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Biography
Infobox musical artist| image = Leo Kottke 6-16-07 Photo by Anthony Pepitone.jpg| name = Leo Kottke| caption = Kottke at the Clearwater Festival, 2007| image_size =| background = non_vocal_instrumentalist| birth_name = Leo Kottke| alias =| birth_date = Birth date and age|1945|9|11|birth_place = Athens, Georgia|Athens , Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia | death_date =| instrument = Guitar | genre = American folk music|Folk | occupation = Guitarist | years_active = 1966–present| label = Capitol Records|Capitol , Private Music , Oblivion Records| associated_acts = Mike Gordon , John Fahey (musician)|John Fahey | website = http://www.leokottke.com/ Official website| notable_instruments = Gibson, Taylor, Bozo Leo Kottke (born 11 September 1945, Athens, Georgia|Athens , Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia , United States|U.S. ) is an steel-string acoustic guitar|acoustic guitarist . He is widely known for his innovative fingerpicking style, which draws on influences from blues , jazz , and folk music , and his syncopation|syncopated , polyphony|polyphonic melodies. Kottke has overcome a series of personal obstacles including partial loss of hearing and a nearly career-ending bout with tendon damage in his right hand to emerge as a widely-recognized master of his instrument.
Focusing primarily on instrumental composition and playing, Kottke also sings sporadically, in an unconventional yet expressive baritone famously self-described as sounding like "geese farts on a muggy day". http://www.solidairrecords.com/AMR_interviews/kottke.html 1994 James Jensen Interview Leo Kottke . Accessed on April 29, 2008. In concert, Kottke intersperses humorous and often bizarre monologues with vocal and instrumental selections from throughout his career, played solo on his signature Steel-string acoustic guitar|6- and twelve string guitar|12-string guitars .
Biography
Early life and career
Born in Athens, Georgia , Kottke moved with his parents so frequently that he was raised in twelve different states.Ankeny, Jason Accessed September 27, 2008 Allmusic|class=artist|id=p2041/biography|pure_url=yes All Music Review As a youth living in Muskogee, Oklahoma|Muskogee , Oklahoma , Kottke was influenced by folk and delta blues music, notably that of Mississippi John Hurt . Kottke learned to play trombone and violin before trying the guitar and developing his own unconventional picking style. A mishap with a firecracker permanently damaged the hearing in his left ear, a condition that would be exacerbated due to exposure to loud noise during firing practice while serving in the United States Navy Reserve , when his other ear also was damaged.Accessed on May 30, 2008 http://www.nextnc.com/content/view/15198/40/ Life in Northern Colorado interview, May 2007
After being military discharge|discharged from the Naval Reserve due to his partial loss of hearing, Kottke attended St. Cloud State University in central Minnesota but left before completing his studies, choosing instead to hitchhike around the country, busking for a living, before finally settling in the Twin Cities , Minnesota . He arrived at the Scholar Coffeehouse in the Cedar-Riverside, Minneapolis area in the autumn of 1966 and soon was a regular performer. There, he recorded his debut album, 12-String Blues , which was released on the independent Oblivion record label in 1969. He recorded 6- and 12-String Guitar (also known as the "Armadillo album" after the animal pictured on its cover) for John Fahey (musician)|John Fahey 's Takoma Records later the same year. It remains one of the works most associated with Kottke and has been re-released many times on various record labels.
Fahey's agent Denny Bruce signed Kottke to Capitol Records and in 1971, Capitol released Kottke's first major label record, Mudlark (album)|Mudlark .
Pressured in the early 1970s to be a folk singer-songwriter rather than an instrumentalist, he recorded with vocals and backing musicians on albums during this period. In 1972 he released Greenhouse (Leo Kottke album)|Greenhouse , and in 1973, the live My Feet Are Smiling and Ice Water (album)|Ice Water . These albums showed Kottke moving toward an eclectic mixture of musical genres, including folk, rock, jazz and Bluegrass music|bluegrass .
Kottke closed out his contract with Capitol with his seventh album, Chewing Pine , in 1975. By then he had also gained an international cult following thanks to his performances at folk festivals. With his 1976 eponymous release, he moved to Chrysalis Records .
Injury and new playing style
In the early 1980s, Kottke began to suffer from painful tendonitis and related nerve damage caused by his vigorous and aggressive picking style (particularly on the 12-string guitar). http://www.solidairrecords.com/AMR_interviews/kottke2.html James Jensen Interview Mr. Natural . Accessed on April 29, 2008. As a result, he changed his picking style to a classical style, using the flesh of his fingertips and increasingly small amounts of fingernail rather than fingerpicks, and changing the positioning of the right hand to place less stress on the tendons. He also studied more classical and jazz-oriented compositional and playing techniques. He took a long break from recording and performing and simultaneously moved from his relationship with major labels to the smaller Private Music label. Private Music was considered a New Age music label in the Windham Hill Records|Windham Hill style, and Kottke often found his music categorized as such during this period. After 1986's reflective A Shout Toward Noon , he took a brief break from recording before returning with Regards from Chuck Pink in 1988.
