John Denver, The #31 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Three

 

(Continued from Part Two)

One of the most beloved stars of his time, Denver hosted the Grammy Awards five times and guest-hosted for Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show many times.

But when Weintraub began to focus on other projects and John complained that he needed him to help him, Weintraub threw him out.  Denver later said to Arthur Tobier, who was helping him with his autobiography, "I'd bend my principles to support something he wanted of me. And of course every time you bend your principles – whether because you don't want to worry about it, or because you're afraid to stand up for fear of what you might lose – you sell your soul to the devil."

In 1976, Denver released his Greatest Hits, Volume 2 album, which rose to #3 in Australia and #6 in the U.S. and has sold over two million copies.

John founded the Windstar Foundation in 1976 to promote sustainable living.    

In 1977, John co-founded The Hunger Project and served as CEO for many years.  He released the album I Want to Live in 1977, which included the #2 Adult hit "How Can I Leave You Again". 

 Appointed by U.S. President Jimmy Carter to serve on the President's Commission on World Hunger, Denver wrote "I Want To Live" as its theme song from the album of the same name.  It reached #2 on the Adult chart.

 

I Want to Live also went Platinum, John's seventh straight Gold album.  "It Amazes Me" is another of his last great songs.

Denver's self-titled 1979 album also went Gold.

In 1979, John performed at the Music for UNICEF Concert in the United Nations International Year of the Child.  Later that year, John was named one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men of America.

During this time, John's father taught him how to fly, which enabled the two to become close after many years apart.  In 1980, Denver and his father co-hosted the television special, "The Higher We Fly:  the History of Flight", which won an Osborn Award from the Aviation/Space Writers' Association and was honored by the Houston Film Festival.

Denver's album Autography broke his streak of consecutive Gold albums at eight.   Denver collaborated on "Perhaps Love" with elite tenor Placido Domingo for Domingo's album of the same name.  Although it stalled at #22 on the AC chart, it has now turned into a Christmas hit played every December.  But it's much more than that; "Perhaps Love" is one of The Top Unknown/Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*.

Denver got back on track with  Some Days Are Diamonds in 1981, another Gold release.  John covered "Some Days Are Diamonds (Some Days Are Stones)", written and originally recorded by Dick Feller.

 

In 1982, John released Seasons of the Heart, his last Gold album.  "Shanghai Breezes" also was Denver's last big hit, going to #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart.

 

The album was dedicated to his wife Annie.  The two had been separated for some time and they divorced the following year.  The title song is powerful and gut-wrenching.

 

John won the Carl Sandburgh People's Poet Award.  It's About Time in 1983 contained the superb title song.

In 1984, the compilation John Denver's Greatest Hits, Volume 3 was released, which has been certified Gold.

John was called on by ABC-TV to write songs on the spot to represent the feeling of the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. 

He visited Africa to witness first-hand the horrors of starvation and worked with leaders on solutions to the problem.  In 1985, U.S. President Ronald Reagan awarded John the Presidential World Without Hunger Award. 

Denver released the album Dreamland Express in 1985.  

Denver served on the Board of Governors of the National Space Society for several years and helped to bring about the "Citizens in Space" program.  In 1985, John received the NASA Public Service Medal for "helping to increase awareness of space exploration by the peoples of the world", an award usually reserved for engineers and designers.  Denver passed the demanding NASA physical exam and was a finalist for the first citizen in space in 1986.  When the Space Shuttle Challenger blew up shortly after takeoff with teacher Christa McAuliffe on board, Denver dedicated "Flying For Me" to all NASA astronauts. 

John released the album One World in 1986 followed by Higher Ground in 1988.

After Anne and John divorced, Denver courted Cassandra Delaney and married her in 1988.  They divorced in 1993.

Denver released the albums Earth Songs and The Flower That Shattered the Stone in 1990.

John was the on-camera narrator of the television program In Partnership With Earth for Earth Day, 1990.  Denver released the album Different Directions in 1991.  

John won the Albert Schweitzer Music Award in 1993.  In 1994, Denver published his autobiography, Take Me Home. 

Later that year, Denver released the compilation album The Very Best of John Denver, which has sold over one million copies in the United States alone.

The live album The Wildlife Concert in 1995 was certified Gold.

