joshnich Posted January 21, 2008 Share Posted January 21, 2008 Obit from the LA Times It's been a couple years since I have seen John Stewart perform. His shows were very intimate and memorable. John Stewart, 68; singer-songwriter of folk By Richard Cromelin, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer January 21, 2008 John Stewart, an intense troubadour who helped set the standards for the singer-songwriter movement of the early 1970s with his classic album "California Bloodlines," died Saturday in his hometown of San Diego after suffering a stroke. He was 68. Stewart didn't match that acclaim again, but in the long solo career that followed his seven years with the Kingston Trio, he recorded more than 45 albums, flirted with chart success, pioneered the independent recording and release of records, and remained a hard-touring folk patriarch with a loyal following. Stewart, who lived in Novato in Northern California, had a concert scheduled at McCabe's Guitar Shop in Santa Monica on Feb. 2 and was in San Diego to complete work on a new album. Recorded in Nashville with some of the musicians who worked on Bob Dylan's "Nashville Skyline," "California Bloodlines" wasn't a commercial hit when it came out in 1969, but its folk-country blend and Stewart's literary use of quintessential American characters and geography have resonated through the decades in the folk genre that has become known as Americana. " 'California Bloodlines' is a vision of America written after traveling around the country spending my boyhood on racetracks," Stewart, whose father was a horse trainer, said in a 2003 interview with the San Jose Mercury News. "When I left the Trio, I was reading [Jack] Kerouac and [John] Steinbeck with Andrew Wyeth prints hanging on my wall. All that somehow took me to the songs on that record." The album was included in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 200 best albums of all time, and on his 2006 album "West of the West," contemporary folk mainstay Dave Alvin recorded the title song, with its evocative refrain: "Oh, there's California bloodlines in my heart/And a California woman in my song/Oh, there's California bloodlines in my heart/And a California heartbeat in my soul." "[stewart] was probably one of the greatest songwriters around," Roz Larman, the longtime host of KPFK-FM's "Folk Scene" radio program, told the Los Angeles Times on Sunday. "He wrote songs about the United States. You could tell he really loved America. . . . He just knew this country real well, and he was just an amazing songwriter." Born Sept. 5, 1939, in San Diego, Stewart started performing when he was a teenager in Pomona, and made three albums with the folk group Cumberland Three. He then joined the popular Kingston Trio in 1961 when founding member Dave Guard left the group. After leaving the trio in 1967, Stewart hit the campaign trail with Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, who was seeking the Democratic presidential nomination, then began his solo career. His biggest song was "Daydream Believer," a No. 1 hit for the Monkees and also a chart single for Anne Murray. Rosanne Cash later found success with his "Runaway Train." The biggest hit Stewart recorded himself was "Gold," from his 1979 Top 10 album "Bombs Away Dream Babies." On that project he collaborated with two artists who had studied the Kingston Trio's music when they were starting out -- Fleetwood Mac's Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. For the most part, though, he remained a stalwart of the folk circuit. In 2000, he and his former Kingston Trio colleague Nick Reynolds founded the Trio Fantasy Camp in Scottsdale, Ariz., an annual event where fans could perform with the pair. Stewart is survived by his wife, Buffy Ford Stewart; their son, Luke, and three children from a previous marriage, Mikael, Jeremy and Amy. Services are pending. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 the things you don't see on the news..thanx Josh for the information. I always liked his music. RIP indeed.. Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacksonbart Posted January 21, 2009 Share Posted January 21, 2009 Wow I thought this was the guy from the Daily Show at first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLSamuel Posted January 21, 2009 Share Posted January 21, 2009 I'm familiar with the song "Gold" and have Bombs Away Dream Babies on vinyl but have not listened to it in a long time. Sounds like California Bloodlines would be worth checking out though I'm sure it's a lot different than Bombs Away Dream Babies but often artists who've inspired other I like I also like. Another great artist lost. RIP John Stewart Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshnich Posted January 21, 2009 Author Share Posted January 21, 2009 Not sure anyone noticed this but my first post announcing John Stewarts death was from exactly a year ago. Looks like Jackson Bart found it and brought it back with his Daily Show comment. Josh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLSamuel Posted January 21, 2009 Share Posted January 21, 2009 Not sure anyone noticed this but my first post announcing John Stewarts death was from exactly a year ago. Looks like Jackson Bart found it and brought it back with his Daily Show comment. Josh [:$] Not I but not that it's worth anything, I thought of the song "Gold" before Jon Stewart of The Daily Show. Maybe that just means I'm getting more and more out of touch with what's current.... not that I haven't heard of The Daily Show and that Jon Stewart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshnich Posted January 21, 2009 Author Share Posted January 21, 2009 Not sure anyone noticed this but my first post announcing John Stewarts death was from exactly a year ago. Looks like Jackson Bart found it and brought it back with his Daily Show comment. Josh HA HA - - of course. Now that I think of it, we DID have this discussion before. Man, when you get as old as me your memory really SUCKS! Well, my comments though still stand. I read the post and it was wierd because it looked like it was a natural transition of a current post with no mention of the event being last year. It took me a while to notice the dates. I thought for a moment that I was in the twilight zone! BTW I agree with your POV regarding California Bloodlines. An all time great LP for sure. Josh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted January 21, 2009 Share Posted January 21, 2009 After the original thread, GaryMD sent me California Bloodlines and Cannons in the Rain, both on vinyl. Asa generation of folksdid, I learned to play the guitar from the Kingston Trio. What probably went un-noticed was the passing of Nick Reynolds, Oct. 1. 2008, one of the original members of the KT. I'm feeling old. Bruce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLSamuel Posted January 21, 2009 Share Posted January 21, 2009 HA HA - - of course. Now that I think of it, we DID have this discussion before. Man, when you get as old as me your memory really SUCKS! Well, my comments though still stand. I'm only 48 and my memory already sucks at least for important things. Too much useless crap in the old noggin I suppose. But thanks to JB for resurrecting this and Josh and Mark's and now Bruce's comments. I probably would not of realized that California Bloodlines is something I should listen to so I'll at least keep an eye open when sifting through the CDs or LPs at thrift stores. As Yogi Berra used to say (at least I think it was Yogi Berra) "It's deja vu all over again" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billybob Posted January 21, 2009 Share Posted January 21, 2009 Just hearing on SatRad about his music recently. Too bad! Fine piano Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLSamuel Posted January 21, 2009 Share Posted January 21, 2009 I read the post and it was wierd because it looked like it was a natural transition of a current post with no mention of the event being last year. It took me a while to notice the dates. I thought for a moment that I was in the twilight zone! do do do do Welcom to the Klipsch Zone do do do do (maybe someone with too much time on their hands, or I should say more versed in such things and better at managing their time than I can make an animated Klipsch Zone image) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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