Elevator pitch: “Sounds like Tom Petty”
John was born in Liverpool, England, to American ex-pats who later settled in the Boston area (Newton), where John grew up around Timothy Leary, Baba Ram Dass, and Issac Asimov. As John remarked when introduced to several Newton-native producers at Fremantle Productions in Hollywood, “Newton is the center of the universe!” while noting that Newton has more Nobel Prize winners per capita than anywhere else in the world. Unique, to say the least.
John is a traveller. Whether touring or traveling professionally, John is always on the move. John lived in England in the early ‘70’s, in Western Massachusetts, and later, in Malibu, California. Before moving back to the East Coast, John was invited to play for Joni Mitchell at her home, which completed a musical circle that began with Joni, who inspired him to become a songwriter at the age of 12. John now splits his time between Newton, Boston’s South Shore, and points East and West.
John toured early on as a jazz bassist with the fusion outfit Zamcheck, which featured Mark Zamcheck (Downbeat Magazine’s “up and coming jazz pianist of the year”) on keyboards and Michael Levine (film composer and “Kit Kat” jingle creator) on violin. Zamcheck toured with Gary Burton (whose band featured a young Pat Metheny) and performed at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1974. John then worked as the house sound engineer and stage manager at Paul’s Mall/Jazz Workshop in Boston until its closure on New Year’s Eve, 1978. This experience exposed John first hand to the music of Muddy Waters, BB King, Gil Scott Heron, Roy Ayers, Sonny Rollins, Stuff, Bill Evans, Ramsey Lewis, Thelonius Monk, Amad Jamal, Rick Nelson, Taj Mahal, and many others.
John dropped out of music for 12 years from 1980 to 1992. During that time, he went to college and became a CPA with PriceWaterhouseCoopers where he specialized in venture capital. John started songwriting again in 1992 and quickly formed the van Gogh Brothers which is still active today. In 1997, John got involved with digital music as the result of “trying to find a cool day job” when he became a founding principal with eMusic, the first paid digital download store. John then co-founded Tunecore, and later, Audiam. John was an early advisor to DistroKid and is currently an advisor to Amplifyd. In 2014, John created the Voices of van Gogh featuring Scarlet Rivera (Bob Dylan) and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member John Durrill. “Voices” recorded one album for American Music Partners, but their legacy continues with Scarlet and John’s solo work.
John is a prolific songwriter. He has written more than 5,000 songs and recorded 18 albums since returning to music as a singer-songwriter in 1992, two of which have been released by Blue Rose Records in Germany. Producers include Anthony J. Resta (Elton John, Collective Soul, Duran Duran, Shawn Mullins), David Minehan (the Neighborhoods, the Replacements), and Rob Fraboni (Rolling Stones, Bonnie Raitt, Bob Dylan).
John’s songs are featured in film, network, and online television, including such projects and programs as NCIS, The Young & the Restless, Justified, American Idol, and many others. (See “Credits”)
John appears frequently at Vincent’s, in Worcester Massachusetts, with his long-time band, the van Gogh Brothers, as part of their Lifetime Residency at their namesake room.
John is currently working on various side projects informed by his early work in jazz, ambient, world, and other influences, with a wide cast of talented musicians from LA, Boulder, Boston, and New Orleans.