In 1996, John was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.  The compilation album The Rocky Mountain Collection went Platinum.  

The following year, Denver recorded the children's album All Aboard!, which posthumously won a Grammy Award for Best Musical Album for Children, the only Grammy Award of his career.

John's love of flying was second only to his love of music.  He purchased a Learjet in 1974 to fly himself to concerts and owned several planes.  On October 12, 1997 Denver's Adrian Davis Long-EZ plane crashed into Monterey Bay near Pacific Grove, California while making several touch-and-go landings at the Monterey Peninsula Airport.  Denver had over 2,700 hours of experience at the time of the tragedy.

A post-accident investigation by the National Transportation safety Board found that the leading cause of the crash was Denver's inability to switch fuel tanks during flight.  The fuel selector valve handle was supposed to be located between the pilot's legs, but the builder instead installed the fuel selector behind the pilot's left shoulder, with the fuel gauge not visible to the pilot.  Denver was aware of this problem and worked with a mechanic to extend the reach of the handle, but the two were unable to come up with a solution.  To switch the fuel tank, Denver had to turn his body 90 degrees to reach the valve.

After his death, the album The Best of John Denver Live was released, which was certified Gold.

In 1998, the Grammy Hall of Fame inducted John's song "Take Me Home, Country Roads".

In 2002, Denver's fans financed a "Spirit" statue that is located at the Colorado Music Hall of Fame at Red Rocks.

The Colorado state legislature adopted "Rocky Mountain High" as one of its state songs in 2007.  Also that year, the California Friends of John and the Windstar Foundation unveiled a bronze plaque near the spot where his plane crashed.  

In 2014, the West Virginia Legislature approved a resolution to make "Take Me Home, Country Roads" the official state song of the state.  Denver thus became the second person after Stephen Foster to be the composer of two state songs.

In 2014, John was posthumously awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7065 Hollywood Boulevard.  The honor was accepted by his children, Zachary and Jesse.

Denver had 32 career hits, seven of which reached the Top 10, with four #1's.  Not bad with the teenage crowd, but among adults, John was one of the most successful of all-time, chalking up 35 hits, 19 Top 10 songs and nine #1's.

John earned 12 Gold and four Platinum albums.

Denver won a Grammy Award, three American Music Awards, an Emmy Award and a People's Choice Award

John Denver, The #31 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Two

 

(Continued from Part One)

 

As great of a reputation as Denver had gained to this point, his fans knew he was even better live.  A natural, genuine entertainer, John captured his live shows on the album An Evening with John Denver, released in 1976.  Denver released the single "Thank God I'm A Country Boy" from the album, and it jumped to #1 in both the United States and Canada and was certified Gold.

The live album has now sold over three million copies in the U.S. alone.  

John's concert special, An Evening with John Denver, won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Special, Comedy, Variety or Music.    Denver also won a People's Choice Award for Favorite Male Performer.

Denver's manager, Jerry Weintraub, set up television appearances often, including several in the United Kingdom.  John protested, saying "I've had no success in Britain...I mean none."  Weintraub told Maureen Orth of Newsweek in 1976, "I knew the critics would never go for John.  I had to get him to the people."  It must have felt good to do an end run around the critics and prove them wrong.

 

In 1975, John released the album Rocky Mountain Christmas, which has become one of the most treasured Christmas albums of all-time.  Containing John's simple but unique arrangements of Christmas standards and his one-of-a-kind genuine heartfelt voice, the album has sold over two million copies.  Denver's version of "The Christmas Song" stands out.

 "Silver Bells" is another one that once Denver recorded it, it became a holiday favorite.

Rocky Mountain Christmas reached #14 on the Album chart, almost unheard of for a Christmas album. 

John's incredible tenor voice is just what this classic song needed--"Away In A Manger".

 "What Child Is This" is another superb touch that only Denver can give a song.

 "Silent Night" has been recorded by hundreds of artists, but few sang it with the tenderness it deserves.

 

Here is an exquisite version of "Oh Holy Night".

In 1976, Denver hosted the television special Rocky Mountain Christmas, watched by 65 million people, the most in the history of ABC-TV at the time.  Critics can't do a whole lot about that.

 Denver won an American Music Award for Favorite Pop/Rock Male Artist.  In 1975, he released another outstanding album, Windsong.  "I'm Sorry" also hit #1 in both the U.S. and Canada and sold over one million singles.

