J~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~J O R O C K Y M O U N T A I N H I G H O H =============================================== H N The John Denver Internet Fan Club N D D E M O N T H L Y N E W S L E T T E R E N N V A P R I L 1 9 9 6 V E E R http://www.sky.net/~emily Emily Parris emily@sky.net R ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TABLE OF CONTENTS April 1996 JOHN DENVER ALBUMS "Rocky Mountain Collection" - New CD from RCA.....2 "A Portrait" and "Live in Sydney" Reviewed by Brian Stuy..................2 "Windsong" - Available from CD Europe.............3 JOHN DENVER STORIES Thank God For John Denver - Chris Robinson........4 The Day I Met John Denver - Bob Erwin.............4 Concert Story - Karen Wall........................5 About Aunt Tina - Matt Schott.....................5 Politics and Love - Steve Peifer..................5 CONCERT REVIEWS Ludswighaven, Germany - Gary Mathes...............6 "Crowd Pleasing Denver Delivers..." - Chicago Sun Times - March 10, 1996.........6 Rosemont Concert - List of songs John sang........7 Rosemont Concert - Kathryn Annie Dunham...........7 POETRY CORNER "To Cathy" - Poem by Mike Stritzinger.............8 "John's Songs" - Poem by Emily Parris.............9 JOHN DENVER NOTES....................................9 JOHN DENVER WANT LISTS/FOR SALE.....................10 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * This month's issue of R.M.H. is dedicated to Matt Schott's Aunt Tina * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ==================================================== "ROCKY MOUNTAIN COLLECTION" - New John Denver CD from RCA ==================================================== On April 16, 1996 RCA will be releasing a new album called "Rocky Mountain Collection". It will be a 2-cd set and sell for about $30.00. Apparently it will have some of the older songs we love that have not been made available on cd before. ======================================================== Reviews of the albums "Portrait" and "Live At The Sydney Opera House" by Brian Stuy ======================================================== "Portrait" offers another collection of John's greatest hits. However, the nice thing about this CD, produced and released in 1994, is that most have been redone by John. Like the "Earth Songs" CD, many of these classics sound much better with the updated instrumentation and vocals of John's more mature voice. "Rocky Mountain High," "Calypso," "Annie's Song" and many, many others sound excellent on this release. "Eagles and Horses" is more punchy, and most of the redos sound exactly as he sings them in concert. This is a very good compilation, and worthy of addition to your collection. The following list indicates which songs were redone (RD). 1. Is It Love 2. Rocky Mountain High (RD) 3. Two Different Directions 4. For You 5. Calypso (RD) 6. Annie's Song (RD) 7. Seasons of the Heart 8. Sweet Surrender (RD) 9. Whispering Jesse (RD) 10. Shanghai Breezes 11. Sunshine On My Shoulders (RD) 12. The Flower that Shattered the Stone 13. Country Girl in Paris 14. Take Me Home Country Roads (RD) 15. Like a Sad Song (RD?) 16. Never a Doubt 17. Flying For Me 18. Eagles and Horses (RD) 19. Sing Australia "Live At The Sydney Opera House" was recorded and released in 1978, the same concert series that produced "An Evening with John Denver." This CD, however, has much better instrumentation and background vocals, some nice intro's by John, especially his intro to "I Want to Live," not available on "Evening." Several other songs, including "Moreton Bay," and "It's a Sin to Tell a Lie," make this an excellent concert. 1. Rocky Mountain High 2. Back Home Again 3. Fly Away 4. Looking For Space 5. I Want to Live 6. It's a Sin to Tell a Lie 7. Moreton Bay 8. Grandma's Feather Bed 9. Thank God I'm a Country Boy 10. Take Me Home 11. Eagle and the Hawk 12. Annie's Song Both of these are excellent CD's. If you like John's voice now, with his current renditions of his older songs, pick up "Portrait." If you like the excitement of a concert setting, pick up "Live at the Sydney Opera House." Both can be purchased through import from: Rock On / P. O. Box 24 / S. Oakleigh / 3167 / Australia Cost is $24 for "Portrait" and $15 for "Live". Write them for a listing. Good listening, Brian H. Stuy ==================================== John Denver's "WINDSONG" (1975) ==================================== According to Greg Levin on his JD Web Page, "Windsong" is available on cd in Europe and on cassette in the U.S. The cd can be ordered from a company called CD-Europe on the WWW: http://www.cdeurope.com If you have questions about older, foreign, or