Greg Brown (folk Musician)
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Gregory Dane Brown (born July 2, 1949) is an American folk singer-songwriter and guitarist from Iowa.


Early life

Brown was born into a musical family, and his father was a
Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a movement within the broader Evangelical wing of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes direct personal experience of God in Christianity, God through Baptism with the Holy Spirit#Cl ...
minister. He grew up in the Hacklebarney region of southwestern
Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...
, which he describes as "hill country." Brown spent several years traveling with a band before returning to Iowa, where he performed live and pursued his songwriting career.Aspen Times News interview.
Accessed on April 22, 2008.


Career

During the 1980s Brown toured and had recurring performances on ''
A Prairie Home Companion ''A Prairie Home Companion'' was a weekly radio variety show created and hosted by Garrison Keillor that aired live from 1974 to 2016. In 2016, musician Chris Thile took over as host, and the successor show was eventually renamed ''Live from He ...
''. Brown self-published two albums, '' 44 & 66'' and '' The Iowa Waltz''. Bob Feldman and Susan Ode founded the record company called Red House Records after producing a sold-out concert at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1990. Brown became its first recording artist. Brown has recorded two dozen albums. In 1986 he released an album called '' Songs of Innocence and of Experience'' based on poems by
William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake has become a seminal figure in the history of the Romantic poetry, poetry and visual art of the Roma ...
. His album '' One Big Town'' (1989) won an Indie Award from the
National Association of Independent Record Distributors The American Association of Independent Music (A2IM) is a trade association that represents independent record labels in the United States, founded in 2005. A2IM is headquartered in New York City, with chapters located in Nashville, Chicago, North ...
Greg Brown Tastes the Honey, Country Standard Time interview.
Accessed December 5, 2008.
and marked the beginning of Brown's long collaboration with Iowa guitarist Bo Ramsey. '' The Poet Game'' (1994), his tenth studio album, saw significant international radio play (charting on AAA and topping ''The Gavin Reports Americana chart), and received a NAIRD Indie award for singer-songwriter Album of the Year. '' The Live One'' (1995) proved to be a fan favorite capturing the humor, warmth, insights and spirit of his live shows. His 1996 release, '' Further In'', topped them all: critics called it a masterpiece and it received a four-star review in ''Rolling Stone''. Brown's 1997 release '' Slant 6 Mind'' earned him his second Grammy nomination. 1999 brought the re-release of '' One Night'', a live concert recording from October 1983 originally released on the Coffeehouse Extempore label. His album ''Solid Heart'' CD was recorded in 1999 during a benefit concert. Two releases followed in ''2000: Over and Under'' (Trailer Records) and the critically acclaimed '' Covenant'', which won the Association for Independent Music’s award for Best Contemporary Folk Album of 2000. A 2002 tribute album, ''Going Driftless: An Artist’s Tribute to Greg Brown'' featured guest vocal performances by
Ani DiFranco Angela Maria "Ani" DiFranco (; born September 23, 1970) is an American-Canadian singer-songwriter. She has released more than 20 albums. DiFranco's music has been classified as folk rock and alternative rock, although it has additional influenc ...
,
Gillian Welch Gillian Howard Welch (; born October 2, 1967) is an American singer-songwriter. She performs with her musical partner, guitarist David Rawlings. Their sparse and dark musical style, which combines elements of Appalachian music, bluegrass, coun ...
,
Shawn Colvin Shawn Colvin (born Shawna Lee Colvin, January 10, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter. She is best known for her 1997 Grammy Award-winning song "Sunny Came Home". Early life Colvin was born Shawna Lee Colvin in Vermillion, South Dakota, and ...
, and his three daughters. In 2006 he released ''
The Evening Call ''The Evening Call'' is an album by American folk singer/guitarist Greg Brown, released in 2006. It was his first album of all new material in over four years. Reception A review of the album in '' Sing Out!'' includes a lengthy description ...
'', which ''Acoustic Guitar'' magazine described as "among Brown's finest work" and which was featured on an episode of NPR's On Point. A recording of another benefit concert was recorded and released in 2007 under the name '' Yellow Dog'' on the EarthWorks Music label. In 2007, Brown was nominated for a Folk Alliance Award. In 2010, Brown played
Hades Hades (; , , later ), in the ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, is the god of the dead and the king of the Greek underworld, underworld, with which his name became synonymous. Hades was the eldest son of Cronus and Rhea ...
on ''
Hadestown ''Hadestown'' is a musical with music, lyrics, and a book by Anaïs Mitchell. It tells a version of the ancient Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. Eurydice, a young girl looking for something to eat, goes to work in a hellish industrial vers ...
'', a concept album by
Anaïs Mitchell Anaïs Mitchell (; born March 26, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and playwright. Mitchell has released eight studio albums, including ''Hadestown (album), Hadestown'' (2010), ''Young Man in America'' (2012), In 2024 he released ''Ring Around The Moon: A Songbook'', a collection of essays, photographs, and sheet music.


