.jpg)
Click
Here to Download the above Photo
|

Click
Here to Download the above Photo
|
.jpg)
.jpg)
Uncle
Eddie & Robin
Biography
Uncle
Eddie and Robin, “Not Your Typical Old Folkies”,
are a dynamic and eclectic musical duet with a flair for
the old and a taste for the new. Their energy belies
their age, and the breadth of their life experience makes
for a rich and rewarding musical evening. This
husband-wife team combines guitar, banjo, and their
voices in stunning, tight harmonies on songs that pack a
punch. Their musical chemistry, personality and sound is
unmistakable. They are recent transplants to the Florida
music scene, hailing from West Virginia, and have
performed for decades in the midwest. Imagine: a
bluegrass banjo player, and the daughter of a legendary
jazz musician- it’s unthinkable? Or is it???
Uncle
Eddie's wildly imaginative banjo playing, silky vocals,
and intelligent, witty songwriting make him a joy to
hear. His style incorporates elements of bluegrass and
folk, which he has shaped into a unique and original
blend which he terms, “plunk rock”. West
Virginia’s “Graffiti” Magazine said Ed
has been “…a force in West Virginia music
for over thirty years” and through numerous
appearances on the Wheeling Jamboree, the hard core
traditional bluegrass of the Short Crick Flatpickers, and
the rocked out jams of The Recipe, “He has
respected and preserved the rich musical traditions of
the region while keeping it alive and evolving by taking
it to new and unexpected places.” Not just another
folk 'n bluegrass musician, he applies his velvety
baritone voice to his original material, and has been
known to "rap" along with his more traditional
renditions. His newest collaboration with his wife Robin
has added a new dimension and texture to an already
eclectic musician.
Ed
“Uncle Eddie” Mahonen was born and raised in
a small town in Massachusetts, not your usual breeding
ground for bluegrass music. He began his musical career
in grade school with piano, later moving on to trumpet.
But one night, he found himself at what was then called,
a “hootenanny”, and was instantly drawn to
the call of the banjo. Despite the derision and
snickering of his high school friends and family, Ed
practiced and persevered with his instrument, and has
honed it to the surprising sound you hear today. He is
also accomplished on guitar and bass, and dabbles with
the tuba. His rich velvety baritone voice completes his
presentation in bluegrass, folk, classic rock and other
musical genres. After graduation, he served in the Navy
in San Francisco in the 60’s, where he was
influenced by the singer-songwriters and poets of the
era. Following his discharge, he spent a summer
hitchhiking across Canada and the US, with his banjo
slung across his back. Passing through Wheeling, West
Virginia, he got into a jam session with some locals and
quickly fell into the young progressive bluegrass scene.
Before long, he became a fixture on the local scene, with
the band “West Virginia Grass”. “We
were playing jamgrass in the early 70’s, before the
term had been invented. We were just doing what came
naturally to us.” He also made his first
appearances on the legendary Wheeling Jamboree. This
period culminated with his participation in the band,
“Castlemen’s Run”. Throughout the 80’s,
Ed played traditional bluegrass with Pittsburgh’s
“Beaver Creek” band, and recorded two albums
with them. Ed also toured statewide and regionally for
over 30 years with “The Short Crick Flatpickers”,
one of West Virginia’s premier bluegrass bands. His
easy going demeanor and booming laugh made him a favorite
with Jamboree audiences in the 90’s when he did
solo spots of bluegrass, novelty songs, jokes and funny
stories, and also gave him the nickname "Uncle
Eddie."
Ed
met Robin, appropriately enough, at an open mike jam
night which he hosted in Wheeling. Their chemistry was
immediate. Robin is the daughter of the late Jimmy
Knepper, Grammy nominated and internationally renowned
jazz trombonist, and Maxine Fields Knepper, a strong
independent woman who was already on the road with female
swing bands with her trumpet at the age of 16, well
before anyone had ever coined the term “feminist”.
Robin was listening to music from birth, and has fond
memories of jam sessions lasting late into the night as
she drifted off to sleep as a little girl. Her early
musical influences were shaped by some of the most
notable jazz artists of the day. She played piano at age
8, picked up her first guitar at age 14, and played her
first coffeehouses shortly thereafter. After a brief
hiatus of twenty years from music while she raised her
four children as a single mother, and pursued a career as
a social worker in private practice, she returns to the
music scene with a vengeance. She brings her born and
bred musical ability and her deep understanding of pathos
and the human condition to her every note she sings. Ed
was also associated with the midwest jam band, “The
Recipe”, and his cutting edge explorations and
signature sound clearly comes through on their CD,
“Jubilee”. Bandleader Joe Prichard commented
on Ed’s original song, “One Eye Laugh”,
“Ed was able to say in one song what it took me a
whole album to say.” During this period, he and
Robin became a fixture at summer jam band festivals, and
were much beloved by festival goers who seek them out for
a pat on the back, a shared joke, and, if desired, a
gentle bear hug.