bootleg John Denver albums, check out Greg Levin's list of them. Each title has a list of the songs on that album: http://www.mts.jhu.edu/~levin/Music/John_Denver/ album_odd.html JOHN DENVER STORIES =================== From: Chris Robinson Date: March 18, 1996 I've loved John and his music since I was 11 yrs. old. I was diagnosed with stage 4 T-Cell Lymphoma and given 6 months to live when I was 16. I truly believe that if it hadn't have been for John and his music, I would have never survived. The words, the strength and feeling he puts into his music gave me the will to live and the strength to fight. ' Poems, Prayers and Promises ' tops my mind at the moment. Anyway, thank God for John Denver !!! Chris THE DAY I MET JOHN DENVER From Bob Erwin We've always been BIG John Denver fans since...well, I can't remember when! We have never missed his concerts in Dallas or Fort Worth. An entertainer friend of mine was doing some volunteer work for the world children's organization, UNICEF and asked me if I would donate to the cause by photographing John Denver's visit to Dallas. JD would arrive on Sunday, November 23, 1981 at Dallas Love Field and speak to the local UNICEF chapter. I was very excited to be the official photographer for the event. It's easy to remember the date. My wife, Jackie, was pregnant, VERY PREGNANT, with our son, Mark. As the UNICEF event got closer, so did Jackie's due date. Sure enough, early Sunday morning, signs of labor started. "Jackie! You can't have this baby today" I exclaimed, "THIS IS THE DAY I AM SUPPOSE TO MEET JOHN DENVER!" As the morning progressed, the labor pains stopped! I had to leave by noon to get to the event, John was landing his plane about the same time the stork began circling the field! I met John at the downtown church, photographed him with some of the UNICEF folks and at the pulpit delivering his sermon on the need to care for the hungry, the planet and especially the children. It was a wonderful talk, delivered from the heart with great convection to a very receptive audience. He would have made a great preacher! The next day the stork landed. Our "baby" Mark is now fourteen, learning to play the guitar and has mastered "Annie's Song". It was a great pleasure, (even for just a few hours) an honor I'll never forget being close to one that has brought so much to our lives as John Denver. We wish him happiness and peace. I hope to see him again some day. Bob Erwin From: KAREN WALL Date: March 26, 1996 You like concert stories, I have another one for you. Many years ago when John came to Ann Arbor, MI, a friend and I got to the concert rather early. So I got out my roller skates and was roller skating around the parking lot. All of a sudden a limo pulled up, so I skating over to it. Just as John was getting out of the limo I fell on my butt. Talk about embarrassing. John Denver's music has always meant a great deal to me. For the time I first heard "Sunshine on my Shoulders", I knew that his music could always comfort me. It was his music I turned to when I was sad, happy, or just needed a friend. ABOUT AUNT TINA From Matt Schott Mar 9, 1996 Lately I have been very busy going back and forth to the hospital to see my Aunt Tina who has been very ill. A few weeks ago I brought the JD video to the hospital. I had a nurse bring a video tv and we watched it. Before you knew it we were having our own little concert at the hospital with the nurses and the doctors. It was great for my aunt. April 1, 1996 On Sunday morning My Aunt passed on. I am sad but yesterday as I was driving back from Boston I was thinking about that cold Saturday morning playing the video at the hospital. She sang and moved her feet at the bottom of the bed. A little memory.........When I was a kid growing up we looked forward to my cousins, Stetson and Craig, coming over to play their guitars and give us a concert in front of the fireplace. They would play "Grandma's Feather Bed" and when the line came around where JD sings "I wrestled with my cousin. I even kissed Aunt Lou"...well they always put in "Aunt Tina". And she would smile! She loved John Denver. POLITICS AND LOVE From: Steve Peifer When I was a Junior in High School a sub teacher asked the class to go around and tell their favorite musician. The first guy said "The Stones". Next woman said "Led Zeppelin." It went on and on in that light until they got to me. I, of course, said "John Denver." I can still remember how people in the class started to inch away from me. However, later that year I was elected student body President. A guy in my class told me he voted for me because if I could say I liked JD in public like that, he could count