Artists:Johnsmith
From WWR
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Johnsmith has played a house concert for Whole Wheat Radio. I think that says just aboout everything there is to say. He is unassuming, friendly, warm and all of the good things you would want in a folk singer type person. His songs come from the heart and remind us that we are human. An evening with Johnsmith is sure to evoke both laughter and tears.
For the past twenty years Johnsmith has been sharing his music with audiences all across the United States, and abroad. Driving some 50,000 miles to play over 150 dates each year, he has become a favorite at coffee houses, colleges, and house concerts alike. In addition to being a past winner of the Kerrville Folk Festival New Folk award, Johnsmith has released four CDs to rave reviews from trade publications such as Dirty Linen, Performing Songwriter, and Sing Out! Magazines. He has also served as a staff songwriter for the WrenSong Music Group in Nashville. But again, accolades, competitions and quotas are not what motivate Johnsmith. Music is simply his gift, and he feels compelled to share it. That means more than all the hype, any day.
Johnsmith makes his home in Wisconsin and obviously has a knack for making others feel at home in many places, such as Ireland where you can join him on a tour with a musical theme.
From Johnsmith's website ...
Whenever you read or hear about the music of Johnsmith, certain watchwords always come up, regardless of the source. Words like uplifting, or integrity, heart, or soul. His songs and voice go straight to the heart, because that’s where they come from.
John was born into a rural eastern Iowa, large Irish Catholic family of ten kids. Pursuing a life of music has led him far from his small town roots. After a short college stint in southern California, a couple years on an organic hippie farm in Iowa, and a few years in Colorado, he now resides along the upper Mississippi in western Wisconsin.
Over two decades of performing festivals, concert halls, coffeehouses, colleges, and house concerts, along with a half dozen acclaimed CDs, Johnsmith has built a solid fan base in the US and abroad.
After a few inspiring solo tours to Ireland, John now leads tours to the Emerald Isle a few times a year bringing small groups of fans and friends touring castles and fishing villages by day, and sharing music with the locals in pubs by night.
He’s a past winner of the New Folk competition at the Kerrville Folk Festival, and has taught songwriting there, as well as the Swannanoa Gathering, the Rocky Mountain Folks Festival, and the Big Sur CA Esalen Institute. He was recently featured on the elite “New Dimensions” program on NPR.
Break Me Open his most recent CD, features some of the finest players in acoustic music today: Darrell Scott, Tim O’Brien, Stuart Duncan, Byron House, Kenny Malone, Andrea Zonn, former ‘Runaway’ duo partner Dan Sebranek, native American chants and flute cameos by Bill Miller, and harmony vocals by Suzi Ragsdale, Sally Barris, and John’s daughter Elisi Smith-Waller.
This CD portrays John’s earthy brand of spirituality and finds him stretching his songwriting wings expressing the harder sides of life and love. From the poetic "Back to the Mystery", to the touching tribute "Cold, Cold Ground", to the honest "Messy Thing". The disc also includes masterful covers written by friends Darrell Scott (“Love’s Not Through With Me Yet”) and L.J. Booth (“Box Elder”).
Johnsmith has walked down the roads that made him whole, and when he brings that onstage, he connects with folks. He calls himself a blue collar songwriter, banging out his tunes along the back roads one show at a time.
Someone’s voice is not just an instrument; it’s more like the sound of their soul. It’s a connection thing that moves us. As a solo performer Johnsmith totally opens up and bares his genuine self on stage. Night after night, CD after CD, he brings it all on full heart. Fellow songwriter Buddy Mondlock best sums it up:
" I feel like every time one of Johnsmith’s songs gets heard a little healing happens to the world."
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More information
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This artist lives in Wisconsin. |
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The gender of this artist/group is male. |
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Listener Tags & Comments
When three Wheatheads trekked to Lindsborg, Kansas to hear Johnsmith, he was delighted that we were there. He told the audience about WWR and played 'Appalachian Rain' for us and for Jim and Esther. - LuAnna 21:53, April 22, 2006 (AKDT)
We've met a few musicians at the house concerts here in Talkeetna. They're all wonderful, but Johnsmith stands out as a nice, simple, down-to-earth guy ... one of us. It's like having a brother who is a great songwriter and has a captivating voice. His CDs are among my favorites but a piece of digital plastic can't capture what it's like to see him and meet him live. Highly recommended if he comes to your area. Jimbob 16:47, May 11, 2006 (AKDT)
| Has played live at Whole Wheat Radio. |
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| Cub Driver has seen this performer live. |
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| TundraDawg has seen this performer live. |
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 at WoodyFest July 2007 |
 with Jack Williams |
 and... with Tim O'Brien! |
Image on WWR
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Artist image library
Albums on WWR
Video
Request a show of songs by Johnsmith
| Song | Album | Length | Played | Overall | You | Tags | Single Request |
| What Is | To The Four Directions | 4:17 | 17 |  16 votes |
You have to login to give your opinion about songs. | Singer-songwriter / Folk | Rooks In The Castle | Whole Wheat Radio House Concert - August 14th, 2004 | 5:20 | 33 |  24 votes |
You have to login to give your opinion about songs. | Acoustic / Solo vocalist / Acoustic guitar / Celtic / Guy with guitar / Live / Singer-songwriter / Whole wheat house concert / Makes you think / Mellow / Peaceful / Pretty / Reflective / Birds | Iris Blue | Kickin' This Stone | 4:05 | 42 | 32 votes |
You have to login to give your opinion about songs. | Singer-songwriter / Folk / Acoustic guitar / Violin / Love gone right / Pretty / Quiet / Reflective / Romantic / Solo vocalist / Acoustic / Band |
| Total Time | 13:42 |
The current music queue contains 2 songs that will take 4 mins to play.
Artist name is|Johnsmith Last played| more than 1 week ago ---------------------------------------- Show name| Songs by Johnsmith Length| 15 minutes Order by| random Limit| 3 songs ----------------------------------------
Stats
- Spotlighted: Thursday, October 27th 2005
- Artist site clicks: 301
- Songs on WWR: 83
- Total plays: 2211
- Total requests: 1241
- Total listens: 55380
- CDBaby website clicks: 123
- CDBaby referrals: 21
- CDBaby sales: Break Me Open (Sold 1 copies)
Hole in the Clouds (Sold 3 copies)
Kickin' This Stone (Sold 5 copies)
to the Four Directions (Sold 2 copies)
Traveler (Sold 10 copies)
Other skins for artist pages
| Default / Simple / Classic / Jimbob / For Playing Around With / 12-stringer / Atuu / Mert / Kelli / Rubenerd |
Categories: Artists from Wisconsin | Gender male | House concerts | Hexaba's performers seen | Seen live | Jimkloss's performers seen | Esther's performers seen | Kelli's performers seen | LuAnna's performers seen | Cub Driver's performers seen | Jane's performers seen | Artmarcia's performers seen | Jjascob's performers seen | TundraDawg's performers seen | Video
