A revered session player who mastered several instruments, Eric Weissberg was born August 16, 1939 in Brooklyn. In the mid 1950s, Weissberg fell in with a group of like-minded folk musicians who performed in Washington Square Park every Sunday night, often playing banjo. He joined The Tarriers, who recorded “The Banana Boat Song”, which became a defining hit for Harry Belafonte. The Tarriers worked as the opening act for Judy Collins in the mid 60s, and Collins took note of Weissberg’s skills and hired him as a session player. In this capacity, Weissberg would record with a variety of folk, rock, and county acts including but not limited to Bob Dylan, Billy Joel, John Denver, and Jim Croce. His lone trip to the top of the charts as a solo performer came in 1973 when he recorded the soundtrack for the movie Deliverance. Driven by the instrumental track “Dueling Banjos”, an unexpected number 2 pop hit that earned Weisssberg a Golden Globe nomination, the soundtrack album, which consisted primarily of tracks Weissberg had recorded for an album nearly a decade earlier, went to number 1. He continues to be a sought after session musician appearing on albums by Bob Dylan, Louden Wainwright III, Talking Heads, and numerous albums for one of his original collaborators, Judy Collins. He passed away from complications from Alzheimer’s on March 22, 2020.