 "Calypso" was another gigantic hit at #2, a song John wrote in tribute to close friend Jacques-Yves Cousteau and the research ship he sailed the world for ocean conservation, the Calypso.  It was the B-side to "I'm Sorry", but increasingly got major airplay itself, making it one of The Top Double-Sided Hits of the Rock Era*.

 

John asked Olivia Newton-John to join him on "Fly Away", yet another #1 Adult smash that peaked at #13 overall, that is a desire for the simpler things in life.

 "Looking For Space" also reached #1 on the Easy Listening chart, his seventh #1 song among adults in a little over two years.  "It's about looking for the definition of who you are, by finding out where you are," Denver said, "not only physically, but mentally and emotionally."

 Windsong gave Denver two consecutive #1 albums and has now sold over two million copies in the United States alone.  In 1976, John won American Music Awards for Favorite Country Male Artist and Favorite Country Album. "Spirit" is one of The Top Unknown/Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*.

 

John also appeared on The Muppet Show, the beginning of a long friendship between Denver and Jim Henson that led to two television specials and the 1979 Platinum album A Christmas Together.  Denver and The Muppet's version of "12 Days Of Christmas" is another holiday standard.

Denver appeared on an episode of McCloud on television in 1974 and excelled in the 1977 movie Oh, God! with co-star George Burns.

 

In 1976, Denver released the album Spirit, another LP to reach the Top 10 and go Platinum.  By this time, teenagers liked harder rock, but since adults dominate the Rock audience, John continued to excel on Adult stations, once again topping the chart with "Like A Sad Song".

More from one of the most beloved artists the world has ever known in Part Three!

John Denver, The #31 Artist of the Rock Era, Part One

 "Tears for the beauty of his music."

"Denver was the poet of his generation."

"What a tremendous talent he was."

"John Denver warms my Heart, fills me with Joy and transports me to a time when things were much simpler…Maybe that time and place never really existed but they did for me…."

"John Denver's voice has always comforted me."

"He sounds like an angel."

"His songs are deeply moving."

"I will always love John Denver's music."

"Truly one of the greats of his generation."

"One of the cream of the crop of entertainers in our lifetime."

"Brilliant!  Love John Denver forever and for always!"

"RIP, John--I thank you for the music you left behind."

"One of the best singers that ever lived."

"Full of life, the celebration of living."

"His music soars!"

"John Denver was incredible the range of his voice was awesome and his songs are timeless."

"John Denver was totally awesome."

"His music speaks to my heart."

"Pure magic in the form a grand poet blessed with a truly great musical soul. He is never any further away than the songs he gave us."

"Future generations will come upon these songs and once again will be touched by their soul-inspiring notes."

Henry John Deutschendorf Jr. was born December 31, 1943 in Roswell, New Mexico.  His father, Lt. Col. Henry Deutschendorf, Sr. set three speed records in the B-58 Hustler bomber and earned a spot in the Air Force Hall of Fame.  With his father in the military, the family lived in several locations.

While in Tucson, Arizona, John was in the Tucson Boys Chorus for two years.  When he was 11, he received an acoustic guitar from his grandmother and practiced hard.  While at Arlington Heights High School in Fort Worth, Texas, John took his father's car and drove to California to visit friends of the family and begin a music career.  When his father found out about it, he flew to California to bring his son back, with John eventually finishing high school.

(Denver (second from left) performed with his group at the Kappa Alpha Grubber's Ball in 1961...


After graduating, John was ready to perform at local clubs, taking the name "Denver" after the capital of his favorite state, Colorado.  Denver studied Architecture at Texas Tech University and joined a Folk group called the Alpine Trio.  After two years, however, John's love of music again lured him away from school.  He moved to Los Angeles and sang in Folk clubs.

In 1965, Denver joined the Mitchell Trio, replacing founder Chad Mitchell.  John recorded a demo of some of the songs he had written, in the hopes of eventually striking out on his own.  One of the songs, "Babe I Hate To Go", was later renamed "Leaving On A Jet Plane".  Milt Okun, who produced for the Mitchell Trio, also produced Peter, Paul and Mary.  Okun brought the song to Peter, Paul and Mary and they enjoyed their only career #1 hit with it.  

