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{{Short description|American singer-songwriter (born 1958)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2015}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2015}}
{{Infobox musical artist
{{Infobox musical artist
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| years_active = 1980s–present
| years_active = 1980s–present
| label = [[Windham Hill Records|Windham Hill]], [[High Street Records|High Street]], [[Red House Records|Red House]]
| label = [[Windham Hill Records|Windham Hill]], [[High Street Records|High Street]], [[Red House Records|Red House]]
| associated_acts = [[Red Horse (collaboration)|Red Horse]]
| website = {{URL|www.johngorka.com}}
| website = {{URL|www.johngorka.com}}
}}
}}
'''John Gorka''' (born July 27, 1958) is a contemporary American folk musician.<ref>Henkle, Doug, [http://www.folklib.net/index/discog/birth2days.shtml "FolkLib Index"]</ref> In 1991, ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' magazine called him "the preeminent male singer-songwriter of what has been dubbed the New Folk Movement."<ref>Wing, Eliza, ''Rolling Stone'', August 8, 1991, p. 17</ref>
'''John Gorka''' (born July 27, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter.<ref>Henkle, Doug, [http://www.folklib.net/index/discog/birth2days.shtml "FolkLib Index"]</ref> In 1991, ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' magazine called him "the preeminent male singer-songwriter of what has been dubbed the New Folk Movement."<ref>Wing, Eliza, ''Rolling Stone'', August 8, 1991, p. 17</ref>


==Personal life==
==Personal life==
Raised in the [[Colonia, New Jersey|Colonia]] section of [[Woodbridge Township, New Jersey]], where he attended [[Colonia High School]].<ref>[[John Peder Zane|Zane, J. Peder]]. [https://www.nytimes.com/1995/07/09/nyregion/in-person-telling-stories-going-farther.html "In Person; Telling Stories, Going Farther"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', July 9, 1995. Accessed August 7, 2019. "Speaking before that recent performance, Mr. Gorka, a trim man with untrimmed hair who grew up in Colonia, explained that "I'm From New Jersey" is not simply a joke.... This passion for folk and bluegrass music isolated him a bit from his friends at Colonia High School, but when he started performing at school and at parties, it provided him with a satisfying way to reach people."</ref> Gorka received his first guitar as a Christmas gift. He eventually learned, instead, to play the [[banjo]], and began performing in a folk music group at his church.{{Citation needed|date=August 2014}}
Gorka was raised in the [[Colonia, New Jersey|Colonia]] section of [[Woodbridge Township, New Jersey]], where he attended [[Colonia High School]].<ref>[[John Peder Zane|Zane, J. Peder]]. [https://www.nytimes.com/1995/07/09/nyregion/in-person-telling-stories-going-farther.html "In Person; Telling Stories, Going Farther"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', July 9, 1995. Accessed August 7, 2019. "Speaking before that recent performance, Mr. Gorka, a trim man with untrimmed hair who grew up in Colonia, explained that "I'm From New Jersey" is not simply a joke.... This passion for folk and bluegrass music isolated him a bit from his friends at Colonia High School, but when he started performing at school and at parties, it provided him with a satisfying way to reach people."</ref>


Gorka attended [[Moravian College]] in [[Bethlehem, Pennsylvania]], where he studied philosophy and history. He graduated from Moravian in 1980.<ref name = Moravian>{{cite news | url = https://www.moravian.edu/news/releases/2015/john-gorka#.WNp10uR1qUk | title = American Folk Singer and Alumnus John Gorka ’80 to perform at Moravian College | date = October 9, 2015 | accessdate = 2017-03-28 | publisher = [[Moravian College]]}}</ref>
He studied philosophy and history at [[Moravian College]] in [[Bethlehem, Pennsylvania]] and graduated from there in 1980.<ref name = Moravian>{{cite news | url = https://www.moravian.edu/news/releases/2015/john-gorka#.WNp10uR1qUk | title = American Folk Singer and Alumnus John Gorka '80 to perform at Moravian College | date = October 9, 2015 | access-date = 2017-03-28 | publisher = [[Moravian College]]}}</ref>


