Rita Abrams

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Rita Abrams
Born (1943-08-30) August 30, 1943 (age 80)
OriginCleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s)Musician, songwriter
Instrument(s)
  • Guitar
  • piano
  • vocals
Years active1970–present
Labels
Websiteritaabrams.com

Rita Abrams (born August 30, 1943) is an American songwriter, performer and writer. Her song "

Marin County
, California.

Life and career

She was born in

Simmons College in Boston, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English literature from the University of Michigan. Boston University granted her a fellowship for a Masters Program in Special Education, after which she taught for two years in Boston. There, she also started to write verse and song lyrics, and sang with the Three Faces of Eve, an all-girl rock and roll band.[1][2][3]

In 1968, she moved to California and secured a teaching post at

Warner Bros. Records where the label management "guys in suits stood up and gave it a standing ovation".[1][4] Released in June 1970 on the Reprise label, the record reached #90 on the Billboard pop chart and #5 on the Easy Listening (Now Billboard Adult Contemporary) chart. [5] Promotional photos of the singers were taken by Annie Leibovitz, and Abrams appeared on several networked TV shows and in national magazines, while also turning down an opportunity to advertise Jell-O. A performance for the Mill Valley Fourth of July celebration was filmed by Francis Ford Coppola.[6] The follow-up single, "Buildin' a Heaven on Earth", was written by singer/songwriter Norman Greenbaum.[7]

Following the success of "Mill Valley", Abrams, Jacobsen and the children recorded and released an album, entitled Miss Abrams and the Strawberry Point 4th Grade Class as the children had by then moved up a grade.[6] According to reviewer Greg Adams, "Only the most hard-hearted cynic could find no enjoyment in this minor masterpiece of early-'70s soft pop."[7]

Abrams then left teaching to pursue a career in music and verse writing, which subsequently included children's records and novelty songs, many in collaboration with

Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus, and a show about life in Marin County, For Whom The Bridge Tolls.[8]

She remained a resident of Mill Valley at least until 2014, when it was reported that she was moving out of the area.[9]

Discography

Singles

  • "Mill Valley" / "Happiest Day of My Life", Reprise 0928, US #90, US AC #5, 1970
  • "Buildin' A Heaven on Earth" / "This Time of Life", Reprise 0971, 1970[10]
  • "Wonder" / "Floating Away", A&M 1263, 1971
  • "Green Grass" / "Sweet Summertime", Reprise 1098, 1972
  • "I Never Asked" / "Wonder", Reprise 1136, 1972
  • "America (Let's Get Started Again)" / "Running in the Green Grass", Reprise 1322, 1975

Albums

  • Miss Abrams and the Strawberry Point 4th Grade Class, Reprise MS 2098, 1972[11]

References

  1. ^ a b c Biography at official website
  2. ^ Music information at official website
  3. ^ Marin County Genealogy – Oral Histories
  4. ^ a b Edward Guthmann, Songwriter Abrams' Heart Is Still in Mill Valley, August 1, 1999, SFGate.com
  5. ISBN 0-89820-155-1
    .
  6. ^ a b Tom McMahon, The 1970 Hit Song Mill Valley, by Miss Abrams and the Strawberry Point 4th Grade Class
  7. ^ a b Album review by Greg Adams at Allmusic
  8. ^ Beth Ashley, "Bridge" still tolls for, and pokes at, Marin, Marin Independent Journal, 25 December 2008
  9. ^ Vicki Larsen, "'Mill Valley' songwriter Rita Abrams can't afford to live in city she loves", marinij.com, April 18, 2014. Retrieved 31 January 2020
  10. ^ Reprise singles discography
  11. ^ Reprise album discography

External links

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