In 1967, John married Annie Martell.

In 1969, John left the group and signed a recording contract with RCA Records.  He released his debut album, Rhymes & Reasons.  Although Denver wasn't a high priority at the time with RCA, John traveled throughout the Midwest, stopping in towns at his choosing and offering to play free concerts at local venues.  John personally went throughout the town distributing posters and promoting the shows at local radio stations.  As the author of "Leaving On A Jet Plane", this usually got his "foot in the door".  
 

John sold his album at intermissions and after shows.  After several months of this self-promotion, Denver had sold enough albums to convince RCA that they should extend his contract.  Meanwhile, he had attracted a sizable fan base, many who stayed loyal to him throughout his career.  "Rhymes & Reasons" was a promising track; we will play the better one released later on his Greatest Hits album.

 

John released the albums Take Me to Tomorrow and Whose Garden Was This, but neither enticed airplay of the amount needed to take the next step.  But in 1971, Denver wrote this song with Bill and Taffy Danoff, who went on the form the group Starland Vocal Band.  Denver's single "Take Me Home, Country Roads" moved slowly up the charts as John was to this point largely unknown.  Denver pushed RCA to promote it more, which they did, and it became a huge hit in the summer, rising to #2 in the United States and #3 in Canada and selling over one million units.  

 

Tasting solo success for the first time, Denver released another album, Aerie, later in the year.  Although it was void of hits, one should have been.  John wrote this song for a prospective television special he filmed in the Rocky Mountains.  The special never did air, but Denver included the song on Aerie.  John described his inspiration on his radio special The John Denver Show:

     The mountains aren't the only majestic things in the

      high country.  There are those incredibly 

     graceful and inspiring birds of prey.  "The Eagle

      And The Hawk" captures my feelings exactly about 

     these magnificent birds, and the way man threatens 

     their existence."

 

"The Eagle And The Hawk", never released as a single, is one of The Top Unknown/Underrated Songs of the Rock Era* and was later featured on John's Greatest Hits album.

 

As he traveled extensively while his father was stationed in the military, John really felt like he was coming home when he moved to Colorado.  The Denvers moved to Starwood before Chistmas in 1970 at a time in which the area was developed only minimally.  "Starwood In Aspen" describes the feeling he had about finally settling down in his new home.

The album Poems, Prayers and Promises has now sold over one million copies.  The title song later became a fan favorite, though not the version found on this album.  More on that later.

In 1972, John was set to release his next album in September, which was to be called Mother Nature's Son, named after the Beatles song of the same name which they gave him permission to record.  After writing this song, however, Denver changed the album's name and released the album Rocky Mountain High.  

With most of the work completed, Annie, John, and some friends drove to Williams Lake to watch the first Perseid meteor showers.  "There was so much light from the stars in the sky that there was a noticeable difference between the clearing of the trees and everywhere else," Denver said.  "The shadow of the starlight blew me away."  The experience moved John to write "Rocky Mountain High":

     I worked on the song - and the song worked on me - 

     for a good couple of weeks.  I was working one day 

     with Mike Taylor, an acoustic guitarist who had 

     performed with me at the Cellar Door and had 

     moved out to Aspen.  Mike sat down and showed me 

     this guitar lick and suddenly the whole thing came                   together.  It was just what the piece needed.  

    When I realized what I had - another anthem, maybe; a 

    true expression of one's self, maybe - we 

    changed the sequencing of the album we'd just 

    completed, and then we changed the album title. 

 

The title song peaked at #8 in Canada and #9 in the U.S. and on March 12, 2007, the Colorado General Assembly made "Rocky Mountain High" an official state song of that state.  Snowmass, a ski resort near Aspen, later named a run "Rocky Mountain High" in honor of Denver.

The album's cover photograph was taken at Slaughterhouse Falls on the Rio Grande Trail in Aspen. 

 

This album made people realize that Denver had immense talent and depth as a songwriter.  At its peak, it was the #1 album in Canada and #4 in the United States and has sold over two million copies.  Another track, later included on Denver's Greatest Hits, is another worthy song--"Goodbye Again".  Eric Weissberg, who later helped Dan Fogelberg on several of his albums including one that they collaborated on (Twin Sons of Different Mothers, which included "The Power Of Gold"), played guitar and banjo for Denver on the song.