Later career
Kottke released an album annually from 1989 to 1991, following '' My Father's Face with That's What and finally Great Big Boy , which featured a guest appearance from Lyle Lovett . Two years later, Kottke returned with Peculiaroso , which featured production by Rickie Lee Jones . The solo album One Guitar, No Vocals followed in 1999.
In 2002, Kottke and Mike Gordon (the bassist from the band Phish , which was on an extended hiatus) collaborated on Clone (Leo Kottke and Mike Gordon album)|Clone , an album featuring instrumental work and vocals from both musicians. A second album from the pair, Sixty Six Steps , followed in 2005. The duo has toured in support of both albums. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php? storyId=5019563 "Kottke and Gordon: Calypso-Brushed Guitars" (interview and performance) by David Dye, from National Public Radio|NPR's World Cafe November 24, 2005 In between these two duet albums, Kottke released a solo album, 2004's Try and Stop Me .
Leo Kottke received an honorary Doctorate in Music Performance from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee on May 18, 2008, where he gave the commencement address . http://onmilwaukee.com/music/articles/kottkeuwmdegree.html? 15235 OnMilwaukee, Guitarist Kottke receiving UWM honorary degree. Friday, May 30, 2008 Accessed on May 30, 2008.
Tunings
Kottke's guitars are often tuned unconventionally; early in his career he heavily used open tuning , while in recent years he has used more traditional settings but often tunes his guitars as many as two full steps below standard tuning.
Orchestral works, re-recordings and other collaborations
In 1976, Kottke collaborated with arranger Jack Nitzsche on the release Leo Kottke which featured Kottke backed by a small orchestral section on a number of the tracks.
In the later part of his career Kottke has begun reworking and re-recording tunes he wrote and recorded in the early 1970s. For example, 1999's One Guitar No Vocals offered a new instrumental version of 1974's "Morning Is The Long Way Home", with the countermelody opened up from behind the vocal line, stripped of its original trippy lyrics. http://www.innerviews.org/inner/kottke2.html Anil Prasad Interview Getting to Mouth Off . Accessed on April 29, 2008. Kottke has also combined previously-recorded tunes into new compositions, notably the mini-suite "Bigger Situation", also released on One Guitar No Vocals .
In 1990 Kottke and composer Stephen Paulus created Ice Fields , a work for amplified acoustic guitar and orchestra in a concerto format. Ice Fields featured five movements, each based on an existing Kottke composition, with orchestral backing and interlude sections.Stropes, John. "In Search of the Great American Guitar Concerto", Acoustic Guitar Magazine , March 1991 It was premiered by Paulus' Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and has been performed occasionally since but has not been released on record, partly due to the high cost of producing a recording with a full orchestra.cite web|author=Prasad, Anil |title=Leo Kottke: Blowing the Saddletank |url= http://www.innerviews.org/inner/kottke.html |publisher=Innerviews: Music Without Borders
Kottke has also collaborated on his records with his mentor John Fahey, as well as with Chet Atkins , Lyle Lovett , Margo Timmins , Mike Gordon , and Rickie Lee Jones . He has recorded tunes by Tom T. Hall , Johnny Cash , Carla Bley , Fleetwood Mac , The Byrds , Jorma Kaukonen , Kris Kristofferson , Randall Hylton, and many others.
He has toured with other guitarists playing both solo and ensemble pieces; notably he toured as part of the "Guitar Summit" with jazz guitarist Joe Pass , flamenco guitarist Paco Peña , and classical guitarist Pepe Romero . He is also a frequent guest on the radio variety program A Prairie Home Companion .
Discography
Main|Leo Kottke discography
Videography
# Home & Away (1988) # Home & Away Revisited (2006)
References
Reflist
External links
http://leokottke.com/ Official Leo Kottke website
http://www.guitarmusic.org Unofficial Leo Kottke web site (fan site)
Allmusic|class=artist|id=p2041/biography|pure_url=yes All Music biography of Leo Kottke, by Jason Ankeny
http://concertology.com/artists/leo-kottke Latest Leo Kottke Concert Reviews and Photos on Concertology
http://www.innerviews.org/inner/kottke2.html 1999 Leo Kottke interview by Anil Prasad
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php? storyId=5019563 "Kottke and Gordon: Calypso-Brushed Guitars" by David Dye, from National Public Radio|NPR's World Cafe November 24, 2005
http://www.procolharum.com/js_kottke.htm The Leo Kottke/Procol Harum connection One of several Kottke mentions at www.procolharum.com
http://www.publicradio.org/tools/media/player/news/midmorning/2007/11/09_midmorn2 Interview on Minnesota Public Radio November 9, 2007
Persondata | NAME =Kottke, Leo | ALTERNATIVE NAMES = | SHORT DESCRIPTION = | DATE OF BIRTH =September 11, 1945 | PLACE OF BIRTH = Athens, Georgia|Athens , Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia | DATE OF DEATH = | PLACE OF DEATH = DEFAULTSORT:Kottke, Leo Category:1945 births Category:Living people Category:American folk guitarists Category:American blues guitarists Category:Fingerstyle guitarists Category:Slide guitarists Category:St. Cloud State University alumni Category:People from Athens, Georgia Category:People from Muskogee, Oklahoma Category:Musicians from Oklahoma Category:Private Music artists Category:Windham Hill Records artists Category:Acoustic guitarists
