Maria Muldaur Trivia Quiz

Answer: New York

Maria was born in the Greenwich Village section of New York. As a teen in the Village Maria began singing with a number of folk and blues artists who would go on to become major recording artists. In the liner notes from a recent album Maria explains that at the age of 17 she ran away from home and wound up taking care of two young girls in exchange for room and board while a senior in high school.

She spent hours exploring the collection of original blues and jazz recordings at the home. She relates "God must have sent me to that family because on those shelves was all the great American music I would end up loving and exploring my whole life!" She also became interested in the girl groups coming onto the sixties scene and formed her own group called The Cashmeres while still in high school.

Answer: Even Dozen Jug Band

The Even Dozen Jug Band was founded in 1963 by Stefan Grossman, a country blues and ragtime guitarist and Peter Siegel in New York. Other members were David Grisman on mandolin, Steve Katz, Joshua Rifkin and John Sebastian. The Even Dozen Jug Band was only together for a short time.

In January 1964 their only recording "The Even Dozen Jug Band" was issued on the Elektra label. They made a couple of television appearances and performed several times in concert, including two appearances at Carnegie Hall.

She is credited as Maria D'Amato with the band. Dirdy Birdies Jug Band and Blue Ribbon Jug Band are bands currently performing in New York. The Brotherhood of the Jug Band Blues plays in the New York City Subways as a part of the "Music Under New York" program.

Answer: Jim Kweskin Jug Band

The two performed in the Jim Kweskin Jug Band along with Fritz Richmond and Mel Lyman. The band worked steadily in the Boston area throughout the sixties and recorded several albums on the Reprise label. Maria and Geoff had a daughter they named Jennie.

When the group disbanded in 1968 they remained with Reprise and recorded two albums as a duo, "Pottery Pie" and "Sweet Potatoes". They relocated to Woodstock, New York, and became part of a music scene that included Bob Dylan, The Band, Paul Butterfield, Janis Joplin's Full Tilt Boogie Band and many other artists.

It was also around that time that Maria met legendary blues singer Victoria Spivey. Victoria taught Maria the finer points of blues singing and performing. Mother Mcree's Uptown Jug Champions was a San Francisco based band.

The 12th Street Stompers and Bill Carney's Jug Addicts are recent New York bands.

Answer: Maria Muldaur

On a visit to New York City Maria connected with Mo Ostin, the president of Reprise Records. Upon learning that she and Geoff were no longer together Ostin offered Maria the chance to make her first solo album. "Maria Muldaur" went platinum in two years. Four albums followed including her acclaimed second disc, "Waitress in a Donut Shop", which contained her hit single, "I'm A Woman", originally recorded by Peggy Lee.

Some of the legendary artists on her Reprise recordings include Dr. John, Ry Cooder, Paul Butterfield, Lowell George, Linda Ronstadt, Stevie Wonder, Jr. Walker, James Booker, Benny Carter, J.J. Cale, Kenny Burrell, Doc Watson and Hoagy Carmichael just to name a few. "Sweet Harmony" was released in 1976 and "Southern Winds" came out in 1978 on Warner.

Answer: Maria Muldaur

"Midnight at the Oasis" was written by David Nichtern and tells about a desert love affair set in old Arabia. It was a single from her first album, "Maria Muldaur". "Midnight at the Oasis" features an instrumental bridge that is particularly memorable due to the electric guitar solo of Amos Garrett. David Nichtern plays acoustic guitar on the song and David Grisman from the disbanded Even Dozen Jug Band performs mandolin on the album. Maria's daughter Jenny appears in the photograph credits. "Meet Me At Midnite" is a 1994 release on the Black Top label. "Open Your Eyes" was released in 1979 on the Warner label.

Answer: The Jerry Garcia Band

The Jerry Garcia Band was one of Jerry's side projects that he maintained off and on until his death. The 1977-1978 lineup included John Kahn on bass, Keith Godchaux playing piano, Donna Godchaux and Maria on vocals and Buzz Buchanan on drums. Jerry Garcia covered many Bob Dylan songs with the Jerry Garcia Band and emphasized musical improvisation. During Garcia's lifetime the Jerry Garcia Band released one studio album, "Cats Under the Stars".