After the success of "Rocky Mountain High", John and his wife Annie moved to Aspen, Colorado, where he lived until his death.  

Denver released the album Farewell Andromeda in 1973.  None of the singles caught on, but after he became a superstar, fans subsequently purchased albums earlier in John's catalog, enabling Farewell Andromeda to be certified Gold.

 

John released his Greatest Hits album, which contained a new recording "Sunshine On My Shoulders", originally included on his Poems, Prayers and Promises album.  

Denver wrote the song on an early spring day when he lived in Minnesota.  The rain was gently falling and John was looking forward to spending time outdoors and enjoying the sunshine.  "On one level it was about the virtues of love," Denver said.  "On another, more deeply felt level, it reached for something the whole world could embrace."

Previously it was the B-side of "I'd Rather Be A Cowboy" on the Poems, Prayers and Promises album.  When promoted properly as the A-side from his Greatest Hits album, it raced to #1 in the U.S. and Canada and sold over one million copies.  "Sunshine" finished the year as one of The Top 10 Songs of 1974*.

 

The album also featured several new and better recordings of earlier songs.  One example is "Poems, Prayers and Promises", one of the most beautiful and meaningful songs ever written.   It is easily one of The Top Unknown/Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*. 

"Follow Me" is another re-recording that sounds far superior to the one first released on the Take Me To Tomorrow album.

Before he performed the song on The Tonight Show in 1974, Denver said he wrote it for his wife whom he had to leave behind when he was touring early in his career because he couldn't afford to take her with him. 

  

We promised to play the updated and better version of "Rhymes & Reasons".  Here it is!  In John Denver - The Complete Lyrics -, John says:

     "Rhymes and Reasons" is, I think, one of the best 

     songs I’ve ever written. I wrote the song - or 

     started at least - in the shower one morning. It comes 

     from a very real and consistent thought that the

     children and the flowers are my sisters and my 

     brothers. I do not feel separate from any aspect or 

     from of life. I feel part of it, and bound to it, and the

     way I expressed the feeling was to use the phrase 

     "the children and the flowers". There is a brotherhood               there, and a sisterhood. It’s funny to me that even 

     before the time of women’s liberation there was a

     desire to uphold that concept. The song is basically  

     autobiographical. It’s not one of those songs where 

     I’ve described someone who has a job to do in the

     world. I’m describing who that person is - the song is 

     about me. I intend to lead people to the mountains; I 

     intend to lead them back to the earth, back to the

     spirit. Songs like "Rhymes and Reasons" are a 

    way of doing that for me.

The compilation is just short of Diamond status, currently over nine million albums sold.  The album soared to #1 in the U.S. and Canada and reached the Top 10 in nearly every major country in the world.

"Take Me Home, Country Roads" and "Rocky Mountain High" got John's solo career started, and most music professionals were aware that he wrote "Leaving On A Jet Plane", but the 1974 album Back Home Again solidified Denver as a star. 

 

John wrote this song for his wife after a separation and near breakup of their marriage.  He was riding on a ski life in Aspen and John was inspired to write the song when he came home.  Denver said it was one of the fastest songs he ever wrote, composing it in about 10 minutes.

"Annie's Song" kept up the momentum, again topping charts in both the United States and Canada and selling a million copies.  It too finished the year as one of The Top 10 Songs of 1974*.

 

There will never be another like him, with a voice so pure and songs that touch the heart.  John's unique songwriting style was based on a philosophy that there is a commonality in all of us:

My music and my work stem from the conviction

that people everywhere are intrinsically the same.

Parents are the same, lovers are the same,

families are the same. It’s that shared experience to

which my music is directed. When I write a song, I

want to take the personal experience or observation

I have and express it in as universal a way as

possible. I absolutely believe there is something in all

of us that binds us together.

The title song hit #1 on the Adult chart and #5 overall and also sold over one million copies.

 

 

In 1974, Denver was named poet laureate of the state of Colorado.  Back Home Again topped Album charts in both the United States and Canada has now sold over three million copies in the U.S. alone.  "Sweet Surrender" is a journey of self-exploration and appreciating the beauty of nature.  It gave John four consecutive #1 songs on the Adult chart.

Much more from this amazing singer-songwriter.  Join us for Parts II and III!