David Bromberg, New York City, 2009
Photo by Frank Beacham
David Bromberg is 75 years old today.
A multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter, Bromberg is an eclectic artist — playing bluegrass, blues, folk, jazz, country and western and rock and roll equally well. He is known for his quirky, humorous lyrics and the ability to play rhythm and lead guitar at the same time.
Bromberg has played with many famous musicians, including Jerry Jeff Walker, Willie Nelson, Jorma Kaukonen, Jerry Garcia, Rusty Evans (The Deep) and Bob Dylan.
He co-wrote the song, "The Holdup," with former Beatle George Harrison, who played on Bromberg's self-titled 1972 album.
Bromberg was born in Philadelphia and raised Jewish in Tarrytown, New York. He attended Columbia University in the 1960s, studying guitar with Reverend Gary Davis during that period.
Proficient on fiddle, many styles of acoustic and electric guitar, pedal steel guitar and dobro, Bromberg began releasing albums of his own in the early 1970s on Columbia Records.
His seven-minute rendition of "Mr. Bojangles" from 1972's Demon in Disguise, interspersed with tales about traveling with song author Jerry Jeff Walker, earned Bromberg progressive rock radio airplay.
In 1973, he played mandolin, dobro and electric guitar on Jonathan Edwards' album, Have a Good Time for Me.
Bromberg released his first new studio album since 1990 with Try Me One More Time in 2007 on Appleseed Recordings. The disc includes Dylan's "It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry" and Elizabeth Cotten's "Shake Sugaree."
His 2011 album, Use Me, featured guests Levon Helm, John Hiatt, Tim O'Brien, Dr. John, Keb' Mo', Los Lobos, Widespread Panic, Linda Ronstadt and Vince Gill.
Bromberg currently lives in Wilmington, Delaware, where he and his wife, artist Nancy Josephson, own an extensive violin sales and repair shop, with a partial subsidy from the City of Wilmington, Delaware.
He occasionally performs at Wilmington's Grand Opera House, where he and his wife are major donors, as well as at the new World Cafe Live at the refurbished Queen Theatre.
Here, Bromberg performs “Sloppy Drunk” at the Count Basie Theatre in Red Bank, New Jersey