biography
| name: |
Dyer-Bennett, Richard
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| sex:
| male
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| lived:
| (1913–91)
|
| biography:
| Folk musician, born in Leicester, Leicestershire, C England, UK. He went to the USA in 1925, and after studying voice and guitar made his New York City debut (1944) as a performer of mainly Anglo-American ballads. Calling himself a ‘minstrel or troubadour’, he performed in many locales, and foreshadowed the folk-music revival of the 1960s. He eventually had a large repertoire that included everything from African-American spirituals to Schubert's songs. He was the first to admit that he had succeeded ‘in spite of my voice rather than because of it’. He recorded about two dozen albums (many on his own label), composed some 100 songs, and wrote articles and books on music. In 1970 he joined the faculty of New York State University, but a severe stroke in 1972 ended his career as a performer. |
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