Danny Schmidt | |
|---|---|
 Schmidt playing a house concert in Boalsburg, PA in 2008. | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Danny Schmidt |
| Born | October 7, 1970 Austin, Texas, US |
| Origin | Austin, Texas |
| Genres | Folk, indie folk |
| Instrument(s) | vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1996–present |
| Labels | Red House, Waterbug |
| Website | dannyschmidt.com |
Danny Schmidt (born October 7, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter based in Austin, Texas, where he now lives with his wife, fellow musician and singer-songwriter Carrie Elkin. [1]
Schmidt was born in 1970 and grew up in Austin, Texas. He started playing guitar at the age of 12. At age 20, he discovered that he liked the blues after tracking the music of Jimi Hendrix back through Muddy Waters, Mississippi John Hurt, and Lightning Hopkins all the way to old country gospel and spirituals. He bought an acoustic guitar and eventually discovered Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Tom Waits, and John Prine, from whom he learned songwriting.
After three years of college, he joined the East Wind Community in the Ozark Mountains of southern Missouri for a year. He then became part of the Twin Oaks Community in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia for about four years, where he met fellow singer-songwriter Devon Sproule. At 25, Schmidt began writing songs — a developing talent which ultimately earned him the 2007 Kerrville Folk Festival New Folk award. [2]
In 1999, he settled for a while in Charlottesville, Virginia where his songwriting flourished and he started sharing his songs with the public. That year he released his first recording, an album titled Live at the Prism Coffeehouse. In 2001 he released Enjoying the Fall. 2003 brought his third collection of songs, Make Right the Time. In 2005, Schmidt released Parables & Primes. 2007 saw the release of Little Grey Sheep and 2009 the release of Instead the Forest Rose to Sing—his first release on Red House Records. In 2011, Schmidt released Man of Many Moons, also on Red House.
Schmidt was a part of the original King of My Living Room group of Charlottesville songwriters—which included such artists as Brady Earnhart, Danny Schmidt, Stratton Salidis, Jan Smith, Lance Brenner, Browning Porter, and Jeff Romano—who would go on to do a series of concerts together, the first CD of which was recorded in 2001. He's appeared in each of the four performances since, including the latest November 2007 at the Gravity Lounge in Charlottesville. [3]
The debut King of My Living Room performance in Charlottesville convinced fellow singer-songwriter Paul Curreri to make his home there. Schmidt, Curreri, and Sproule became housemates, with Paul and Devon marrying soon after. Curreri later wrote and recorded a letter in song form to Danny, who responded with the yet-to-be-produced song Two Guitars, which he began performing live in 2009. Danny recorded his fifth album Little Grey Sheep (2008) in the Curreri/Sproule home, with Curreri serving as a production engineer.[ citation needed ]
In 2005 Schmidt toured up and down the east and west coasts, as well as in Alaska, the United Kingdom, Italy, The Netherlands, France, and Italy.[ citation needed ]
In 2012, his song "This Too Shall Pass" was featured in the weather section of episode 8 of the popular podcast Welcome to Night Vale . His song "Echo in the Hills", performed alongside Carrie Elkin, was also featured in the podcast on August 1, 2014. In early 2015, Schmidt toured with the crew of the podcast, performing live versions of his songs with Elkin, as a part of their live episodes.
Born into a Jewish family, Schmidt does not feel his religion is either distinct or critical to understanding his art. As he puts it, when discussing his song "Sad Songs Walking":
"As for any personal notes on this song... this is the first song that made me worry about how Christian imagery was gonna affect my Jewish family. Was I gonna be misconstrued as "goin' Jesus" on my people? This song's kinda campy, so I didn't take the concern too deeply to heart. But it certainly did cross my mind quite a few times as I shared the first recordings with various chosen families.
And it has been an issue for me, actually, with a bunch of later songs... the fear of being identified as something I'm not, or as believing in something I don't. 'Cause really, my religious, philosophical, and political belief systems don't fit into any traditional nomenclature – as I suspect most people don't. But it's a vulnerable position, putting little snippets of expression out there for your loved ones, and others, to extrapolate from.
Anyway, the Jesus part doesn't mean anything. I'm no more Christian in my heart than I am Jewish than I am Buddhist. And no less." [4]
Schmidt's album Little Grey Sheep (2008) was #1 Album on the Folk DJ Charts (FOLKDJ-L forum radio playlists) for February 2008 with four songs from the release: "Company Of Friends", "Leaves Are Burning", "Drawing Board", and "Tales Of Sweet Odysseus". [5] A collection of songs from his 2009 release Instead the Forest Rose To Sing made it No. 1 Album on the Folk DJ Charts again for March [6] and April 2009; [7] ranking No. 2 in May 2009. [8] Plays of songs from his 2011 release Man Of Many Moons — i.e., "Man Of Many Moons", "Houses Sing", "Buckets Of Rain", "Ragtime Ragtime Blues" — ranked it No. 3 Album played for February 2011, [9] the month it was released. This made three Schmidt albums in a row to rate highly on these lists.
