Ramsay Midwood is an

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

-based American singer-songwriter and actor. His voice has been likened to

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer, songwriter, and composer widely considered to be one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American Left, A ...

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter. Most of his music contains themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially songs from the later stages of his career. ...

John Prine John Edward Prine (; October 10, 1946 – April 7, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter of country-folk music. Widely cited as one of the most influential songwriters of his generation, Prine was known for his signature blend of humoro ...

, and

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American Rock music, rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Nicknamed "the Boss", Springsteen has released 21 studio albums spanning six decades; most of his albums feature th ...

, his lyrical imagery to

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on society's underworld and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He began in the American folk music, fo ...

, and his raw blues music to

John Lee Hooker John Lee Hooker (August 22, 1912 or 1917 – June 21, 2001) was an American blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist. The son of a sharecropper, he rose to prominence performing an electric guitar-style adaptation of Delta blues that he develo ...

Biography

Midwood born in

Woodstock, New York Woodstock is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Ulster County, New York, United States, in the northern part of the county, northwest of Kingston, New York, Kingston. It lies within the borders of the Catskill Park. The popula ...

and raised in Arlington, Virginia, a suburb of

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

His father, novelist Bart Midwood who also wrote for

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman ...

, and his mother, painter Susan Kellogg, encouraged his musical interests. After graduating from

James Madison University James Madison University (JMU, Madison, or James Madison) is a public university, public research university in Harrisonburg, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1908, the institution was renamed in 1938 in honor of the fourth president of the ...

in 1987, Midwood moved to Chicago and acted with the

Steppenwolf Theater Company Steppenwolf Theatre Company is a Chicago theater company founded in 1974 by Terry Kinney, Jeff Perry (American actor), Jeff Perry, and Gary Sinise in the Immaculate Conception grade school in Highland Park, Illinois and is now located in Chica ...

in a production of ''

The Grapes of Wrath ''The Grapes of Wrath'' is an American realist novel written by John Steinbeck and published in 1939. The book won the National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize for fiction, and it was cited prominently when Steinbeck was awarded the Nobel Prize ...

'', playing both Al Joad and Floyd Knowles. Midwood moved to Los Angeles, where he met guitarist

Randy Weeks Randy Weeks is an American singer and songwriter. Lucinda Williams (who covered Weeks' song " Can't Let Go") has said: "Randy Weeks writes amazingly well crafted, beautifully melodic songs and delivers them with his own brand of laid back vocals ...

(Lonesome Strangers) who would co-produce Midwood's first album. Midwood and Weeks started the band Waynesboro. He is also an actor and appeared in several films and television series during the 90s. He was also one of the original creators of the Slamdance Film Festival. After a film he starred in Joe's Rotten World was ignored by Sundance he joined forces with several other talented film makers and they started their own Festival Slamdance. In 1998, Midwood recorded his debut album ''Shoot Out at the OK Chinese Restaurant''. While driving to Arkansas to perform at the

Jimmy Driftwood James Corbitt Morris (June 20, 1907 – July 12, 1998), known professionally as Jimmy Driftwood or Jimmie Driftwood, was an American folk music, folk-style songwriter and musician, most famous for his songs "The Battle of New Orleans (song), ...

Tribute show Ramsay got a call from

Glitterhouse Records Glitterhouse Records is a German independent record label and mail order company based in Beverungen, North Rhine-Westphalia. It was founded in the mid-1980s. From the late 1980s until the mid-1990s it was the European branch of the American la ...

a German Label and artist manager Gary Waldman wanting to release the record. It was initially released in Germany. Guest artists included Randy Weeks (guitar, banjo, harmonica, drums), Josh Grange (guitar), Brantley Kearns (fiddle), Skip Edwards (accordion, piano, organ), Rami Jaffe (accordion, organ), Matt Margucci (trumpet), Donny McGough (piano, organ), Kip Boardman (piano, bass),

Sheldon Gomberg Sheldon Gomberg is an American record producer, audio engineer and bassist, who has worked with many artists including Ben Harper, Charlie Musselwhite, Warren Zevon, Rickie Lee Jones, Ryan Adams, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Five for Fighting, Mandy Moo ...

