John Gorka
John Gorka at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival 2004
John Gorka at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival 2004
Background information
Born 1958
Origin Edison, New Jersey, US
Genres Folk
Occupations Songwriter, musician
Instruments Vocals, guitar
Years active 1980's–present
Labels Windham Hill, High Street, Red House
Website www.johngorka.com

John Gorka (born 1958)[1] is a contemporary American folk musician. In 1991, Rolling Stone magazine called him "the preeminent male singer-songwriter of what has been dubbed the New Folk Movement."[2]

Contents

Biography [link]

Gorka received his first guitar as a Christmas gift, though Gorka alleges that his older brother stole it from him shortly thereafter. He eventually learned, instead, to play the banjo, and began performing in a folk music group at his church.

Gorka attended Moravian College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and joined the Razzy Dazzy Spasm Band which would also include guitarist Richard Shindell. He later began performing solo at the Godfrey Daniels coffee house as the opening act for various musicians who toured there. These included Nanci Griffith, Bill Morrissey, Claudia Schmidt and Jack Hardy.

In 1984, Gorka took first place at the Kerrville Folk Festival. Since then he has toured with artists such as Suzanne Vega, Shawn Colvin, Michael Manring, Christine Lavin, Dave Van Ronk, Cliff Eberhardt, David Massengill, Frank Christian and Lucy Kaplansky.

As of 2005, he was residing in the St. Croix Valley area near Saint Paul, Minnesota.

In 2008, Gorka decided to return to Europe for the first time in fourteen years. In October, he played four times in the Netherlands, he played live on VPRO radio and he did a session for the John Gorka video site.

In 2009, Gorka toured in the USA but also in Ireland and the Netherlands. In October, Red House Records released the CD "So Dark You See." Gorka's latest installment is considered a more intimate, vocal and guitar-centered record than the last two.

Discography [link]

Studio albums [link]

Collaboration [link]

EPs [link]

DVD [link]

"Best of" albums [link]

On various artists compilations [link]

References [link]

  1. ^ Henkle, Doug, "FolkLib Index"
  2. ^ Wing, Eliza, Rolling Stone, August 8, 1991, p. 17

External links [link]


https://wn.com/John_Gorka

Podcasts:

John Gorka

ALBUMS

Bright Side of Down

Released 2014

So Dark You See

Released 2009

Writing in the Margins

Released 2006

Old Futures Gone

Released 2003

The Company You Keep

Released 2001

After Yesterday

Released 1998

Between Five and Seven

Released 1996

Out of the Valley

Released 1994

Temporary Road

Released 1992

Jack's Crows

Released 1991

Land of the Bottom Line

Released 1990

I Know

Released 1987
Email this Page Play all in Full Screen Show More Related Videos
PLAYLIST TIME:

The Ballad Of Jamie Bee

by: John Gorka

Jamie ran aground out in Ohio
Wife left for the great unknown
He says he's gonna take to the high road
She will find a place alone
He says he just could not make her happy
That he never tried so hard before
He'd wake up first and make the coffee
Now the mornings were like war
There's a barroom for every way the wind blows
And a harness for every mother's son
You pull your own weight or else it pulls you
It gets harder the longer that you run
Jamie's from the last great breed of roadmen
Woody, Jack, and Kerouac and such
But here was a woman he would die for
Beauty no road could ever touch
The town was nearly famous for the glassworks
The factory where they made hoods for the klan
There's a football hall of famer in the phonebook
There's only trouble for an empty man
There's a barroom for every way the wind blows
And temptation in every substance known
You pull your own weight or else it pulls you
It gets harder the older that you've grown
At home in the harley-ridden poolhalls
I guess it's best they never had those kids
Closer to the outlaws then the in-laws
They said Jamie's heart don't break but I know it did
They said Jamie's heart don't break but I know it did
He will find some refuge in his music
And a long shot that they will reconcile
The meantime is a mean time and he knows it
Til the day he's back upon the pile
Now there's headlights heading from Ohio
And there's teardrops saltier than rain
There's taillights to tell a tale still tender
And a cold wind blowing through the night




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