In 1985 he was invited by the Soviet Union of Composers to perform in the USSR, inspiring the internationally acclaimed song “Let Us Begin (What Are We Making Weapons For?).” The powerful video for “Let Us Begin” moved viewers around the world.Who is to say what exactly made the guy in this 1972 pop song so glum. His passion to help create a global community paved the way for ventures into new musical and geographic territories.
Fans responded to his heartfelt urgings about ecology, peace, and compassion that were consistently delivered in a gentle manner on his records and at live performances.
Denver was one of the first artists to share an environmental message through his music, beginning with the song “Whose Garden Was This?” This was the first in a long line of songs that he wrote about the environment.ĭenver contributed his talents to the benefit of many charitable and environmental causes and received numerous civic and humanitarian awards over the years. As the Mitchell Trio disbanded, Denver was climbing up the pop charts as a solo act with songs like “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” “Rocky Mountain High,” “Sunshine On My Shoulders,” “Annie’s Song,” “Back Home Again,” “Thank God I’m A Country Boy,” and “Calypso,” solidifying his position as one of the top stars of the 1970s.īy his third album in 1970, Denver’s social and political leanings were defined more clearly. He gained recognition when his song “Leaving On A Jet Plane” was recorded by Peter, Paul and Mary, becoming their first and only number one hit. Two years and three albums later, Denver had honed his considerable vocal talent and developed his own songwriting style. John Denver experienced his first major break in the music industry when he was chosen from 250 other hopefuls as lead singer for the popular Mitchell Trio. Later in life, Denver and his family settled in Aspen, Colorado and his love for the Rocky Mountains inspired many of his songs. He took his stage name from the beautiful capital city of his favorite state, Colorado.
was urged by friends to change his name if a recording career was to be in his future. It was during this time that Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr. In 1963 he struck out on his own, moving to Los Angeles to be in the heart of the burgeoning music scene. Denver eventually took guitar lessons and joined a boys’ choir, which led him at age twenty to pursue his dream of a career in music. Air Force officer, Denver’s artistic journey began at age eleven when he was given his grandmother’s guitar. Denver’s career spanned four decades and his music has outlasted countless musical trends and garnered numerous awards and honors. One of the world’s best-known and best-loved performers, John Denver earned international acclaim as a songwriter, performer, actor, environmentalist and humanitarian. Greatest Hits climbed by the following spring to the top of the Billboard 200 pop albums chart, went platinum, and was one of the first albums world-wide to sell over 10 million copies. Notable new versions include "Leaving on a Jet Plane," "Starwood in Aspen", "Follow Me," "Rhymes and Reasons," "The Eagle and the Hawk," "Sunshine On My Shoulders" and "Poems, Prayers, and Promises".ĭenver explained this himself in the liner notes by saying that he had picked the numbers most requested in his concerts, but that "I felt that some of these songs had grown a bit, that I am singing better than I was four or five years ago, and that I would like to treat some of the songs a little differently than I had in the original recordings."Īfter its release these versions were used for airplay despite differing in subtle but important ways from the original versions generally, they were more polished, featured a more mature-sounding Denver, included strings, and were extended somewhat. Moreover, Greatest Hits is important historically because it contains new, revisionist recordings of several songs. His #1-smash "best-of" from 1973! The collection includes material from his earlier days as a songwriter (going back to 1965 on "For Bobbie") to his later hit "Rocky Mountain High." Indeed many of these tracks were not hits per se, but as Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote for Allmusic, "the were songs that defined him." Info for John Denver's Greatest Hits (Remastered)
0 kommentar(er)
