Psssssttttt…Do you know Cliff Eberhardt’s music?   If so, yeah.  You know all about how cool he is.  If not, come on folks, give a listen.  This guy is the real deal.  More real than most.  He is one of the grittiest (is that word?), most authentic, most gut-wrenching songwriters you’ll ever hear in your entire life.  Have I ever steered you wrong?  I don’ think so…..

For a guaranteed sweet song by Cliff.  Check out this beautiful version of “Your Face.”

To learn more about Cliff, refer to his website.

And you have to check out this great trailer about The Taming of the Shrew.

I’m fascinated by your latest addition to your musical resume—writing the songs and singing and performing in a Shakespeare play!  How did your involvement with the Folger Theatre and “Taming of the Shrew” come about? 

A random phone call from the head of the Folger theater

It appears that you were able to insert a couple of songs from earlier albums into the play but you also had to write some original songs too.  How long did it take to immerse yourself fully into the play so that you could accurately portray in music and words what was happening on stage?

I had a year and a half to work on it, and I used all that time working on the music. Then I did rewrites every night during rehearsals.

You received rave reviews.  Did this experience give you the acting bug?

 Well, I’ve always wanted to write music for the theater, I never really wanted to act and that hasn’t changed much. My role in the Shrew was that of a saloon singer. I had no lines.

Was it kind of surreal and strange to work on a play that is scripted and has to be pretty much the same day in and day out rather than your own shows which are totally unscripted (well, at least the in between song banter and the order of the songs)?

I was never bored, I had 67 cues so a lot of timing was involved. It was challenging but also rewarding.

Tell us about your work with James Lee Stanley ahxactly jump to mind.  Was it difficult to transform those songs into acoustically styled songs?

It was easy for us to rearrange the Doors music. It’s no different than arranging our own music after it is written. We had to do it with a lot of respect. We wanted the surviving Doors to like it.

 What was it like working with Robby Krieger and John Densmore?

 Robbie Krieger and John Densmore recorded with James Lee when i wasn’t there. I did get to meet John Dens more when he sat in with us at a show we did in L.A. What a thrill, there is a youtube video of it.

Do you have any new projects up your sleeve?

 I’m working on a pair of albums right now. i don’t know which one I will finish first. But it’s interesting to record two different projects at the same time. I am always looking for something new.

Cliff Eberhardt is appearing with Tracy Grammer at the me&thee in Marblehead, MA on March 1.