Of Schmidt's 2015 release Owls, Frank Gutch of No Depression said, "Danny Schmidt is a lyric machine. He tells stories. He creates magic — good and bad. He goes places I did not know existed." [10]
Danny Schmidt's writing spans from deeply rooted Appalachian mountain gospel to English balladry, from syncopated Piedmont country blues to vagabond protest folk-stumpery. [11] His main influences are Townes Van Zandt, Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Neil Young, and Dave Carter. [12] In the Spring 2008 issue of Sing Out! magazine, journalist Matt Watroba noted that Schmidt's arrangements are powerful, his performances are laid-back yet energetic, while his lyrics are sheer poetry. [13]
"Stylistically and musically, Danny's writing spans an impressively diverse reach, from deeply-rooted Appalachian mountain gospel to haunted English balladry, from syncopated Piedmont country blues to vagabond 60's protest folk-stumpery. He tackles universal themes of love, loss, and longing . . . restless discontent and grateful joy. And he captures both the sorrow and the beauty inherent in our everyday lives with the wisdom of a perceptive, compassionate elder and with the innocent awe and tenderness of a child." [14]
"With beautifully crafted, lonesome pines music and complex beguiling words, he would've fitted neatly on the bill at any '60s coffee house alongside Townes Van Zandt or Leonard Cohen."
— Andy Fyfe, Q Magazine
"The songs are fascinating and intriguing, even mysterious. The singing is warm and unassuming, letting the stories lead him. The melodies are captivating."
— Marilyn Rea Beyer, WUMB
Schmidt is married to singer-songwriter Carrie Elkin who gave birth to their first child in 2016. They live together in Austin.
Live at the Prism Coffeehouse(ASIN: B00001ZWI8)
Enjoying the Fall(ASIN: B00005RTQX)
King of My Living Room (2001)(ASIN: B000CAFY5Y)
Make Right the Time(ASIN: B000CAGHXW)
King of My Living Room (2003)(ASIN: unknown)
Parables & Primes(ASIN: B000A2H5K6)
Little Grey Sheep(ASIN: B000YHL8K0)
Our Christmas Present (ASIN: unknown)
Instead the Forest Rose to Sing(ASIN: B001QBC2C6)
Man of Many Moons(ASIN: B004H1Z76U)
Owls
Standard Deviation
Iain David McGeachy, known professionally as John Martyn, was a British singer-songwriter and guitarist. Over a 40-year career, he released 23 studio albums and received frequent critical acclaim. The Times described him as "an electrifying guitarist and singer whose music blurred the boundaries between folk, jazz, rock and blues".
Robb Jenner Johnson is a British musician and songwriter who has been called "one of the last genuinely political songwriters". He is known for his mix of political satire and wit. He has his own record label, Irregular Records, and has released more than 40 albums since 1985, either solo or in several collaborations.
Ellis Paul is an American singer-songwriter and folk musician. Born in Presque Isle, Aroostook County, Maine, Paul is a key figure in what has become known as the Boston school of songwriting, a literate, provocative, and urbanely romantic folk-pop style that helped ignite the folk revival of the 1990s. His pop music songs have appeared in movies and on television, bridging the gap between the modern folk sound and the populist traditions of Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger.
Mark Erelli is an American singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and touring folk musician from Reading, Massachusetts who earned a master's degree in evolutionary biology from the University of Massachusetts Amherst before pursuing a career in music. Erelli has released nine solo albums and three collaborative albums. His self-titled debut album was released in 1999, the same year that he won the Kerrville Folk Festival's New Folk Award. His first recording for the Signature Sounds label, Compass & Companion, spent ten weeks in the Top Ten on the Americana Chart. Erelli has worked as a side musician for singer songwriters Lori McKenna and Josh Ritter. He has performed at various music festivals and shared the stage with John Hiatt, Dave Alvin, and Gillian Welch. Erelli's song “People Look Around”, which he co-wrote with Catie Curtis, was the Grand Prize winner at the 2005 International Songwriting Competition. His songs have been recorded by Ellis Paul, Vance Gilbert, Antje Duvekot, and Red Molly.
Meg Hutchinson is an American folk singer-songwriter. Originally from rural westernmost Massachusetts, Hutchinson is now based in the Boston area. Influences include poet Mary Oliver, songwriter Shawn Colvin, and mood maker David Gray. She has won numerous songwriting awards in the US, Ireland and UK, including recognition from John Lennon Songwriting Contest, Billboard Song Contest and prestigious competitions at Merlefest, NewSong, Kerrville, Falcon Ridge, Telluride Bluegrass and Rocky Mountain Folks festivals.
William Christopher Smither is an American folk/blues singer, guitarist, and songwriter. His music draws deeply from the blues, American folk music, and modern poets and philosophers.
