Ebony Hillbillies
As I turned the corner I heard rich twangy music - it sounded as if The Band had come back one more time. No - not the singing - but the mixture of violin, banjo, bass - there’s also a fourth guy playing washboard - and I’m not kidding they were fantastic. I bought two CDs from them. (Oh, that’s their name, The Ebony Hillbillies).
BTW, I am picking up quite a collection of subway CDs as I go about this semi-project. A ton of Peruvian sort of music; this and that; and now these guys. Man - they made a ton of money while they were there and brought so many smiles to people who couldn’t quite believe how great they were.
Music has meant so much in my life. I started playing the 5 string banjo (which is what you see here) when I was 15. I’d go down to the Village for lessons and eventually got to the point where I could do Cripple Creek and that sort of “hillbilly” music. Raw country music - or whatever you want to call it - that was my favorite back then. I would like to have been born in Texas (not really) and spent my life wearing a cowboy hat and traveling through the Ozarks. But that was not to be.
Take my word for it - these guys are the real thing - wherever they’re from. At any rate you know the Banjo player has been at it for a while by the way the skin is worn down (a la Willie Nelson).
Museland »
Comments
Comment from dave beckerman
Time: March 7, 2008, 2:03 pm
Mitch - they’ve got a couple of CDs out. I saw one on Amazon.com; but my iTunes Store is sort of funky right now; anyway - the one I bought is called, I Thought You Knew. It’s shrink wrapped; and I haven’t even opened it and stuck it in the CD player yet; still futzing with their photos. BTW, the image on the CD cover is awful. Maybe I’ll see if they want one of my shots instead.
Comment from MitchK
Time: March 7, 2008, 7:28 pm
Thanks, Dave. It just dawned me that your title, “Ebony Hillbillies”, is the name of their group.
With a quick assistance from Google, I think I found their home page: http://eh.singersauce.com/
You can buy the “I Thought You Knew” CD via their site.
PS - More so-so photos on their website. Some of yours would definitely do them justice!
Comment from kat
Time: March 11, 2008, 11:10 pm
great website. i stumbled upon it, and due to my interest in photography and my residence in new york city, i stuck around. i took some photography courses at suny purchase (in westchester county) a while ago, doing black & white prints, but i haven’t had the time or means to keep developing. you’ve got some fantastic photos and good taste in music. (levon helm from the band is my uncle, so i’m a bit partial.) keep up the great work!
Comment from dave beckerman
Time: March 11, 2008, 11:33 pm
Kat — Levon Helm is your uncle! He’s one of the few musical idols I have. Glad to see his recent tour went so well. DB
Comment from kat
Time: March 17, 2008, 2:50 pm
your work is definitely great–i’ll try to show it to him sometime. 
Comment from MitchK
Time: March 7, 2008, 1:14 pm
Beautiful tones, both monochromatic and auditory! I could tell they were as good as you say, even before you said it, just by looking at the observers’ faces.
But - more to the point - I want a copy of their CD! What’s the name of their group? I’m hoping their stuff is available for purchase online.