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.  Honored at the White House in 1998 with a National Medal of Arts for his contribution
to American Folk Music, he was also awarded a Grammy in 1996 for his "South Coast"
recording.  In addition he was also nominated in 1998 and 1999 for the recordings of "Friends
of Mine" and "The Long Ride" (produced by Roy Rogers) which were both nominated for
Grammy's in the Traditional Folk category. This artist doesn't settle for any dust under his feet -

Ramblin' Jack Elliott moves on.

From the early 50's and throughout the great folk era of the 60's and beyond , everyone from
Dylan, Kerouac, Mick Jaggar, Johnny Cash, Jerry Garcia, Gordon Lightfoot, Guy Clark, Lead
Belly, Mahalia Jackson, Mississippi Fred McDowell, Bonnie Raitt, Roger Miller, Sam Shepard,
Tom Waits, Lyle Lovett, Townes Van Zandt, Roger McGuinn, James Dean, Dan Blocker, Kris
Kristofferson , Joan Baez, The Rolling Stones and Bruce Springsteen & many more will have
a story or a moment when they have met or played with Jack over the years.  Many others from
all walks of American artistic life think of Jack as essential to folk music as a guitar.

Born in New York in 1931 as Elliott Charles Adnopoz,  he saw his first rodeo in Madison
Square Garden, became a fan and ran away from home to become a rodeo cowboy.  (He still
has the clipping his parents put in the New York Times when they tried to find him!)  He worked
as a groom at the rodeo for $2 a day at the ripe age of 15.   Jack apprenticed himself to Woody
Guthrie traveling and performing with Woody in his later years.   He remains one of the last true
links to the Guthrie traditions.

Jack's influences were eclectic and broad traveling the world in the early 50's and 60's.  He
credits Elizabeth Cotton for teaching him how to fingerpick having met her in 1952. 

 

Elliott draws from a wealth of charm and sure-footed old style picking that online teaching degrees

for music teachers should bring back."  He is also a moving & amusing teller of tales.  After

decades of recording and making his mark, Ramblin' Jack Elliott is still traveling & performing

worldwide.

Elliott’s daughter, Aiyana Elliott produced “The Ballad of Ramblin’ Jack Elliott”  a full-length
feature documentary that won the Creative Award at Sundance in 2001.  This program airs
regularly on Showtime.

Roy Rogers, slide guitarist and producer (John Lee Hooker) -  who produced the last two Grammy
nominated Elliott recordings is starting a new recording project with Mr. Elliott in 2004.

 

Ramblin' Jack was on this historic tour with Dylan NOW READ what Dylan says about Jack in his new book BOB DYLAN CHRONICLES

"The world that I was heading into...was really the world of Jack Elliott and Joan Baez. Bob Dylan in his book Chronicles "Hearing Jack play, one knows that she/he is listening to the real thing". -Bob Weir (Grateful Dead)

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