(bass),

Don Heffington Don Heffington (December 20, 1950March 24, 2021) was an American drummer, percussionist, and songwriter. He was a founding member of the Los Angeles alternative country band Lone Justice, which he performed with from 1982 to 1985. Heffington was ...

, Kevin Jarvis, and Nelson Bragg (drums). The album was released in the United States with a slightly different set of songs in November 2002 by

Vanguard Records Vanguard Recording Society is an American record label set up in 1950 by brothers Maynard and Seymour Solomon in New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the so ...

. By then, Midwood had moved to Austin after his Los Angeles apt building burned down, he began playing at venues such as Sam’s Town Point, Hole in the Wall and The White Horse. Midwood released ''Popular Delusions and the Madness of Cows'' on his own label Farmwire Music label in 2006. Don Heffington produced and played drums. Others helping out included David Jackson (bass), Kip Boardman (bass, piano), David Vaught (bass), Randy Weeks (guitar, banjo), Jake Labotz (guitar),

Greg Leisz Gregory Brian Leisz ( ; born September 18, 1949) is an American musician. He is a songwriter, recording artist, and producer. He plays guitar, dobro, mandolin, banjo, lap steel and pedal steel guitar. Biography Leisz grew up in the garage ba ...

(lap steel guitar, mandolin), Danny McGough (organ), Phil Parlapiano (organ, accordion), and Jon Birdsong (tuba). In 2011, Midwood released ''Larry Buys a Lighter'', self-released on Farmwire and produced by Midwood and Weeks. Other musicians were

Radoslav Lorković Radoslav Lorković (born September 3, 1958) is a Croatian-born and classically trained folk and blues musician, known in particular for his flair on the piano and accordion. He has six solo studio recordings, three live albums and has recorded a ...

(accordion), Joey Thompson (bass, piano), Mark Hays (drums), Seth Gibbs (drums, bass), Wayne Chojo Jacques (fiddle), Kevin Russell (mandolin),

Tony Scalzo Tony Scalzo (born May 6, 1964) is an American rock musician and songwriter best known as the lead singer of the band Fastball. Early and personal life Tony Scalzo was born in Hawaii to a mother from Arizona and an Italian-American father from N ...

(organ), and Justin Sherburn (organ, piano).

Discography

Solo albums

* 2000: ''Shoot Out at the OK Chinese Restaurant'' ( Glitterhouse) released in the U.S. by

Vanguard The vanguard (sometimes abbreviated to van and also called the advance guard) is the leading part of an advancing military formation. It has a number of functions, including seeking out the enemy and securing ground in advance of the main force. ...

) in 2002. * 2006: Popular Delusions & The Madness of Cows (Farmwire) * 2011: Larry Buys a Lighter (Farmwire) * 2024: Manchaca Eyeball (Live from Sam's Town Point) (Farmwire)

Also appears on

* 2000: Randy Weeks - ''Madeline'' ( Hightone) * 2007:

The Gourds The Gourds are an American alternative country band that formed in Austin, Texas, during the summer of 1994. After playing together for 19 consecutive years, the band went on hiatus in 2013. Career Primarily evolving from the Picket Line Coyote ...

- ''Noble Creatures'' (

Yep Roc Yep Roc Records is an American independent record label based in Hillsborough, North Carolina, and owned by Redeye Distribution. Since 1997, the label has released albums from North Carolina and international artists, including Fountains of Wayne ...

) * 2012: Tex Smith - ''A Wayfarer's Lament'' (self-released) * 2015: various artists - ''Cold and Bitter Tears: The Songs of Ted Hawkins'' (Eight 30) - track 11, "My Last Goodbye"

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Midwood, Ramsay Living people Year of birth missing (living people) American male singer-songwriters