Happy and Artie Traum

Happy and Artie Traum (1969)





















Eric Kaz:
Happy and Artie Traum have been my friends since 1964. We all grew up in New York City which was the center of a folk music revival in the 1960's and we all learned the same songs and the same guitar styles from the same records and concerts that influenced us for the rest of our lives. These people included the great southern bluesmen like Son House and Skip James, folk singers like Woody Guthrie and Country artists like Bill Monroe. Artie soon became one of the best guitarists around. He work a lot in the '60s playing guitar for popular folk singers in clubs and concerts in Greenwich Village and many times he would ask me to accompany them on harmonica.
　In the mid 60's many folk singers started to write songs and add drums and bass to their music and so did we. Happy and Artie started their own folk-rock band and asked me to join and it was called The Children of Paradise. We wrote our own songs and played electric guitars. The band made one record which was not a commercial success and we broke up.　Happy and Artie went on to make a record of their own in Nashville, which I played on. By then, we were all living in Woodstock, New York which became home to an exciting music community which included Van Morrison, The Band, Dylan and many, many others. From Woodstock, the brothers continued to write and record and tour - and still do.
　I always thought that the songs Artie wrote were as interesting and unique as Paul Simon’s work, for example. When Happy and Artie sing together, their vocal harmonies and the "blend" of their voices are as good as it gets, like the Everly Brothers. Happy has earned his place in folk music history by working with folk music icons like Pete Seeger and Artie has extended his guitar virtuosity on many solo projects recently. But their work on this CD reminds me of the best folk and folk-blues and traditional material that Happy and Artie have always adapted so successfully for as long as I have known them.


Happy Traum: Vocals, Acoustic Guitar
Artie Traum: Vocals, Acoustic Guitar
Michael Esposite: Bass
Eric Kaz: Harmonica, Piano, Organ
Jerry Carigan: Drums
Buddy Spicher: Fiddle
Bob(Thompson: Dobro
Weldon Myrick: Pedal Steel
Wayne Butler: Sax
Ken Lauber: Piano
Ken Buttrey: Drums
Ferrell Morris: Percussion
Tracy Nelson: Vocal


Tracks:
01. Rabbit's Luck (Artie Traum)
02. Farmers Almanac (Artie Traum)
03. Going Down To See Bessie (Rick Danko & Robbie Robertson)
04. Mama, It's Such A Long Ride Home (Happy Traum)
05. Misty Dreams (Happy Traum)
06. State Line (Artie Traum)
07. Uncle Jedd Say (Billy Batson)
08. The Hungry Dogs Of New Mexico (Artie Traum)
09. Brave Wolf (Artie Traum)
10. Trials Of Jonathan (Happy Traum & Artie Traum)
11. Golden Bird (Happy Traum)

DL


Thanks to Pelolo for this one.