As of 2005, he was residing in the St. Croix Valley area near [[Saint Paul, Minnesota]].
As of 2005, he was residing in the [[St. Croix River (Wisconsin–Minnesota)|St. Croix Valley]] area near [[Saint Paul, Minnesota]].{{cn|date=October 2022}}


==Career==
==Career==


Gorka formed the [[Razzy Dazzy Spasm Band (folk)|Razzy Dazzy Spasm Band]] with Doug Anderson and Russ Rentler, which would also include guitarist [[Richard Shindell]]. After graduating from Moravian, he began performing solo at Godfrey Daniels coffee house in South Bethlehem as the opening act for various musicians including [[Nanci Griffith]], [[Bill Morrissey]], [[Claudia Schmidt]] and [[Jack Hardy (singer-songwriter)|Jack Hardy]]. In 1984, Gorka was one of six winners chosen from the finalists in the New Folk competition at the [[Kerrville Folk Festival]]. Since then he has regularly toured Europe and North America.<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.allmusic.com/artist/john-gorka-mn0000227487 | title= John Gorka | publisher = allmusic.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.npr.org/artists/14987374/john-gorka | title= John Gorka: Building A Bridge Of Folk Music | publisher = npr.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url = https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=John_Gorka&action=edit&section=2&editintro=Template:BLP_editintro | title= Music as Refuge: the Life of John Gorka | publisher = huffingtonpost.com}}</ref>
Gorka formed the [[Razzy Dazzy Spasm Band (folk)|Razzy Dazzy Spasm Band]] with Doug Anderson and Russ Rentler, which would also include guitarist [[Richard Shindell]]. After graduating from Moravian, he began performing solo at [[Godfrey Daniels]] coffee house in South Bethlehem as the opening act for various musicians including [[Nanci Griffith]], [[Bill Morrissey]], [[Claudia Schmidt (musician)|Claudia Schmidt]] and [[Jack Hardy (singer-songwriter)|Jack Hardy]]. In 1984, Gorka was one of six winners chosen from the finalists in the New Folk competition at the [[Kerrville Folk Festival]]. Since then he has regularly toured Europe and North America.<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.allmusic.com/artist/john-gorka-mn0000227487 | title= John Gorka | publisher = allmusic.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.npr.org/artists/14987374/john-gorka | title= John Gorka: Building A Bridge Of Folk Music | publisher = npr.org}}</ref><ref>Music as Refuge: the Life of John Gorka</ref>

⚫
[[File:John Gorka.jpg|thumb|John Gorka at VPRO Studio, Hilversum]]
⚫
He has appeared with artists such as [[Suzanne Vega]], [[Shawn Colvin]], [[Michael Manring]], [[Christine Lavin]], [[Dave Van Ronk]], [[Cliff Eberhardt]], [[David Massengill]], [[Frank Christian (singer-songwriter)|Frank Christian]], [[Antje Duvekot]], [[Meg Hutchinson]], and [[Lucy Kaplansky]]. He joined with Kaplansky and [[Eliza Gilkyson]] to form the folk [[Supergroup (music)|supergroup]] [[Red Horse (collaboration)|Red Horse]] in 2010, touring together and releasing a self-titled album on which they performed each other's compositions. Red Horse toured through July 2014.


