ARTIE TRAUM PASSES AT THE AGE OF 65
Artie Traum 1943-2008
Artie Traum passed away at his home in Woodstock, New York on Sunday afternoon. He had battled cancer for the last several years. His family reported that he was not in any appreciable pain and he saw it through “with remarkable acceptance and enormous dignity.”
Artie was an award winning songwriter, guitarist, producer and in his later years – a filmmaker. Along with Happy, Artie co-hosted “Bring It On Home,” a live radio revue that was broadcast on WAMC in Albany, NY. Artie also produced recordings of The Woodstock Mountains Revue, a group that featured himself, Happy, Pat Alger, John Sebastian, Maria Muldaur, Rory Block, Eric Andersen, Paul Butterfield and Paul Siebel as well as some other guests over the years.
I met Artie only a couple of times, the first time was back in the early 80’s when I interviewed the Woodstock Mountains Revue for my radio program, and the last time was at the Old Songs Festival a couple of years ago when he did set with Christopher Shaw and Tom Akstens. I will remember his warm smile and great sense of humor, and of course – his amazing musicianship. He gave us some great music and inspired others to use the roots of American music to create their own distinctive styles.
A remembrance page has been created on his website – http://www.artietraum.com/at_remembrances.html .
He was born in the Bronx but as a young adult he became part of the Greenwich Village folk scene as well as New York’s vibrant jazz world. Artie accompanied many artists and by 1969 he was performing with his brother Happy Traum. With harmony that only brothers can create, the duo recorded a number of critically acclaimed albums in the 1970’s and were part of the vanguard of the new acoustic music scene that grew from the seeds of the folk revival.
Artie was an award winning songwriter, guitarist, producer and in his later years – a filmmaker. Along with Happy, Artie co-hosted “Bring It On Home,” a live radio revue that was broadcast on WAMC in Albany, NY. Artie also produced recordings of The Woodstock Mountains Revue, a group that featured himself, Happy, Pat Alger, John Sebastian, Maria Muldaur, Rory Block, Eric Andersen, Paul Butterfield and Paul Siebel as well as some other guests over the years.
I met Artie only a couple of times, the first time was back in the early 80’s when I interviewed the Woodstock Mountains Revue for my radio program, and the last time was at the Old Songs Festival a couple of years ago when he did set with Christopher Shaw and Tom Akstens. I will remember his warm smile and great sense of humor, and of course – his amazing musicianship. He gave us some great music and inspired others to use the roots of American music to create their own distinctive styles.
A remembrance page has been created on his website – http://www.artietraum.com/at_remembrances.html .