Carolyn Arends is a Canadian contemporary Christian musician, songwriter, and author. She is based in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada.
Thomas George Russell is an American singer-songwriter. Although most strongly identified with the Americana music tradition, his music also incorporates elements of folk, rock, and the cowboy music of the American West. Many of his songs have been recorded by other artists, including Johnny Cash, The Texas Tornados, k.d. lang, Guy Clark, Joe Ely, The Sir Douglas Quintet, Jason Boland, Nanci Griffith, Katy Moffatt, Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Sailcat, Iris Dement, Dave Alvin, and Suzy Bogguss.
Paul Curreri, an American guitarist, pianist, songwriter, and music producer born in Seattle, Washington, and raised in Richmond, Virginia. He performs mainly in the folk and blues music styles. He married songwriter-guitarist Devon Sproule in May 2005 and lived with her in Charlottesville, Virginia. They have appeared and toured together, performing duets – most famously for Valentine's Day. He now produces his wife's tracks, providing supporting instrumentation.
Diana Jones is an American singer-songwriter based in Nashville, Tennessee. Jones's career gained wider critical acclaim in 2006 with the release of her album, My Remembrance of You. The album made a number of critics end-of-the-year "best of" lists. The Chicago Tribune rated the album as the "best country recording of 2006" and described Jones as "an Americana gem", whose sound rides "an old-timey vibe that never sounds fussy, ... in a voice subtly shaded by the high lonesome sound."
Pat Wictor is an American blues and folk musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, and recording artist. Known for his ethereal style, he was nominated for Emerging Artist of the Year in 2006 by the Folk Alliance, and has released a number of solo albums. In 2010 Wictor co-founded the folk trio Brother Sun, with singer-songwriters Joe Jencks and Greg Greenway, and the band has since released two full albums and toured extensively. Wictor also has an extensive discography as a sideman, playing instruments such as lap slide guitar and dobro. He currently resides in Brooklyn, New York.
Devon Sproule is a folk and indie rock singer-songwriter and musician based in Charlottesville, Virginia. She shared the ASCAP Foundation Sammy Cahn Award for 2009 with Oren Lavie. She is married to fellow musician, and music producer, Paul Curreri.
Kate Mann is an American musician currently based in Taos, New Mexico. She is originally from the Sandia Mountains in New Mexico but moved west as a young adult to pursue a career in music, then moved back in 2011.
Anthony da Costa is an American singer-songwriter based in Nashville, TN. He has been writing and performing original material since he was 13 years old. He names Ryan Adams, Dan Bern, and Bob Dylan as some of his biggest songwriting influences. He attended Columbia University and graduated with a bachelor's degree in ancient Greek and Roman history in 2013. In 2016, Anthony released his latest solo album, "Da Costa," which was self-produced and features Aaron Lee Tasjan, Devon Sproule, and members of Ben Kweller, Eric Johnson and Okkervil River. Anthony is also an in-demand live and session guitarist, having toured with Aoife O'Donovan of Crooked Still, Jimmy LaFave, Joy Williams, the Grammy-award-winning songwriter Sarah Jarosz, and two-time IBMA Guitar Player of the Year Molly Tuttle.
Jacob Moon is a solo Canadian folk singer/songwriter and guitarist based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. He has an extensive repertoire of songs, with nine albums to his credit. He has won many accolades and has been invited to perform for and with some of his heroes, including Rush, Marillion, Ron Sexsmith and Gordon Lightfoot. Moon's famous YouTube cover of Rush's Subdivisions went viral in 2009 and has earned him many fans around the world.
Kirsty McGee is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist from Manchester. She is well known within the British Folk scene although her music references Americana, Blues, Jazz and Rockabilly genres, and is influenced by the style of the Beatnik subculture. Her lyrics are typically deeply personal and introspective, and deal with a variety of subjects from politics to storytelling. She has worked with musicians such as Marc Ribot, Mike West, Danny Schmidt, Karine Polwart and Inge Thomson, and opened for Suzanne Vega, Eddi Reader and Capercaillie.
Carrie Elkin, is a folk/country singer and musician based out of Austin, Texas. Active since the mid-1990s, she signed with Red House Records in September 2010.
Wes Swing is a singer-songwriter based in Charlottesville, Virginia. His first album, Through a Fogged Glass was released in early 2011.
Cackalack is a 2010 studio album by Americana singer-songwriter Jonathan Byrd. The title is a variation of the word "Cackalacky", a popular nickname for the Carolinas and the songs all connect to the culture and music of Byrd's home state of North Carolina. The album was recorded in a single day with a group of musicians, including members of Creaking Tree String Quartet.
Charles Hazell, better known by the stage name Sketchman, is a British recording artist, songwriter, record producer and musician, originating from Sutton, London.
 | This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines.(December 2024) |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
