Julia Greenberg

Julia Greenberg's musicality is in her blood. Literally; her grandparents were vaudeville performers, so it's truly in her genes. Growing up in New York City also didn't hinder her development. Neither did attending a left-wing summer camp where counselors taught the kids political protest folk songs. Then there were vocal studies at New York's High School of Music and Art intermingled with the early '80s birth of MTV. Not until college did Greenberg catch a break. Attending Wesleyan University, she chose the focus on Russian literature and history and lived in Moscow for a while to perfect the language. How short-lived it was, as Greenberg was coaxed back around and in front of the Cowlicks, a country punk band that played the New York-New England club circuit on weekends. The Cowlicks even made a record which Celtic fiddle hero Johnnie Cunningham produced. Soon after its release, they split up and Greenberg dove into her work as a solo artist. Hooking up with a gang of musicians that included members of Health and Happiness Show, Birdy, and the Other 99, Greenberg and company formed Cropduster Records and began recording and releasing their own work. Past Your Eyes was Greenberg's first offering in 1999. The single "Pitiful You" made Rolling Stone's most-downloaded MP3 chart, just behind Eminem. To support the album, Greenberg made the club rounds and opened for larger acts such as Jill Sobule and Freedy Johnston. ~ Kelly McCartney, Rovi