Eric Weissberg, Apr. 20, 2007, New York City (accompanying Tom Paxton)
Photo by Frank Beacham
In 1973 — 50 years ago — Eric Weissberg and Steve Mandell began a three-week run at #1 on the U.S. album chart with “Dueling Banjos,” from the 1972 film, Deliverance.
Weissberg was a banjo player and multi-instrumentalist. He went to the University of Wisconsin–Madison and then to the Juilliard School of Music. He joined an early version of the Greenbriar Boys (1958–59), but left before they made any recordings. He then joined The Tarriers, replacing Erik Darling.
The Tarriers had a hit with "Banana Boat Song," though Harry Belafonte had the bigger hit soon afterwards.
At first, Weissberg was taken on as a string-bass player, but the group soon made use of his multi-instrumental talents as banjo player, fiddler, guitarist, mandolin player and singer.
At this time, he was still a student at Juilliard. His first album with The Tarriers, Tell The World About This (1960), has a much rougher feel than the smoothly-produced sound of The Weavers or The Kingston Trio.
In 1964, he had to do one year of duty with the National Guard, but on returning, the group re-formed.
In 1965, the group accompanied Judy Collins on a tour of Poland and Russia, but disbanded soon after. Judy Collins was sufficiently impressed to use him as a session musician on Fifth Album (1965) and several later albums.
Commercially, interest in acoustic folk groups was waning, so Weissberg began his successful career as a session musician, playing on albums by The Clancy Brothers, Doc Watson, Melanie, Billy Joel, Bob Dylan, Loudon Wainwright III, Talking Heads, Tom Paxton, Jim Croce, Art Garfunkel, John Denver, Ronnie Gilbert and others.
He is remembered for the hit single, "Dueling Banjos," the theme from the film Deliverance, produced by Joe Boyd and directed by John Boorman. There was also a hit album called Dueling Banjos: From the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack 'Deliverance' in 1973, but the album was not all it seemed to be.
Back in 1963, Weissberg had recorded an album called New Dimensions in Banjo and Bluegrass with Marshall Brickman (a writer who later received an Oscar for Annie Hall) and Clarence White (who later joined The Byrds.)
The 1963 album was dragged out of the archives, and two tracks were removed. In their place was the hit single, and thus a new album was born. One of the original tracks, "Shuckin' The Corn" was later sampled by Beastie Boys.
Weissberg was almost as well known for his dobro guitar as for his bluegrass banjo playing. He has also recorded with jazz musicians Herbie Mann and Bob James. In 1998, he joined Richard Thompson and dozens of other folk musicians on Nanci Griffith's album, Other Voices Too.
In recent years, he toured with Tom Paxton. They often played a variant of "Dueling Banjos" in the set, in addition to Paxton's material.
On February 12, 2009, Weissberg joined the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College orchestra and chorus, along with the Riverside Inspirational Choir and NYC Labor Choir, in honoring Abraham Lincoln's 200th birthday at the Riverside Church in New York City.
Under the direction of Maurice Peress, they performed Earl Robinson's "The Lonesome Train: A Music Legend for Actors, Folk Singers, Choirs and Orchestra" in which Weissberg was the banjo player.
On March 22, 2020, Weissberg died at the age of 80 from Alzheimer's disease at a nursing home in White Lake Township, Michigan, near Detroit.