John Craigie (born June 15, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter and storyteller. Hailed as a "Modern-Day Troubadour" in the style of

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspired ...

, Craigie's comedic storytelling style has been compared to

Mitch Hedberg Mitchell Lee Hedberg (February 24, 1968 – March 30, 2005) was an American stand-up comedian known for his surreal humor and deadpan delivery. His comedy typically featured short, sometimes one-line jokes mixed with absurd elements and non se ...

, while his music and commitment to living on the road has drawn comparisons to Guthrie,

Ramblin' Jack Elliott Ramblin' Jack Elliott (born Elliot Charles Adnopoz; August 1, 1931) is an American folk singer and songwriter. Life and career Elliott was born in 1931 in Brooklyn, New York, United States, the son of Florence (Rieger) and Abraham Adnopoz, a ...

and

Pete Seeger Peter Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American folk singer and social activist. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, Seeger also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of the Weavers, notably ...

. He has performed with or opened for Jack Johnson,

Gregory Alan Isakov Gregory Alan Isakov (born October 19, 1979) is a South African-born singer-songwriter currently based in Boulder, Colorado. He and his family immigrated to the United States in 1986 and he was raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Isakov's musi ...

Todd Snider Todd Daniel Snider (born October 11, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter whose music incorporates elements of folk, rock, blues, alt country, and funk. Early career Todd Snider was born in Portland, Oregon, but was raised in nearby Beave ...

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, Nicki Bluhm,

Aoife O'Donovan Aoife O'Donovan ( , ; born November 18, 1982) is an American singer and Grammy award-winning songwriter. She is best known as the lead singer for the string band Crooked Still and she also co-founded the Grammy Award-winning female folk trio I'm ...

, ALO, Shook Twins, Rainbow Girls,

Avett Brothers The Avett Brothers are an American folk rock band from Concord, North Carolina. The band is made up of two brothers, Scott Avett (banjo, lead vocals, guitar, piano, kick-drum) and Seth Avett (guitar, lead vocals, piano, hi-hat) along with Bob C ...

, and

Trampled by Turtles Trampled by Turtles is an American bluegrass-influenced folk band from Duluth, Minnesota. They have released ten full albums, three of which reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard bluegrass chart. Their fifth release, ''Palomino'', stayed in the ...

Early life

John Craigie was born and raised in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. He is the grandson of U.S. Air Force general Laurence Craigie. He attended college at

UC Santa Cruz The University of California, Santa Cruz (UC Santa Cruz or UCSC) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Cruz, California. It is one of the ten campuses in the University of California system. Located on Monterey Bay, on the edge ...

in Northern California, where he graduated with a degree in mathematics. In Santa Cruz he began performing live music in local venues and house parties, first as lead singer and guitarist in a psychedelic rock band, "Pond Rock", then solo as a folk singer-songwriter and storyteller. He self-released several albums of songs in this period before his first major studio album, 2009's '' Montana Tale''.

Music career

Craigie is best known for his live performances which blend folk songwriting with comedic storytelling. His 2016 live album, '' Capricorn In Retrograde… Just Kidding… Live in Portland'', wound up on Jack Johnson's car stereo on a drive up the California coast, prompting Johnson to ask Craigie to open for him on 11 dates of his 2017 national Summer tour. Throughout the tour, Johnson brought Craigie on stage during his set to co-perform Craigie's song, "I Wrote Mr. Tambourine Man"; the pair released a single of the song, recorded live at The Greek Theatre in Berkeley, California. Craigie has released eight studio albums, two live albums, and two cover albums. His album '' No Rain, No Rose'', released in 2017, was recorded in his Portland-home living room, and features

and Shook Twins. 2020's '' Asterisk The Universe'' features Rainbow Girls and was recorded with friends in a Northern California cabin.

Discography

Studio albums

* '' Montana Tale'' (2009) * '' October is the Kindest Month'' (2011) * '' The Apocalypse Is Over'' (2013) * '' Working On My Farewell'' (2015) * '' No Rain, No Rose'' (2017) * ''

Scarecrow A scarecrow is a decoy or mannequin, often in the shape of a human. Humanoid scarecrows are usually dressed in old clothes and placed in open fields to discourage birds from disturbing and feeding on recently cast seed and growing crops.Lesley ...

'' (2018) * '' Asterisk The Universe'' (2020) * '' Mermaid Salt'' (2022)

Live albums

* '' Capricorn in Retrograde...just kidding...Live in Portland'' (2016) * '' Opening for Steinbeck'' (2018)

Cover albums

* ''Leave the Fire Behind'' (cover versions of 1990s alternative rock songs, 2010) * ''Paper Airplane'' (cover versions of

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

songs, 2012)

References

External links

Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Craigie, John Living people 1980 births American folk musicians American folk singers American male singer-songwriters Musicians from Los Angeles Singer-songwriters from California 21st-century American singers 21st-century American male singers