Personal life

Greg Brown has been married three times. He has one daughter from his first marriage:
Pieta Brown Pieta Brown (born 1973) is a critically acclaimed American singer-songwriter, artist, producer, and multi-instrumentalist who has released eight albums and five EPs. Although she's considered a folk/indie singer-songwriter, Brown also names count ...
; and two from his second marriage: Constance Brown and Zoe Brown. He has one son. Brown married singer-songwriter
Iris DeMent Iris Luella DeMent (born January 5, 1961) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. DeMent's musical style includes elements of folk, country and gospel. She has been nominated for a Grammy Award twice. Early life DeMent was born in Parag ...
in November 2002. In 2005, he and his wife adopted a daughter from Russia, Daria Chesnokova Victorona (Dasha Brown).


Discography

* '' Hacklebarney'' (1974) (with Dick Pinney) * '' 44 & 66'' (1980) * '' The Iowa Waltz'' (1981) * '' One Night'' (1983) * '' In the Dark with You'' (1985) * '' Songs of Innocence and of Experience'' (1986) * '' One More Goodnight Kiss'' (1988) * '' One Big Town'' (1989) * '' Down in There'' (1990) * '' Dream Café'' (1992) * '' Friend of Mine'' (1993) (with
Bill Morrissey Bill Morrissey (November 25, 1951 – July 23, 2011) was a Grammy-nominated American folk singer-songwriter based in New Hampshire. Early life Morrissey was born in Hartford, Connecticut. Growing up in Connecticut and Massachusetts, he started ...
) * '' Bathtub Blues'' (1993) * '' The Poet Game'' (1994) * '' The Live One'' (1995) * '' Further In'' (1996) * '' Slant 6 Mind'' (1997) * ''Solid Heart'' (1999) (benefit CD) * '' Over and Under'' (2000) * '' Covenant'' (2000) * '' Down in the Valley: Barn Aid Benefit Concert'' (2001) * '' Milk of the Moon'' (2002) * '' Live at the Black Sheep'' (2003) * '' If I Had Known: Essential Recordings, 1980-96'' (2003) * '' Honey in the Lion's Head'' (2004) * '' In the Hills of California'' (2004) * ''
The Evening Call ''The Evening Call'' is an album by American folk singer/guitarist Greg Brown, released in 2006. It was his first album of all new material in over four years. Reception A review of the album in '' Sing Out!'' includes a lengthy description ...
'' (2006) * '' Yellow Dog'' (2007) * ''Live from the Big Top'' (2007) * ''Dream City: Essential Recordings, 1997-2006'' (2009) * '' Freak Flag'' (2011) * ''Hymns to What Is Left'' (2012)


Tribute albums

* ''Songs of Greg Brown'' ( Prudence Johnson) (1991) * ''Going Driftless: An Artist's Tribute to Greg Brown'' (Various artists) (2002) * ''Seth Avett Sings Greg Brown'' ( Seth Avett) (2022)


Featured on

* ''
Hadestown ''Hadestown'' is a musical with music, lyrics, and a book by Anaïs Mitchell. It tells a version of the ancient Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. Eurydice, a young girl looking for something to eat, goes to work in a hellish industrial vers ...
'' (
Anaïs Mitchell Anaïs Mitchell (; born March 26, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and playwright. Mitchell has released eight studio albums, including ''Hadestown (album), Hadestown'' (2010), ''Young Man in America'' (2012),Greg Brown fan siteGreg Brown at Red House Records
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Greg 1949 births Living people People from Fairfield, Iowa American folk musicians American male singer-songwriters Fast Folk artists American basses Red House Records artists Singer-songwriters from Iowa