[[File:John Gorka in red car (photo Jos van Vliet).jpg|thumb|John Gorka, 2008]]
[[File:John Gorka in red car (photo Jos van Vliet).jpg|thumb|John Gorka, 2008]]
In 1987, Gorka recorded his first album, ''I Know''. It was released by [[Red House Records|Red House]]{{--}}beginning a long association with that label. Although his next five albums were distributed by [[Windham Hill Records|Windham Hill]] and [[High Street Records|High Street]], he returned to Red House with 1998's ''[[After Yesterday]]'' and produced eight albums with them over the next twenty years{{--}}most recently ''[[True in Time]]'' (2018).<ref name="AllMusic">{{Cite web |title=John Gorka Album Discography |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/john-gorka-mn0000227487/discography |website=AllMusic |language=en-us |access-date=2020-05-24}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url = https://localspins.com/folk-icon-john-gorka-bring-inspired-music-suttons-bay-boyne-city/ | title= ‘New Folk’ star John Gorka to bring singer-songwriter charm to slate of Michigan shows | publisher = localspins.com}}</ref>
In 1987, Gorka recorded his first album, ''I Know''. It was released by [[Red House Records|Red House]]{{--}}beginning a long association with that label. Although his next five albums were distributed by [[Windham Hill Records|Windham Hill]] and [[High Street Records|High Street]], he returned to Red House with 1998's ''[[After Yesterday]]'' and produced eight albums with them over the next twenty years{{--}}most recently ''[[True in Time]]'' (2018).<ref name="AllMusic">{{Cite web |title=John Gorka Album Discography |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/john-gorka-mn0000227487/discography |website=AllMusic |language=en-us |access-date=2020-05-24}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url = https://localspins.com/folk-icon-john-gorka-bring-inspired-music-suttons-bay-boyne-city/ | title= 'New Folk' star John Gorka to bring singer-songwriter charm to slate of Michigan shows | date= May 30, 2017 | publisher = localspins.com}}</ref>


[[File:John-gorka-NL-21-2-2012 session-portret.jpg|thumb|John Gorka in The Hague, Netherlands]]
[[File:John-gorka-NL-21-2-2012 session-portret.jpg|thumb|John Gorka in The Hague, Netherlands]]

⚫
[[File:John Gorka.jpg|thumb|John Gorka at VPRO Studio, Hilversum]]
⚫
He has appeared with artists such as [[Suzanne Vega]], [[Shawn Colvin]], [[Michael Manring]], [[Christine Lavin]], [[Dave Van Ronk]], [[Cliff Eberhardt]], [[David Massengill]], [[Frank Christian (singer-songwriter)|Frank Christian]], [[Antje Duvekot]], [[Meg Hutchinson]], and [[Lucy Kaplansky]]. He joined with Kaplansky and [[Eliza Gilkyson]] to form the folk [[Supergroup (music)|supergroup]] [[Red Horse (collaboration)|Red Horse]] in 2010, touring together and releasing a self-titled album on which they performed each other's compositions. Red Horse toured through July 2014.


==Discography==
==Discography==


===Studio albums===
===Studio albums===
*''[[I Know (John Gorka album)|I Know]]'' ([[Red House Records|Red House]], 1987)
*''[https://store.compassrecords.com/products/i-know I Know]'' ([[Red House Records|Red House]], 1987)
*''[[Land of the Bottom Line]]'' ([[Windham Hill]]/[[High Street Records|High Street]], 1990)
*''[[Land of the Bottom Line]]'' ([[Windham Hill]]/[[High Street Records|High Street]], 1990)
*''[[Jack's Crows]]'' (Windham Hill/High Street, 1991)
*''[[Jack's Crows]]'' (Windham Hill/High Street, 1991)
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*''[[Writing in the Margins]]'' (Red House, 2006)
*''[[Writing in the Margins]]'' (Red House, 2006)
*''[[So Dark You See]]'' (Red House, 2009)
*''[[So Dark You See]]'' (Red House, 2009)
*''[[Bright Side of Down]]'' (Red House, 2014)
*''[[Red Horse (album)|Red Horse]]'' (Red House, 2010) <small>with [[Lucy Kaplansky]] and [[Eliza Gilkyson]]</small>
*''[https://store.compassrecords.com/products/bright-side-of-down Bright Side Of Down]'' (Red House, 2014)
*''Before Beginning: The Unreleased I Know [Nashville, 1985]'' (Red House, 2016)
*''[https://www.redhouserecords.com/store/true-time True in Time (Red House, 2018)]''
*''[https://store.compassrecords.com/products/before-beginning Before Beginning (The Unreleased I Know - Nashville, 1985)]'' (Red House, 2016)
*''[https://store.compassrecords.com/products/true-in-time True in Time]'' (Red House, 2018)


===Collaboration===
=== Other releases ===
'''Promotional EPs'''
*''[[Red Horse (album)|Red Horse]]'' (Red House, 2010) with [[Lucy Kaplansky]] and [[Eliza Gilkyson]]
⚫
*''[[Out of the Valley#Motor Folkin'|Motor Folkin'<nowiki/>]]'' (Windham Hill/High Street, 1994)
'''Remix albums'''


