Eric Von Schmidt

File:EricVonSchmidt.jpg

Eric Von Schmidt on the cover of Tomato CD 2053

Eric Von Schmidt was born May 28 1931 and passed away on February 2, 2007. He was a singer-songwriter associated with the folk/blues revival of the 1960s and a key part of the East Coast folk scene [1] that included Bob Dylan[2] and Joan Baez. His music continues to live through the many recordings of his songs, including the interpretations of Travis MacRae and the late Jeff Buckley. He is considered an important influence on Tom Rush.[3] He was honored in 2000 with the ASCAP Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award [4], at an event [5] which featured a reunion of the Jim Kweskin Jug Band including Fritz Richmond.

Von Schmidt is probably best known by non-musicians for the song Baby, Let Me Follow You Down, which was for years a staple of Dylan's musical catalogue, and for which Dylan's label, Columbia Records, listed Von schmidt as author; however, Von Schmidt says he didn't actually write it [6]. Within the wider musical community, Von Schmidt is well-known, both in the U.S. and abroad, for his contributions to dozens and dozens of albums, despite most of his albums being out of print; see the extensive discography by Stefan Wirz of Germany [7]. he is especially well known, almost legendary, within the folk music circuit [8]. He is widely credited[9], along with Rush, for reviving and arranging the most-widely-performed version of the traditional song Wasn't That A Mighty Storm about the 1900 hurricane that destroyed Galveston, Texas.

Von Schmidt was also a painter and prolific illustrator, and has done the cover art not only for many books, but for a large number of other musicians' albums [10], including for Baez. Von Schmidt painted up until his death, and recently completed an epic mural of the battle of The Alamo. A man of many talents, he also co-authored a book entitled Baby, Let Me Follow You Down[11] and made at least one short film.

Eric Von Schmidt's father was Harold Von Schmidt, a former painter for the Saturday Evening Post. His father is known for his western landscapes. The artwork of both Harold and Eric can be seen at [[12]].

Sadly, we bid farewell to Eric von Schmidt, who passed away on February 2, 2007 at the age of 75. He had been struggling to regain his health after a stroke (August 2006) and died peacefully in his sleep.

External links

• The Band website
• bobdylanroots.com
• Alan Lewis, New England Music Scrapbook
• The World's Hippest Geezers
• Illustrated Eric Von Schmidt discography
• Interview with Eric Von Schmidt
• Wasn't That A Mighty Storm lyrics
• Richard & Mimi Fariña's Home Page
• Official Site of Harold and Eric Von Schmidt
• Baby Let Me Follow You Down on Amazon.com