The Mayor of MacDougal Street [2013 edition]: A Memoir

. In the course of his forty-year career, Dave Van Ronk recorded more than two dozen albums, toured on four continents, was nominated for two Grammys, and received an ASCAP Lifetime Achievement Award. Coauthor Elijah Wald wrote the acclaimed study of the myth, music, and life of blues legend Robert Johnson, "Escaping the Delta." He also wrote the biography "Josh White: Society Blues" as well

Dada Vedaprajinananda said It far exceeded my expectations. I knew that I would be interested in Van Ronk's memoir just because of its subject matter: the folk music revival and the Greenwich Village scene that produced Bob Dylan and other famous musicians. What I didn't expect was that Dave Van Ronk and his co-author would write a book that is both witty and deep in its analysis of both musical and so. "Van Ronk embodies the personality of Greenwich Village. This is the best book on the folk music scene from the 50's to 60's." according to Jerbear. This is the best book on the Greenwich Village folk music scene. Van Ronk embodies the personality of the village, and he gives you a thorough account of the development of the scene from the early 50's to the late 60's. There's tons of little tidbits of history and stories about the scene. Van Ronk was at the center of it all-- he helped intr. "Informative" according to Madra Rua. Dave Van Ronk was one of the main musicians behind the emergence of the Folk explosion in Greenwich village in the early 1960's.However, this book brings you back to his childhood and his first entrance into the music scene as a jazz player, His movement from blues and then onto folk music is an interesting and educational story, giving deep i

"Slate, " 12/2/13 Your best guide when it comes to Inside Llewyn Davisapart from what follows, of courseis Van Ronk s posthumous memoir, "The Mayor of MacDougal Street." "New York Times," 11/30/13 A sharp cantankerous memoir. Woody Guthrie; Joan Baez; Pete Seeger; Richie Havens; Bob Dylan, Peter, Paul and Mary; plus dozens more, they all live and breathe within these pagesOne of folk s unsung heroes, Van Ronk mixes poetry and revolution, rolled into a posthumously released autobiography as much a history of the Village, and the folk venues that made it famous, as the life story of its Mayor. NewYorker, 9/30/13 "A wonderful memoir.""Slate, " 12/2/13 "Your best guide when it comes to Inside Llewyn Davis--apart from what follows, of course--is Van Ronk's posthumous mem

A pioneer of modern acoustic blues, a fine songwriter and arranger, a powerful singer, and one of the most influential guitarists of the '60s, he was also a marvelous storyteller, a peerless musical historian, and one of the most quotable figures on the Village scene.Featuring encounters with young stars-to-be like Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell, The Mayor of MacDougal Street is a vivid evocation of a singular time and place--a feast not only for fans of folk music and blues, but for anyone interested in the music, politics, and spirit of a revolutionary period in American culture.. Dave Van Ronk (1936-2002) was one of the founding figures of the 1960s folk revival, but he was far more than that