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ŠTaylor
Bowers 2005
Throughout the years John Prine has been known as many
things: everything from the "new Dylan" to the champion of the common
man.
Yet one title has seemed to slip through his fingers and elude
him: famous. Being shunned by critics hasn't slowed Prine down, however;
he has released eighteen albums to thousands of loyal fans who enjoy Prine's
subtle, off-the-wall style of writing.
Prine's dedication wasn't learned; rather it was instilled
in him through his traditional Americana values and upbringing. Hailing
from a rural farming town and growing up by nominal means gave Prine the
ability or, to some, the disability to learn the facts of life the hard
way. These trials and tribulations, mixed with a little bit of imagination,
would come to influence many of the songs that Prine would write later
in life. His imagination was also a major part in the style of music that
he plays, everything from old country to guitar smashing rock 'n roll.
This wide variety of style enables Prine to attract fans from all walks
of life. As well, Prine's upbringing also gave him the ability to identify
with the life of the simple man.
With all of these attributes stacked in Prine's favor,
it is no surprise that I have been hooked on him since my dad first uttered
the words, "Come listen to this guy sing; he can write one heck of a song."
John Prine's upbringing both inspired his music career
and instilled in him a great respect and affinity for the common man.
Prine's birth in the rural Chicago suburb of Maywood, Illinois on October
10, 1946, was just the start of what can truly be called an inspiring
childhood. One of Prine's major inspirations came from his many trips
to Paradise, Kentucky, where he was able to visit with family members
and let his imagination roam.
These excursions, along with the many lessons learned from
his family, prompted Prine to feel the need to express himself. With this
feeling inside, Prine was then inspired to pick up a guitar and start
playing music, which I feel is one of the greatest forms of self expression.
He knew from the moment that he picked up his first guitar that he was
a natural musician: "My brother Dave taught me a chord and the first time
I held it down I didn't muffle it" ("History" 1). Coming from a fellow
musician, I know that this exemplifies Prine's natural ability, which
is something that few people have. It didn't take long after that for
Prine to start adding his own personal anecdotes into his God-given musical
ability.
At the age of fourteen Prine wrote and *recorded his first
two songs:
"Sour Grapes" and "The
Frying Pan" (Rees 688). The fact that Prine started his writing career
so young comes as a surprise to most of his fans; on the other hand, it
is no surprise that he found writing to be yet another one of his natural
abilities. Prine's childhood served as both an inspiration and a springboard
into his long-lasting music career. The ability to use his many childhood
experiences and talents to find his niche in life once again proves Prine's
upbringing to be one of his single greatest inspirations to date.
Though Prine's natural talents made him destined to make
it in the music industry, it would not come as an easy task. He would
serve in the U.S. Army and be stationed in Germany before being able to
return home and focus on the music business.
His path was detoured once again when his financial situation
caused him to get a job as a mail carrier for the U.S. Postal Service.
Though his body was in another place, his mind never lost touch with his
writings and his dream of being a singer. Having these jobs gave Prine
the ability to expand his imagination and gave him the opportunity to
see other parts of the world which would later strongly inspire many of
his songs. Prine's first performance, at the "Fifth Peg" in Chicago, landed
him an accidental weekly job playing at the club. When Prine was sure
of the new employment, he quit the Post Office and went home to write
the rest of the songs to fill up the time in which he would have to play
("History"1). His natural song writing ability was rudimentary in Prine's
further success, for without it he would have never been discovered by
record executives. Also, his determination and tenacity to play all of
the local Chicago bars and coffee houses is what would finally get him
jump-started into the music industry (Romanowski 793).
This is the point in Prine's life when he must decide if
he wants to jump head first into a business with no guarantees or just
give it all up. Much to the jubilation of his modern day fans, Prine's
decision was to dive in and see that the water felt just fine. Prine was
finally able to land a $25,000 record deal with Atlantic Records after
getting recognition from one of his contemporaries, Kris Kristofferson
(Rees 688). All of Prines' dues had finally been paid and now he was able
to sing his songs and get paid for doing so. The hard work and long hours
had finally resulted in a dream come true for this small town kid who
had many years before picked up a guitar and decided to start writing
songs.
Prine's great start in music prompted him to further strive
to produce more albums, and maybe even mix up his style to achieve a larger
fan base. Prine's second album, Diamonds in the Rough, did not receive
much support from his local fan base and was overlooked as one of his
premier albums. The album did have its own "Diamonds in the Rough" so
to say. It yielded many of Prine's signature songs such as "The Great
Compromise" and "Souvenirs" (Cooper 1). Prine's disappointment in his
album inspired him and his record company to try new things and change
his style of play. This change was apparent on Prine's next album, Common
Sense, which introduced a new sound for Prine: hard rock. Prine fans were
shocked; their own personal folk star was now coming out of left field
with guitar smashing rock, and their disappointment was proven through
low album sales (Romanowski 793).