* ''Before Beginning: The Unreleased I Know - Nashville, 1985'' (Red House, 2016)<ref>{{Cite web |title=John Gorka talks about 'Before Beginning' |url=http://www.thecurrent.org/feature/2016/08/25/john-gorka-talks-about-before-beginning |access-date=2022-10-15 |website=www.thecurrent.org |language=en}}</ref> (early version of ''I Know'')
===EPs===
⚫
*''[[Motor Folkin']]'' (Windham Hill/High Street, 1994)


===DVD===
'''DVD'''
*''[[The Gypsy Life]]'' (AIX Records, 2007)
*''[[The Gypsy Life]]'' (AIX Records, 2007)
'''Compilation albums'''

==="Best of" albums===
*''[[Pure John Gorka]]'' (Windham Hill, 2006)
*''[[Pure John Gorka]]'' (Windham Hill, 2006)
⚫
'''On various artists compilations'''

⚫
=== On various artists compilations ===
* See various issues of ''[[Fast Folk Musical Magazine]]'' for early recordings.
* See various issues of ''[[Fast Folk Musical Magazine]]'' for early recordings.
* "I Saw a Stranger with Your Hair" on ''[[Legacy: A Collection of New Folk Music]]'' (Windham Hill, 1989)
* "I Saw a Stranger with Your Hair" on ''[[Legacy: A Collection of New Folk Music]]'' (Windham Hill, 1989)
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* "[[Love Minus Zero/No Limit]]" on ''A Tribute to Bob Dylan, Vol. 2'' ([[SIS Records|SIS]], 1994)
* "[[Love Minus Zero/No Limit]]" on ''A Tribute to Bob Dylan, Vol. 2'' ([[SIS Records|SIS]], 1994)
* "The Gypsy Life" on ''The Live from [[Mountain Stage]], Vol. 8'' (Blue Plate, 1995)
* "The Gypsy Life" on ''The Live from [[Mountain Stage]], Vol. 8'' (Blue Plate, 1995)
* "Love is Our Cross to Bear" on ''[[KGSR]] Broadcasts Vol. 3'' (KGSR, 1995)
* "The Water is Wide" on ''Where Have All the Flowers Gone: The Songs of Pete Seeger'' (Wundertüte Musik, 1998)
* "The Water is Wide" on ''Where Have All the Flowers Gone: The Songs of Pete Seeger'' (Wundertüte Musik, 1998)
* "Sweet Love" on "[[Treasures Left Behind: Remembering Kate Wolf]]" (Red House, 1998)
* "Sweet Love" on "[[Treasures Left Behind: Remembering Kate Wolf]]" (Red House, 1998)
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* [http://www.aixrecords.com AIX Records Website]
* [http://www.aixrecords.com AIX Records Website]


{{John Gorka}}
{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}


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[[Category:1958 births]]
[[Category:1958 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Living people]]
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[[Category:American people of Polish descent]]
[[Category:American baritones]]
[[Category:American baritones]]
[[Category:American folk guitarists]]
[[Category:American folk guitarists]]
[[Category:American male guitarists]]
[[Category:American male guitarists]]
[[Category:American folk singers]]
[[Category:American folk singers]]
⚫
[[Category:American singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:American male singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:American male singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:Colonia High School alumni]]
[[Category:Fast Folk artists]]
[[Category:Fast Folk artists]]
[[Category:Singers from New Jersey]]
[[Category:Singer-songwriters from New Jersey]]
[[Category:Musicians from Newark, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Singers from Newark, New Jersey]]
[[Category:People from Woodbridge Township, New Jersey]]
[[Category:People from Woodbridge Township, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Windham Hill Records artists]]
[[Category:Windham Hill Records artists]]
[[Category:Moravian College alumni]]
[[Category:Moravian University alumni]]
⚫
[[Category:Songwriters from New Jersey]]
[[Category:Guitarists from New Jersey]]
[[Category:Guitarists from New Jersey]]
[[Category:20th-century American guitarists]]
[[Category:20th-century American guitarists]]
[[Category:20th-century American male musicians]]
[[Category:20th-century American male musicians]]
[[Category:Red House Records artists]]
[[Category:Red House Records artists]]
⚫
[[Category:Singer-songwriters from New York (state)]]

