John Prine

This is the 78th post in our Musician of the Day series.



John Prine was born in 1946 in Illinois. John began playing guitar at the age of 14 when his brother began teaching him. He did not immediately start into a career in music instead he worked as a postman and joined the army.

It was in the 1960s that he first began performing at open mic nights when he was challenged by another performer who said "You Think you can do better?" It was while performing at an open mic night that he was heard by Roger Ebert who wrote the first review that John ever received. Ebert called him a great songwriter. Spurred on by positive reviews and fans John became a central figure in the folk revival of Chicago.

In 1971, John released his first album which was self-titled. The album received a number of positive reviews and some even called him the next Dylan. This may have been what prompted Dylan to attend one of his club shows and anonymously back him up on harmonica.

John released another album the following year entitled Diamonds in the Rough. This album was vastly different from the first in that it was not commercial and had more of a bluegrass feel. His following albums spurred some popular hits such as "Grandpa was a Carpenter" and "Dear Abby."

During this time John also began writing songs for other artists with his good friend Steve Goodman. A number of these albums gained success for their singers and John and Steve began to make a reputation for themselves.

Throughout the 80s John continued to release albums and he formed his own label called Oh Boy Records.

In 1991 he won a Grammy for his album The Missing Years. The title song of the track recalls what Jesus did in those unrecorded years between childhood and entering the ministry.

He has since be inducted to the Nashville songwriters Hall of Fame and been given a Lifetime Achievement Award by the UK's BBC Radio 2.

His most recent album Standard Songs for Average People was released in 2007.

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