Clatsop Community College
1653 Jerome, Astoria OR 97103
For immediate release
Contact: Lenore Morrisson (503) 338-2473 lmorrisson@clatsopcc.edu
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CCC’s Arts & Ideas presents “John Gorka In Concert”

John Gorka, whom Rolling Stone Magazine calls “the preeminent male singer/songwriter of the new folk movement,” will perform at the Clatsop Community College Performing Arts Center at 7 p.m. Sunday, March 25 to benefit Coast Community Radio. Presented by CCC’s Arts & Ideas and Coast Community Radio, this promises to be an evening of unforgettable music.

Godfrey Daniels is one of the oldest and most venerable music institutions in Eastern Pennsylvania. A small neighborhood coffeehouse and listening room, it has long been a hangout for music lovers and aspiring musicians. In the late 1970s, one of these was a young Morovian College student named John Gorka. Though his academic coursework lay in philosophy and history, music began to offer paramount enticements.

Soon he found himself living in the club’s basement and acting as resident MC and soundman, encountering legendary folk troubadours like Canadian singer/songwriter Stan Rogers, Eric Anderson, Tom Paxton and Claudia Schmidt. Their brand of folk-inspired acoustic music inspired him, and before long he was performing his own songs, mostly as an opener for visiting acts. Soon he started traveling to New York City, where Jack Hardy’s legendary Fast Folk circle (a breeding ground for many a major singer/songwriter) became a powerful source of education and encouragement. Folk meccas like Texas’ Kerrville Folk Festival (where he won the New Folk Award in 1984) and Boston followed, and his stunningly soulful baritone and emerging songwriting began turning heads. Those who had at one time inspired him—Suzanne Vega, Bill Morrissey, Nanci Griffith, Christine Lavin, Shawn Colvin—had become his peers.

In 1987, the young Minnesota-based Red House Records caught wind of John’s talents and released his first album, “I Know,” to popular and critical acclaim. With the usual drive and focus, John hit the ground running, and when an offer came from Windham Hill’s Will Ackerman in 1989, he signed with that label’s imprint, High Street Records. He proceeded to record five albums with High Street over the next seven years: Land of the Bottom Line, Jack’s Crows, “Temporary Road,” “Out of the Valley,” and “Between Five and Seven.” His albums and his touring (over 150 nights a year at times) brought new accolades for his craft. Rolling Stone called him “the preeminent male singer/songwriter of the new folk movement.” His rich, multi-faceted songs full of depth, beauty and emotion, gained increasing attention from critics and audiences from across the country, as well as Europe.

To date, more than a score of artists have recorded and/or performed John Gorka songs, including Mary Chapin Carpenter, Mary Black and Maura O’Connell. He also started sharing tours with many notable friends—Nanci Griffith and Mary Chapin Carpenter among them. All this has brought his music to an ever-widening audience. His video for the single “When She Kisses Me” found a long-term rotation on VH-1’s “Current Country,” as well as on CMT and the Nashville Network. John also graced the stage of Austin City Limits, appeared on CNN and has been the subject of other national programming.

Finally, in 1998, after five successful recordings and seven years at Windham Hill/High Street, John felt the need for a change and decided to return to his musical roots at Red House Records.

His record “After Yesterday” reflects John’s continuing commitment to the craft of songwriting. Longtime fans will find in its songs John’s trademark twist of lyric and attention to details that so effectively evoke a time, a place, a person or a range of emotion. But there are also the stirrings of new musical directions with the evocative addition of percussion from Ani DiFranco’s drummer Andy Stochansky.

Though a long way from Godfrey Daniels, John Gorka is still honored to be a part of the folk tradition—energetic acoustic music that is not a trend, not a fad, but an expression of everyday life.

Tickets are $20 and are available at KMUN, 1445 Exchange Street Astoria, or the Astoria Co-Op, 1329 Duane Street. Tickets may also be purchased one hour prior to the performance (subject to availability) at the PAC box office, 16th and Franklin in Astoria.
For more information on John Gorka, visit www.johngorka.com or visit www.clatsopcc.edu/arts&ideas.

John Gorka