A live album, "Jerry Garcia Band", was released before he died and several more live albums were released posthumously. Melvin Seals became band leader following Garcia's death and changed the band's name to JGB.

The Holy Modal Rounders were a folk music duo from the Lower East Side. The Fugs is a band formed in New York City in 1965 by poets Ed Sanders and Tuli Kupferberg. Garcia co-founded the New Riders of the Purple Sage with John Dawson and David Nelson.

Answer: A circus dinner theater

Teatro ZinZanni is a circus dinner theater that began in 1998 in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood in Seattle. It has since expanded to San Francisco's historic waterfront at Pier 29 on The Embarcadero. It is a blend of European cabaret, circus arts, restaurants and vaudeville performed in a Belgian style mirror tent. Singers who have performed regularly in addition to Maria include Joan Baez, Yamil Borges, Martha Davis of the rock group The Motels, El Vez, Frank Ferrante, Geoff Hoyle, Sally Kellerman, Liliane Montevecchi, Thelma Houston and Ann Wilson of the rock group Heart. Teatro ZinZanni has produced two CDs, "The Divas" and "Omnium".

In 1989 Muldaur appeared on "Super Jam", the live recording of the German TV series "Villa Fantastica".

Answer: Fiddle

Maria discovered bluegrass and the music of the American rural south before she was even a part of the Even Dozen Jug Band. These influences inspired Maria to sing, learn how to play the fiddle and perform. While still in Greenwich Village Maria became involved with The Friends of Old Timey Music, a group of people who traveled to the rural South to find legendary artists like Doc Watson, Bukka White, Skip James and Mississippi John Hurt and present them in concert to urban audiences.

In preparation for the Even Dozen Jug Band's recording Maria and the band members listened to hundreds of old blues and jug band 78RPM LPs.

Answer: Heart Of Mine

On November 9, 2006, "Heart Of Mine" reached number one on the Billboard Blues Chart. Maria recorded the album on the Telarc label. Maria focuses on love songs written by Dylan. Maria's "Sweet Lovin' Ol' Soul" album was nominated for a 2005 Grammy for Best Traditional Blues Album as well as a Handy 2006 Blues Music Award for Acoustic Album of the Year. Maria herself was nominated for Traditional Blues Female Artist of the Year.

The "Naughty, Bawdy & Blue" CD made it to number four on the Billboard Blues Chart. Bonnie Raitt appears on "Naughty, Bawdy & Blue" with Maria on "Separation Blues", written by Sippie Wallace. Bonnie toured with Sippie in the seventies. Both Maria and Bonnie had an opportunity to sing with Sippie prior to her death in 1986.

A trip to Memphis Minnie's grave in Walls, Mississippi, inspired her 2000 release "Richland Woman Blues" for Stony Plain Records. Maria reunites with guitar player Amos Garret from "Midnight at the Oasis" performing a Leadbelly tune on the CD.

Answer: No Direction Home

Some of Maria's recollections of Dylan in the sixties in New York appear in the 2005 Dylan documentary film "No Direction Home". Joan Baez and Suze Rotolo also appear along with a host of the sixties folk music vanguard recalling the folk movement of the Greenwich Village sixties.

There is also a black and white clip of a young Muldaur performing "Big Fat Woman Blues". "Don't Look Back" is a 1967 documentary of Dylan on tour. "Masked & Anonymous" is a 2003 movie featuring Bob Dylan as a singer released from prison and exploited by a ruthless concert promoter played by John Goodman. "Hearts of Fire" is a 1987 movie pairing Dylan and Fiona.

A long-time children's music advocate, Muldaur has just recorded her third children's album for the Music for Little People label. "Animal Crackers In My Soup" has Maria performing songs made popular by Shirley Temple.