Latest revision as of 14:57, 2 December 2024

John Gorka
John Gorka at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, 2004
John Gorka at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, 2004
Background information
Born (1958-07-27) July 27, 1958 (age 66)
Colonia, New Jersey, U.S.
GenresFolk
Occupation(s)Songwriter, musician
Instrument(s)Vocals, guitars, piano
Years active1980s–present
LabelsWindham Hill, High Street, Red House
Websitewww.johngorka.com

John Gorka (born July 27, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter.[1] In 1991, Rolling Stone magazine called him "the preeminent male singer-songwriter of what has been dubbed the New Folk Movement."[2]

Personal life

[edit]

Gorka was raised in the Colonia section of Woodbridge Township, New Jersey, where he attended Colonia High School.[3]

He studied philosophy and history at Moravian College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and graduated from there in 1980.[4]

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

Career

[edit]

Gorka formed the Razzy Dazzy Spasm Band with Doug Anderson and Russ Rentler, which would also include guitarist Richard Shindell. After graduating from Moravian, he began performing solo at Godfrey Daniels coffee house in South Bethlehem as the opening act for various musicians including Nanci Griffith, Bill Morrissey, Claudia Schmidt and Jack Hardy. In 1984, Gorka was one of six winners chosen from the finalists in the New Folk competition at the Kerrville Folk Festival. Since then he has regularly toured Europe and North America.[5][6][7]

John Gorka, 2008

In 1987, Gorka recorded his first album, I Know. It was released by Red House—beginning a long association with that label. Although his next five albums were distributed by Windham Hill and High Street, he returned to Red House with 1998's After Yesterday and produced eight albums with them over the next twenty years—most recently True in Time (2018).[8][9]

John Gorka in The Hague, Netherlands
John Gorka at VPRO Studio, Hilversum

He has appeared with artists such as Suzanne Vega, Shawn Colvin, Michael Manring, Christine Lavin, Dave Van Ronk, Cliff Eberhardt, David Massengill, Frank Christian, Antje Duvekot, Meg Hutchinson, and Lucy Kaplansky. He joined with Kaplansky and Eliza Gilkyson to form the folk supergroup Red Horse in 2010, touring together and releasing a self-titled album on which they performed each other's compositions. Red Horse toured through July 2014.

Discography

[edit]

Studio albums

[edit]

Other releases

[edit]

Promotional EPs

Remix albums

  • Before Beginning: The Unreleased I Know - Nashville, 1985 (Red House, 2016)[10] (early version of I Know)

DVD

Compilation albums

On various artists compilations

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Henkle, Doug, "FolkLib Index"
  2. ^ Wing, Eliza, Rolling Stone, August 8, 1991, p. 17
  3. ^ Zane, J. Peder. "In Person; Telling Stories, Going Farther", The New York Times, July 9, 1995. Accessed August 7, 2019. "Speaking before that recent performance, Mr. Gorka, a trim man with untrimmed hair who grew up in Colonia, explained that "I'm From New Jersey" is not simply a joke.... This passion for folk and bluegrass music isolated him a bit from his friends at Colonia High School, but when he started performing at school and at parties, it provided him with a satisfying way to reach people."
  4. ^ "American Folk Singer and Alumnus John Gorka '80 to perform at Moravian College". Moravian College. October 9, 2015. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
  5. ^ "John Gorka". allmusic.com.
  6. ^ "John Gorka: Building A Bridge Of Folk Music". npr.org.
  7. ^ Music as Refuge: the Life of John Gorka
  8. ^ "John Gorka Album Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  9. ^ "'New Folk' star John Gorka to bring singer-songwriter charm to slate of Michigan shows". localspins.com. May 30, 2017.
  10. ^ "John Gorka talks about 'Before Beginning'". www.thecurrent.org. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
[edit]
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