Ed’s
solo work, “My Own Words”, is a compilation
of ten original songs, including the often requested
“West Virginia Farm”, and “Let ‘Em
Eat Cake”, and the amusing, yet socially poignant
“Plain White Rapper”, which leaves audiences
scratching their heads.
As
a duet, Uncle Eddie and Robin have one CD of original
material, titled, "When We're Together”. They
are currently working on their next: "With a Lotta
Help From Our Friends." The tracks range from
straight bluegrass, to country, to a New Age-y sound, and
even to what they call, "chant rapgrass". Ed
uses a variety of different types of banjos and displays
several different banjo styles, and the music is
interwoven and coupled with frequent instrumental guest
artists and even tribal drumming on several tracks.
Stylistically, they are literally all over the map, and
yet they expertly craft their shows to the particular
taste of their venue and their audience.
Uncle
Eddie & Robin were hosts of the longest continuously
running open mike jam night in the upper Ohio Valley.
They also operate a recording studio, ELM Cottage Studio,
out of their home, and are available to help aspiring
young musicians produce their own original music.
Uncle
Eddie and Robin have appeared in the midwest at the
Wheeling Jamboree, Nelson Ledges, the Highland Jam,
Heston Farms, and numerous other local and regional
venues. Since their arrival in Florida, they have
appeared at the Romanza Festivale, Mi Casa and the Mill
Top in St. Augustine, and at the Pioneer Settlement Folk
Festival, and in venues in Crescent Beach, Bradenton, and
Jacksonville.
An
evening with Uncle Eddie and Robin is like sitting down
with old friends. Kick off your shoes, put up your feet,
and open yourself to a musical experience which will make
you laugh and cry, think, and then laugh again.
Instrumentation
"Uncle
Eddie & Robin" Duet
Ed
'Uncle Eddie' Mahonen - Lead and Harmony Vocals,
Guitar,
Banjo
Robin
Mahonen - Lead and Harmony Vocals, Guitar
Discography When
We're Together - Uncle Eddie & Robin My Own Words
- Uncle Eddie
"...the
songs truly connect with the audience. Lyrics really hit
home in many instances, and are often full of wit on one
hand, and reflection on another." ~
CD
Connection,
Review of "When We're together".
"The
title track, a joint Uncle Eddie and Robin songwriting
effort, is packed with humor, yet seldom has a more
touching song striking the true union of two individuals
been written......Listening to the duo is not simply
hearing the music, it is a window into a joining of
souls, of wonderful, salt-of-the-earth souls." ~
R. Scott Stewart,
Wheeling
Rock Depot,
11/14/2008,
Review of "When We're Together"
"Their
sound is rooted in the Appalachian music tradition, but
because of their respective backgrounds, they have a
quite broadened perspective of what that means..... Don't
write the sound off as straight bluegrass or country,
because the Mahonens' veer into the great beyond, to New
Age and what they call 'chant rapgrass.' " ~
Monica Orasz,
The
Charleston Daily Mail,
2/25/2010~
"Duet
Delivers Unique Musical Experience" "One of
the Ohio Valley's most dynamic musical duos brings a
unique mix of ingredients and years of musical
experiences to their act.... The chemistry between Robin
and Ed Mahonen is apparent on many levels. For one, they
are a husband wife team that harnesses decades of their
two distinctive musical backgrounds which cross paths
with their collaboration. They proudly stay grounded in
their roots, and that pride resonates throughout their
new CD, 'When We're Together'...... So what happens when
you bring a quirky seasoned bluegrass man together with a
girl with jazz royalty in her DNA? 'When We're Together'
captures that unique mix..... Regardless of the songs
they play, Uncle Eddie and Robin put their own flavor to
it." ~ Eric Ayres,
Ohio
Times Leader,
Ticket 10/30/08~
"
He
has respected and preserved the rich musical traditions
of the region while keeping it alive and evolving by
taking it to new and unexpected places.
Mahonen's
talents are in music, but he adds just the right amount
of comedy to his songs. Laughter and music make for a
great mix." ~
Graffiti
Magazine~
"Ed
was able to say in one song what it took me a whole album
to say." ~ Joe Prichard of The Recipe
|