John Ginty
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John Ginty (born 1972) is an American organist, keyboard player, and session musician. He was a founding member of Robert Randolph's "Family Band", and is often seen guesting with such jamband luminaries as the
Allman Brothers Allman may refer to: Music *The Allman Brothers Band The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock music, rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1969. Its founding members were brothers Duane Allman (slide guitar, lead guitar) and Greg ...
,
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,
Govt. Mule Gov't Mule (pronounced "Government Mule") is an American Southern rock jam band, formed in 1994 by guitarist Warren Haynes, bassist Allen Woody (both of The Allman Brothers Band at the time) and drummer Matt Abts (whom Haynes had worked with in ...
, Bob Weir and Ratdog,
Widespread Panic Widespread Panic is an American rock band from Athens, Georgia. The current lineup includes guitarist/singer John Bell (musician), John Bell, bassist Dave Schools, drummer Duane Trucks, percussionist Domingo "Sunny" Ortiz, keyboardist John "JoJ ...
. In 2001 at the
Roseland Ballroom The Roseland Ballroom was a multipurpose hall, in a converted ice skating rink, with a colorful ballroom dancing pedigree, in New York City's Theater District, New York, theater district, on 52nd Street (Manhattan), West 52nd Street in Manhattan ...
in
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
, Ginty was the recipient of the
Jammy Award The Jammy Award (also known as the Jammys) is an awards show for bands - referred to as jam bands - and other artists associated with live, improvisational music, created by Dean Budnick and Peter Shapiro. The Jammys are sponsored by Relix magaz ...
for best new band alongside his Family Bandmates. Ginty has spent a large portion of his career working as a session musician.


Biography

Ginty started his career playing a local New Jersey band called "Rose Hill" where he transitioned from a drummer to playing the Hammond B3. He played in this band from approximately 1991 to 1994. Then in 1996 he played organ on
Neal Casal Neal Graeme Casal (November 2, 1968 – August 26, 2019) ...
’s record ''Fade Away Diamond Time'', which led him to play on records by
Whiskeytown Whiskeytown was an American alternative country band formed in 1994 from Raleigh, North Carolina. Fronted by Ryan Adams, the group included members Caitlin Cary, Phil Wandscher, Eric "Skillet" Gilmore, and Mike Daly. They disbanded in 2000 ...
,
James Iha (born March 26, 1968) is an American rock musician. He is best known as a guitarist and co-founder of the alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins. He was a member until the band's initial breakup in 2000 and rejoined in 2018. Iha has als ...
, and Hazeldine, before joining Jewel’s touring band for
MTV Unplugged ''MTV Unplugged'' is an American television series on MTV. It showcases recorded live performances of popular music artists playing acoustic instrument, acoustic or "unplugged" variations of songs. The show aired regularly from 1989 to 1999. F ...
,
Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...
, the first
Lilith Fair Lilith Fair was a concert tour and travelling music festival, founded by Canadian musician Sarah McLachlan, Nettwerk Music Group's Dan Fraser and Terry McBride (CEO), Terry McBride, and New York talent agent Marty Diamond. It took place during ...
tour in 1998, and the following Papillion Tour in 1999. The following years saw him playing on records by
Citizen Cope Clarence Greenwood (born May 20, 1968), also known by his stage name, Citizen Cope, is an American singer-songwriter and producer. His music is commonly described as a mix of blues music, blues, soul music, soul, hip hop music, hip hop, folk mus ...
,
Matthew Sweet Sidney Matthew Sweet (born October 6, 1964) is an American alternative rock/power pop singer-songwriter and musician who was part of the burgeoning music scene in Athens, Georgia, during the 1980s before gaining commercial success in the 1990 ...
, and
Shannon McNally Shannon Maureen McNally (born March 17, 1973) is an American singer and songwriter. Biography McNally was born in Hempstead, New York, on Long Island. While studying anthropology at Franklin and Marshall College, she began singing and playing ...