Prine was now faced with a dilemma, so he decided to take
a sabbatical from writing for a while to decide if he wanted to continue
on with his dreams. Thankfully for Prine fans, he trudged on. With his
next album release, Bruised Orange, he restored both his old school folk
style and his loyal fan support (Cooper 2). Prine had finally returned
to what his fans wanted, threw caution to the wind, and proved to them
that he would give them what they wanted through any means necessary.
Prine would later succeed with his distinct style by receiving a Grammy
for "Best Contemporary Folk Album" for The Missing Years (Larkin 4339).
The award skyrocketed the name of John Prine to the top of the charts
and proved that he was capable of making it in the crazy world of music
business. Despite the fact that many of Prine's albums haven't had great
commercial success, his fans have stuck by his side through the thick
and thin, and that is what makes Prine successful in his own book.
While looking at Prine's hit parade of records, it is plain
to see that his distinct style of play incorporates all types of music.
The idea to play many different types of music was Prine's plan to take
all of his favorite influences and combine them into his own unique style.
Prine's songs range from old-school folk all the way to pure country and
rock 'n roll (Romanowski 793). The varying styles not only gave Prine
his own genre, but it also gave him the opportunity to appeal to a larger
fan base.
Prine's country music influence came from playing guitar
with his grandfather, Dave Prine, who also happened to play with country
music legend Merle Travis (Larkin 4339). These country and western influences
would provide Prine with a starting point in his music career and would
even open a few doors for him. His first record deal came as a result
of Paul Anka's interest in Prine's old country songs (Romanowski 793).
Prine's ability to effectively use his grandfather's influence had finally
paid off for him in a huge way. Another great pay off, of his country
style, was earning the respect of longtime country legend, Johnny Cash.
Cash covered Prine's song, "Unwed Fathers" and greatly enjoyed Prine's
work, which is a true testament to Prine's writing ability. ("History" 1).
Another one of Prine's greatest musical influences was
the man whom critics thought Prine would be most like: Bob Dylan. The
similarities between these two artists are subtle, yet nonexistent at
the same time. When Prine came onto the music scene, he made it a point
that he was not going to imitate anyone. When Prine was asked about Dylan
he replied, "Well, I'd have to say Bob Dylan...were my biggest influences"
("Larry" 1). Much of Prine's acoustic folk style is thanks to his reverence
for Dylan. Prine fans are grateful for such great musical influences throughout
his life and career, for without them there would be no John Prine.
Prine's musical career has always been nominal in terms
of commercial success, but his success with his fans is immeasurable.
Prine's music has always been adored by his fans, despite the fact that
he has only produced one album that has scratched the U.S. Top 100 (Larkin
4339). This displays Prine's determination to produce music the way he
wants and not be persuaded by harsh music critics. Prine's poor record
sales on major labels prompted him to make a life changing decision: start
his own record label. In 1982 Prine finalized his decision by opening
Oh Boy! Records and putting out his first release "I Saw Mommy Kissing
Santa Claus" (Cooper 3). This finally gave Prine the ability to write
and produce what he felt his fans would enjoy without the pressure from
big shot record executives.
Prine could finally be himself and much to the delight
of his fans that's what he did. Prine's fan base grew as he released albums
on Oh Boy!, diversifying his audience and luring in new ears all of the
time. Commenting on his fans Prine said, "It's a great feeling when you
put something in a song and people say that's exactly how they feel" ("History" 1). Through his actions Prine proves time and time again that he is truly
a man of his fans and not of the music business. Despite no evident future
in the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame, Prine still produces music to this day
not for monetary purposes, but for the satisfaction of pleasing whom he
cares about the most: his fans.
If success could be measured by extremely devoted fans,
or the diehard respect of his peers, John Prine is a superstar. Commercial
recognition, however, has come unfairly to Prine. Though critics have
wrung their thesauruses dry attempting to do justice to Prine's talents,
there is no word in the human language to sum up Prine's distinctive song-writing
style. His ability to pull your leg and tug at your heart with his quick
wit and frank heart is something that appeals to people from all walks
of life. Bursting onto the scene as the "new Dylan" Prine quickly brushed
off the nickname with his own unique style of playing music that to this
day hasn't been duplicated. Thus confirming that no artist from here until
eternity will ever come close to being the "new Prine."
ŠTaylor Bowers 2005
*editors note: Prine recorded these songs first
on a personal recorder at age 14. Later they were recorded on his Oh Boy
label "Diamonds in the
Rough"
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