on me to tell the truth even if it hurt. The following year the Homecoming Queen went to the prom with me. Everyone was trying to date her, but I was the only one with the original approach of: "Want to go see JD in concert?" It turned out she was a closet JD fan and we ended up going out for 5 months, which, in high school years, is two weeks short of eternity. So I can make a convincing case for saying that listening to JD will increase your political viability AND your love life. So there, Stones fans! =============== CONCERT REVIEWS =============== Ludswighaven, Germany From: Gary Mathes I saw John Denver about three months ago in Ludswighaven (about 30 minute drive from where I live in Kaiserslautern). I work for the US Army here. Could not believe how great that he sounded. He really had the whole place in his hands. There were mostly Germans in the audience and they went wild with both his singing of the old and new songs. What surprised me most was how mellow and mature his voice was. It literally sent chills down your spine. I think that he is one of the best kept secrets. People know of him from the old days, but have no idea how he has improved with age. CROWD-PLEASING DENVER DELIVERS RICHER VERSIONS OF BEAUTIFUL OLDIES Chicago Sun Times - March 10, 1996 Pop Music Review By Miriam Di Nunzio Not many performers would have the courage to open the second half of their show with with "Home On the Range", and have the talent to make it sound, well, beautiful. But that's exactly what John Denver did Friday night at the Rosemont Theatre, where he delivered a powerful performance filled with sweet surprises. Playing the first of two sold-out shows, Denver simply walked on stage, picked up a guitar and never looked back. Songs like "Poems, Prayers and Promises", "Follow Me" and "I Want to Live" were surprisingly truer and richer than when he first performed them more than 20 years ago. The singer did not disappoint, with perennial favorites "Rocky Mountain High" and "Annie's Song", garnering standing ovations for both. The only other song that got as big a response was "For You", a hauntingly beautiful love song that Denver delivered while playing piano. Denver stopped a few times to apologize for missing a note or two along the way, but there was no need. Any misstep was quickly forgotten by his powerhouse delivery of the rhythmically pounding ballads, "Calypso", his tribute to Jacques Cousteau, and one of his newest songs, "Amazon", perhaps his signature "save the environment" song. His two-member band, Alan Deremo on bass and Machito Sanchez on percussion were, simply put, incredible, with Sanchez playing everything from bongos to wind chimes and a dozen instruments in between. Denver steered clear of many of his most well known songs such as "Sunshine on My Shoulders" and "Take Me Home, Country Roads", opting for lesser-known and more interesting ones such as "Darcy Farrow" and "Whispering Jesse". ___________ The Songlist from the Rosemont Concerts in Chicago: From Ann Schnitz =================================================== The Eagle and the Hawk / Farewell Andromeda / Follow Me / Garden Song / Today / Saturday Night in Toledo, Ohio / Catch Another Butterfly / For Bobbie / I Want To Live / Grandma's Feather Bed / Dreamland Express / Seasons of the Heart / For You / I'm Kissing You Goodbye / It Amazes Me - (Intermission) - Home On The Range / Ponies / Me and My Uncle / Eagles and Horses / Rocky Mountain Suite / Love Is The Master / Darcy Farrow / Whispering Jesse / Rocky Mountain High / Poems, Prayers and Promises / Annie's Song / Calypso / (Encore:) Amazon / Perhaps Love (Dedicated to George Burns) Review of March 9th Concert in Chicago - Rosemont Theatre From: Kathryn Annie Dunham ========================================================== Hi. I just thought that I would drop you a note and tell you how wonderful the Concert on the 9th at Rosemont was. John was just as great as ever and I had one of the best nights of my life. His music just gets inside of you and touches your soul. A few of the songs he sang I didn't know, but one of the guys with me said, "Can John sing a bad song?" Even though we didn't know the songs, they were just as good as the ones we knew. John opened with "The Eagle and the Hawk" and closed with Perhaps Love, which was "dedicated" to George Burns. It was just an overwhelming experience which I will never forget. This concert was even better than the one I attended in August. The theatre was fantastic and small, which was superb, because there wasn't a bad seat in the house. It was remarkable. POETRY CORNER ============= From: "Catherine A. Smith" Enclosed is a poem