. In 2000, Ginty got together with pedal steel player Robert Randolph, and helped him form the “Family Band”, which consisted of Randolph, Ginty, and Robert's cousins Danyel Morgan on bass, and Marcus Randolph on drums. After a year of touring, the Family Band released '' Live At the Wetlands'' in 2002. The album is a live recording of the band at the famed NYC club recorded by producer Jim Scott. The band recorded a studio follow-up in 2002 again with producer Jim Scott, called ''Unclassified'', which garnered the band two Grammy nominations, one for best rock instrumental performance 46th Grammy Awards and for Best Rock Gospel Album. In that same year, the band backed the legendary
Blind Boys of Alabama Blind often refers to: * The state of blindness, being unable to see * A window blind, a covering for a window Blind may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Blind'' (1987 film), a documentary by Frederick Wiseman about th ...
on the Grammy winning release ''Higher Ground''. According to
People Magazine ''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC (company), IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''Peopl ...
, “John Ginty's organ nicely complement the Blind Boys' vigorous jubilee-style gospel, creating a sound that will indeed take you higher.“ 2004 saw Ginty playing on records by
Bad Religion Bad Religion is an American punk rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1980. The band's lyrics cover topics related to religion, politics, society, the media and science. Musically, they are noted for their melodic sensibilities and ...
,
Tift Merritt Catherine Tift Merritt (born January 8, 1975) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She has released seven studio albums, two for Lost Highway Records, two for Fantasy Records, and three for Yep Roc Records. Early life and education Me ...
, Neal Casal, and '' The Clarence Greenwood Recordings'' by Citizen Cope, where Ginty is credited with playing Keyboards, Organ, Synthesizer, and Synthesizer Strings. While continuing his session work and touring with Citizen Cope, in 2006 Ginty formed the New Jersey–based John Ginty Band. They released a live record called ''Fireside Live'', recorded in Denville, New Jersey. It is the first recording to showcase Ginty as a bandleader. The recording includes guest performances by Ratdog's Mark Karan, and J.T. Thomas from Bruce Hornsby's band. The record was released on Ginty's own label, Shark Tank Records. Glide Magazine said of the record, “''Fireside Live'' is loads of fun, as if
Joey DeFrancesco Joey DeFrancesco (April 10, 1971August 25, 2022) was an American jazz organist, trumpeter, saxophonist, and occasional singer. He released more than 30 albums under his own name, and recorded extensively as a sideman with such leading jazz perfo ...
or
Little Jimmy Scott James Victor Scott (July 17, 1925 – June 12, 2014), known professionally as Little Jimmy Scott or Jimmy Scott, was an American jazz vocalist known for his high natural contralto voice and his sensitivity on ballads and love songs. After ...
traded in the more academic jazz aesthetic (but retained same chops and improvisational proclivities) to front a boozy gospel-rock outfit Ginty’s taken to calling “outlaw gospel.” He has played with such artists as Jewel,
Matthew Sweet Sidney Matthew Sweet (born October 6, 1964) is an American alternative rock/power pop singer-songwriter and musician who was part of the burgeoning music scene in Athens, Georgia, during the 1980s before gaining commercial success in the 1990 ...
,
Citizen Cope Clarence Greenwood (born May 20, 1968), also known by his stage name, Citizen Cope, is an American singer-songwriter and producer. His music is commonly described as a mix of blues music, blues, soul music, soul, hip hop music, hip hop, folk mus ...
,
Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer * Sailboat designs by W. D. Schock Corp ** Santana 20 ** Santan ...
,
Robert Randolph and the Family Band Robert Randolph and the Family Band is an American Gospel music, gospel band led by pedal steel guitarist Robert Randolph (Robert Jermaine Randolph, born August 8, 1977, Irvington, New Jersey). National Public Radio, NPR has described the band a ...
,
Court Yard Hounds Court Yard Hounds were an American country music and folk duo, founded by sisters Martie Maguire and Emily Strayer. They, along with Natalie Maines, make up The Chicks, formerly the Dixie Chicks. The sisters decided to record a side project ...
, the
Dixie Chicks The Chicks (formerly the Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. The band consists of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar, bass guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) and Emily Stra ...
, and many others. as well as the critically acclaimed ''Like A Bird, Like a Plane'' by Charlie Mars. In 2013, Ginty got together with producer Ben Elliott, and began work on his first official studio release, ''Bad News Travels''. The record features special guests
Warren Haynes Warren Haynes (born April 6, 1960) is an American musician, singer and songwriter. He is best known for his work as longtime guitarist with the Allman Brothers Band and as founding member of the jam band Gov't Mule. Early in his career he was ...
