village in 1964; opening for John Lee Hooker upon his arrival to NYC; meeting beat poets in San Francisco at City Lights bookstore and seeing them read the night JFK died; working to register black voters in Liberty, MS in 1965; being on the managerial roster of Brian Epstein (until his untimely death); starring with Edie Sedgwick in an Andy Warhol movie called Space; showing Joni Mitchell open G and D modal tunings on the guitar; playing on the legendary Festival Express (event and film) alongside The Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, The Band, and Buddy Guy; recording in Nashville in the early ‘70s; being introduced to Cash by Dylan at Newport Folk Fest in 1964 and later appearing on TV’s The Johnny Cash Show; opening for The Doors, Elton John, and The Byrds; living in the Chelsea Hotel in the 1970s alongside Kris Kristofferson, Sam Shepard, and Leonard Cohen; moving to Woodstock in the mid-70s; playing on the first two shows of Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Revue tour; co-writing with Townes Van Zandt and Lou Reed; moving to Norway and then the Netherlands; and singing with Rick Danko in the trio Danko/Fjeld/Andersen.

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Scarlet Rivera burned a hole in the fabric of rock history with her pioneering electrified violin sound. Based in classical roots, Ms. Rivera was bending the capabilities of current accepted norms by playing all styles of music. From the Jazz of Ornette Coleman to the robust innovation of a violin amid a 17 piece Cuban band, Scarlet was a revolutionary at the start, an iconoclast of 70’s rock sound. Her discovery by Bob Dylan in 1975 set in motion the tapestry of a new sound and era. Leading the way for strong female voices in instrumentation and paving the highway for the acceptance of strings in rock music. Bob Dylan recognized the genius of Ms. Rivera and her unique vision and use of violin much like a lead guitar. Their first collaboration was the legendary 1976 album ‘Desire’, and the rest is history! Scarlet Rivera enjoys an honored place among the world’s most prominent, active and versatile violinists. She is known for her contributions to countless recordings and performances of the most influential artists of our time. She played a pivotal role as a member of Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue and 4 additional multi-platinum albums. Scarlet continued her journey of expression and creativity while performing with such treasured legends as Indigo Girls, Tracy Chapman, Eric Andersen, Keb 'Mo, Peter Maffay, David Johansen and Sylvia Tyson of ‘Ian and Sylvia’, and five time Grammy winner Cindy Cashdollar. Ms. Rivera’s abilities are wide ranging and have enjoyed the spotlight in music’s most hallowed Carnegie Hall with The Duke Ellington Orchestra as well as The Kennedy Center, and the Carnival of Venice, Italy.