that a friend wrote to me on a retreat back in 1982. It is perhaps a little corny, but meant and means so much to me. I play the guitar and so he traced my guitar on the poster board on which the poem was hand written.......... This old guitar takes me to a place far away Down country road is the place I long to be. I want to live, and be free, like the spirit of Calypso, free to fly, like an eagle or a hawk. With this old guitar I feel f-a-a-r-r-r out. Just strumming a couple of chords and I get a Rocky Mountain high. Sometimes when I start pickin' down the sun, it fills up my senses, and I feel as though I have sunshine on my shoulders, even on a rainy day. Well it's goodbye again and I'm sorry to be leaving you, but I have to be leaving on a jet plane. When I feel the Shanghai Breezes and it's cold here in the city, you know I'll be thinking of you. Here I am and it's great to be back home again. Without you life is like a sad song. But with you here by my side, I have the urge to yell, Thank God I'm a Country Girl To Cathy: From one John Denver lover to another. Love and Peace, Mike Stritzinger Nov. 7, 1982 JOHN'S SONGS by Emily M. Parris Some songs make me happy Like I'm soaring off in flight Some of them just comfort me Through a long and lonely night Some have advice inspiring Some just tell the truth Some can bring back memories Long forgotten from my youth He symbolized an era With his Rocky Mountain High Hi was always thought provoking And he often wondered why For he searched his soul for meaning In this thing that we call life He told us about his family Of his love and of his wife John's songs are always special And each new one that I hear Becomes a brand new favorite To remind me of that year Copyright 1996 by Emily M. Parris ================= JOHN DENVER NOTES ================= REINCARNATION? According to Brenda Brown of Charlottesville, VA, John Denver is the reincarnation of Elizabeth of Austria. She called and left this information on my answering machine since she felt that it was important for John and other people to know this and she recommended that I go to the library and get the book "The Martyrdom of An Empress" which apparently is all about Elizabeth of Austria. From: David J Stemple - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Dick Kniss, John's original bass player was spotted on PBS TV this past weekend playing double bass for Peter, Paul and Mary on their "Lifelines" TV Special. He has been playing the double bass for them since the early 80's. On this TV special he not only played with Peter, Paul and Mary, but was joined by a happening rhythm section and got to back some of the greatest folk singers of all time. Hal Blaine, who played drums and percussion for John Denver for many years is currently working on Brian Wilson's (formerly of the Beach Boys) new album. LITTLE KNOWN FACT From: David Tompkins Subject: John Denver & Friends - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - John Denver provided back-up vocal to the song "Survivors" as written & recorded by John Stewart on his LP "Wingless Angels." RORY YOUNG'S JOHN DENVER FTP SITE Rory Young has a new Url for the John Denver FTP Site.... ftp://www.austin1.com/pub/JDenver/ BIRTHDAYS My birthday is on April 5th. Karen Narang and Terry Liffick are also celebrating a birthday on the same day. Look for the RMH Birthday List on the WWW Page to see who else is celebrating a birthday in April. http://www.sky.net/~emily/birthday.txt WANT LIST ========= Jeff Brown wants a tape or vinyl copy of "Rhymes and Reasons". Randy Cecil wants copies of the "JD Holiday Radio Show", "Live at the Sydney Opera House", "Live in London" (1976), "Collection" - 1984 Telstar Records, and "Carolina In My Mind" (bootleg album). Karen Wall is in search of the album "Stonehaven Sunset" would like copies of "Whose Garden Was This" and "JD" on TAPE. Eve Saizan is looking for copies of "Rocky Mtn. Christmas" and "Christmas Like A Lullaby" on CD. FOR SALE ======== Randy Cecil has Stereo LP Copies of "Whose Garden Was This" and "Take Me To Tomorrow" for sale. * * * T H A N K Y O U * * * ** A special thank you to Karen Wall and Gary Mathes ** I also want to thank Brenda Brown, Kathryn Annie Dunham, Bob Erwin, Gregory Levin, Steve Peifer, Chris Robinson, Ann Schnitz, Matt Schott, Catherine Smith, Henry Smiley, Brian Stuy, David Stemple, David Tompkins, and Rory Young. ENDFILE *********************************************************** Rocky Mountain High: The John Denver Internet Fan Club emily@sky.net http://www.sky.net/~emily April 1996 - Issue #24 of the Rocky Mtn High Newsletter ***********************************************************