Eric Drew Feldman
Eric Drew Feldman | |
---|---|
Birth name | Eric Drew Feldman[1] |
Also known as | Black Jew Kitabu |
Born | [1] Los Angeles, California | April 16, 1955
Instrument(s) | Piano, keyboards, bass, optigan, mellotron, minimoog, backing vocals, drums |
Years active | 1976 - present |
Eric Drew Feldman (born April 16, 1955) is an American musician. Feldman has worked with
Biography
In the 1970s, Feldman studied at
The Magic Band (1976 - 1982)
When Feldman joined Captain Beefheart's Magic Band in 1976 as keyboardist and bassist, he was already an experienced musician. Like other members of the band, Feldman was expected to capture (on tape or notepad) Beefheart's musical ideas. Once instrumental parts had been created, the band members had to play them exactly as composed: "I never had a problem with that. I felt like I was getting parts dictated to me from one of the best, especially when they were designed for me. You just feel like a model in a fashion show wearing a really nice dress, I guess." During his time in the Magic Band, he was also given a nickname by Don, Black Jew Kitabu. Feldman worked on the acclaimed trio of Beefheart albums in the late 1970s and early 1980s - Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller) (1978), Doc at the Radar Station (1980), and Ice Cream for Crow (1982).
Snakefinger's Vestal Virgins (1982 - 1987)
Feldman first became aware of Snakefinger and The Residents in 1979 whilst living in Los Angeles. He was given a mixtape (likely the compilation album Nibbles) which featured The Spot by Snakefinger and Ship's A Going Down by The Residents, which he became interested in. Shortly afterwards he moved to San Francisco, just four blocks away from the Ralph Records headquarters. Aware of the address' significance, Feldman visited out of curiosity. The Residents were familiar with Feldman's work with Captain Beefheart and, although he came to work with The Residents, introduced him to Snakefinger. Having produced Snakefinger's first two albums, The Residents wanted Snakefinger to branch out, and saw Feldman as the perfect collaborator.[3] Feldman worked with Snakefinger on two studio albums before his death in 1987.
In May 1984, Feldman collaborated with Steve LeGrand of the band Times Beach to compose and perform the score to Sam Shepard's The Tooth of Crime in an acclaimed production at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre.
Pere Ubu (1988 - 1991)
After working with
Black Francis (1991 - 1994)
Feldman met
In 1994, after two Frank Black albums, Feldman applied for a job with
While in Australia touring with Frank Black, he met the Australian band Custard. He recorded two albums with them in the U.S.: Wisenheimer (1995) and We Have the Technology (1996).
In 1996, he produced
Through the 1990s Feldman continued to tour on and off with
On April 25, 2008, Feldman performed live with Black Francis at the
In 2013, Feldman mixed and played keyboards on Matthew Edwards and the Unfortunates album The Fates and single Minotaur. He also played keyboards on their album Folklore (2017).[5]
The Residents (2002 - 2003, 2015 - Present)
In 2002, Feldman was invited to replace founding member and keyboardist Hardy Fox on The Residents' Demons Dance Alone tour, to which he accepted. They had asked to work with him on one previous occasion, but had to pass due to scheduling conflicts.[3] The Demons Dance Alone tour lasted from October 2002 to September 2003.[6] Following the tour, Feldman was not invited back to play with the group, due to it being more cost-efficient to keep Fox as the on stage keyboardist.[3]
Twelve years later, in 2015, Hardy had decided to retire from The Residents for good. In reaction to this, the group invited Feldman to replace him.[3] Feldman has performed on The Residents' Shadowland (2015 - 2016), In Between Dreams (2017 - 2019), and God In Three Persons (2019 - 2020) live shows, and has produced three albums by the group, The Ghost of Hope (2017), Intruders (2018) and Metal Meat & Bone (2020)
References
Mike Barnes, "The Sideman's Saga", The Wire, December 1996
- ^ a b California Births, 1905 - 1995, Eric Drew Feldman
- ^ "The Goose Tatums band". www.heidiclare.com. Retrieved 2020-01-27.
- ^ a b c d Interview with Feldman, 2019
- ^ "Pixies - Space (I Believe In) Lyrics | SongMeanings". SongMeanings. Retrieved 2017-05-31.
- ^ "Eric Drew Feldman aka Black Jew Kitabu". beefheart.com. 2012-09-27. Retrieved 2023-12-02.
- ^ "Demons Dance Alone - Historical - The Residents". residents.com. Retrieved 2020-12-04.