Eddie From Ohio

Emerging in 1991, this quartet specializing in folk-rock originated in the Washington, D.C. region and its suburban Virginia surroundings. Their jazzy yet roots-infused style of folk-rock quickly endeared them to audiences at folk festivals across the circuit. Growth of adult album alternative stations throughout the 1990s helped expand their reach, while broad crossover appeal kept them from being pigeonholed strictly as a folk outfit.

Julie Murphy handles vocals, Robbie Schaefer plays guitar and sings, Eddie Hartness contributes percussion and vocals, and Michael Clem covers guitar, bass, harp, and vocals. Longtime friends Schaefer and Clem assembled the acoustic rock trio in northern Virginia by bringing in Murphy, whom they knew from high school choir days, then added Hartness shortly afterward to supply distinctive percussion. Within a year Clem and Murphy had quit their day jobs, and crowds began building for the group’s weekly Tuesday-night residency at Bad Habits Grille in Arlington, Virginia. The name Eddie From Ohio originated when Hartness’s girlfriend began referring to him that way, borrowing the moniker from eD fROMOHIO of the disbanded band fIREHOSE.

Though their neo-folk and folk-rock sound has drawn comparisons to 10,000 Maniacs, the Indigo Girls, Crosby, Stills and Nash, and Shawn Colvin, the band’s eclectic mix of bluegrass, folk, calypso, jazz, acoustic blues, and pop-rock melodies has attracted a following among well-educated listeners. Clem and Schaefer list Bruce Cockburn, Lyle Lovett, and Shawn Colvin among their influences, while Hartness leans toward alternative rock acts such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Pearl Jam; Murphy, meanwhile, absorbed 1940s jazz growing up, particularly Billie Holiday and the music of the Gershwins.

Over its first six years the group performed at festivals stretching from New York to Colorado and issued four albums on its own Virginia Soul Records imprint. The 1997 release Big Noise marked the fourth of those albums, following I Rode Fido Home in 1995, Actually Not in 1993, and A Juggler On His Blades in 1992.