Maria Muldaur

Folk and blues singer Maria Muldaur was born as Maria Grazia Rosa Domenica D'Amato on September 12, 1943 in Greenwich Village, New York City. At age five, Maria was already singing Kitty Wells' "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels", with her aunt accompanying her on piano. Muldaur became an aficionado of rhythm and blues music in her teen years and formed her own girl group called "The Cashmeres" in high school. She eventually began participating in jam sessions in the Greenwich Village area and joined the band, the Friends of Old Timey Music. Maria traveled to North Carolina and studied bluegrass fiddle with noted folk/country musician Doc Watson. She then returned to New York and became a member of the group, the Even Dozen Jug Band. After that group broke up, Muldaur moved to Boston, Massachusetts and joined the Jim Kweskin Jug Band, where she met her future husband, Geoff Muldaur. After the group disbanded in 1968, Maria and Geoff became a duo and recorded two albums on the Reprise record label. The couple split up both personally and professionally in 1972. Muldaur subsequently embarked on a solo career. In 1974, she scored her biggest and best-known hit with the sultry song, "Midnight at the Oasis", which peaked at #6 on the Billboard pop charts in 1974. The follow-up song, "I'm A Woman", likewise did well. Maria has since gone on to record and release a slew of well-received albums throughout the years. Her 1992 album, "Louisiana Love Call", garnered a wealth of glowing plaudits from critics and was named the "Best Adult Alternative Album of the Year" by the National Association of Independent Record Distributors. Moreover, the 1994 album, "Meet Me at Midnite", was nominated for the W.C. Handy Blues Award while the 2001 album, "Richland Woman Blues", was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album. More recently, Muldaur has specialized in tribute albums which include 2002's "Animal Crackers in My Soup (The Songs of Shirley Temple)", 2003's "A Woman Alone with the Blues (Remembering Peggy Lee)" and 2006's "Heart of Mine: Love Songs of Bob Dylan". Maria Muldaur released her latest album "Yes We Can!" in July, 2008.