,
Martie Maguire Martha Elenor Maguire (née Erwin, previously Seidel; October 12, 1969) is an American musician who is a founding member of the country band the Chicks and the country bluegrass duo Court Yard Hounds. She won awards in national fiddle championsh ...
, Neal Casal, Alecia Chakour,
Albert Castiglia Albert Castiglia (born August 12, 1969) is an American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist. Castiglia has variously worked alongside Junior Wells, Sandra Hall, Aron Burton, Pinetop Perkins, Melvin Taylor, Sugar Blue, Phil Guy, Ronnie Earl, Bi ...
,
Todd Wolfe Todd Stewart Wolfe (born January 22, 1957, in Queens, New York, United States) is an American blues rock guitarist and singer-songwriter. His professional career has spanned for a period of six decades and had released nine albums with his ow ...
, and Cris Jacobs. They recorded it at Elliott's Showplace Studios in Dover, New Jersey, on the vast collection of vintage analog gear that resides there. ''Bad News Travels'' features ten songs, all written by Ginty, and was released September 12, 2013, on Elliott's American Showplace Music label. The new CD has garnered many favorable reviews.
Relix Magazine ''Relix'', originally and occasionally later ''Dead Relix'', is a magazine that focuses on live and improvisational music. The magazine was launched in 1974 as a handmade newsletter devoted to connecting people who recorded Grateful Dead concer ...
said "Creating a seemingly effortless blend of blues, classic rock, funk and soul, Ginty utilizes his past experience as well as numerous special guests. One minute Todd Wolfe is confidently weaving a guitar solo in the smooth "Peanut Butter" and the next minute, vocalist Alecia Chakour is strutting about on the soulful and spunky "Seven & The Spirit." ''
Keyboard Magazine ''Keyboard'' is a magazine that originally covered electronic keyboard instruments and keyboardists, though with the advent of computer-based recording and audio technology, they have added digital music technology to their regular coverage, in ...
'' February 2014 issue featured lessons by John Ginty. Several books mention John Ginty including Strangers Almanac by Michael Heaplie on page 47 which talk of Ginty's participation in the making of
Ryan Adams David Ryan Adams (born November 5, 1974) is an American Rock music, rock and Country music, country singer-songwriter. He has released 30 studio albums and three as a former member of Whiskeytown. In 2000, Adams left Whiskeytown and released ...
'
Whiskeytown Whiskeytown was an American alternative country band formed in 1994 from Raleigh, North Carolina. Fronted by Ryan Adams, the group included members Caitlin Cary, Phil Wandscher, Eric "Skillet" Gilmore, and Mike Daly. They disbanded in 2000 ...
, one of the biggest selling country music albums of all time. An excerpt from the book can be found here Another book to mention Ginty's important musical contributions is Jambands by
Dean Budnick Dean Budnick is an American writer, filmmaker, college professor, podcast creator and radio host who focuses on music, film and popular culture. Budnick, who is editor-in-chief of ''Relix'',"Editor's note". ''Relix''. October/November 2013. gre ...
on page 182 In 2013, Ginty was called upon again by Jim Scott to play on a record by the Court Yard Hounds called ''Amelita''. He then joined the Dixie Chicks touring band, playing keyboards on their “Long Time Gone Tour”. On June 11, 2014, John Ginty entered the Showplace Studios to record the ''Bad News Travels Live'' DVD. Ginty recreated music from his ''Bad News Travels'' CD. Guesting were
Albert Castiglia Albert Castiglia (born August 12, 1969) is an American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist. Castiglia has variously worked alongside Junior Wells, Sandra Hall, Aron Burton, Pinetop Perkins, Melvin Taylor, Sugar Blue, Phil Guy, Ronnie Earl, Bi ...
, Todd Wolfe, Cris Jacobs, Jimmy Bennett and Alexis P. Suter. In November 2019, Ginty joined the newly formed Allman Betts Band.


Discography


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ginty, John 1972 births Living people American male organists American session musicians 21st-century American keyboardists 21st-century American organists 21st-century American male musicians American organists The Allman Betts Band members