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| Denver
was known throughout the world as an entertainer. His 35 record albums,
national and international concert tours, popular feature films, and
top-rated
television specials and many television guest appearances have brought
him to the pinnacle of his profession. Yet, John Denver was more than
an
entertainer. He was a communicator with a unique talent which enabled
him
to share feelings, observations and opinions in a way in which all
people,
regardless of language, geographic, economic and political backgrounds
can relate to his messages.
Denver was born Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr., on New Year's Eve, 1943, in Roswell, New Mexico. His father's career in the U.S. Air Force required the family to move frequently. John's boyhood was nomadic, with homes in Arizona, Oklahoma, Alabama |
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Japan before the family finally settled in Fort Worth, Texas. Although
many of Denver's high school activities centered around music, he
studied
architecture in college. Music continued to draw him and he gradually
set
his sights on it as a career. Securing a job as a draftsman in Los
Angeles,
California, he moonlighted as a performer at many of the folk clubs and
eventually recorded some demos. He also changed his name to Denver,
taking
his new name from the city which connotes the beautiful Rocky Mountains
which he eventually made his home.
The demos proved a vehicle for mobility. John was asked to travel to the East Coast to audition as Chad Mitchell's replacement in the highly successful Chad Mitchell Trio. Denver was selected from over 250 applicants as lead singer of the Trio, and performed with them for over two years. Attention was drawn to Denver's talent as a songwriter, when his song, Leaving on a Jet Plane, was recorded by Peter, Paul and Mary and quickly rose to the top of the charts. Following this success, Denver performed at numerous colleges and built a national reputation of hits which made him one of the top singers of the decade. Sunshine on My Shoulders, Take Me Home, Country Roads, Rocky Mountain High, Annie's Song, Calypso, Thank God I'm a Country Boy, and many others were popular throughout the world. In 26 years, Denver has garnered 18 gold albums (over 500,000 units sold) and 10 platinum albums (over 1,000,000 units sold). "There's something in my music that speaks to people", he said in a 1981 interview after receiving the Premier Artist Award from his label, RCA, after world-wide sales of 10 million copies of his album John Denver's Greatest Hits. "The music has a commonality, a quality that people everywhere can relate to." While John Denver was at the top of the national music charts, his popularity spread to an international scale, making him one of the world's leading record sellers. He has received awards for gold albums (over 50,000 units sold) from Canada (2 albums), Australia (7 albums), Germany (1 double album) and Japan (1 album). John Denver is said to be one of the top 5 selling recording artists in the history of the music industry. Denver began touring the U.S. in 1975, performing for large audiences in major cities across the country. His average concert tour included 50 performances, with audiences in excess of 15,000 per show. During his 1984 tour, Denver reached the largest audience of his career during a single concert at the St. Louis VIP Fair, with 750,000 enthusiastic spectators in attendance. John extended his concert schedule to include international tours to such diverse areas as Canada, Europe, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the Philippines, and the Soviet Union. His sellout concert in London's Victoria Apollo Theatre was videotaped live in 1982 and shown twice by the BBC. |
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