John Jorgenson

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John Jorgenson

Born	1956
Genre(s)	Gypsy jazz Country Rock
Affiliation(s)	Desert Rose Band The Hellecasters Elton John The Byrds
Label(s)	FGM
Notable guitars	Fender Telecaster Takamine Saga Gitanes and many more
Years active	1970 - Present
Official site	http://www.johnjorgenson.com

John Jorgenson is an American musician, considered one of the world's most versatile and accomplished guitarists, probably most well-known for his guitar work with bands such as the Desert Rose Band and The Hellecasters, although Jorgenson is also proficient in the mandolin, mandocello, Dobro, pedal steel, piano, upright bass, clarinet, bassoon and saxophone.^[1] While a member of the Desert Rose Band, Jorgensen won the Academy of Country Music's "Guitarist of the Year" award 3 consecutive years.

Additionally, Jorgenson has also recorded or toured with many artists including Elton John, The Byrds, Bob Dylan, Bob Seger, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Emmy Lou Harris, Hank Williams Jr., Barbara Streisand and Luciano Pavarotti, Roy Orbison and Bonnie Raitt.^[2]^[3]

1 Early years
- 1.1 Interest in the guitar
2 Later years
3 Sources
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] Early years

Although Jorgenson did not come to national prominence until 1985 with the Desert Rose Band, he had been playing professionally since the age of fourteen, and had been playing both the piano and clarinet since age eight.^[4]

He was born in 1956 in Madison, Wisconsin, into a musical family. His mother was a piano teacher and his father an orchestra conductor and college music professor.^[5]

[edit] Interest in the guitar

Jorgenson first became interested in the guitar after seeing The Beatles on TV in 1964, however his parents felt that a guitar would distract him from concentrating on his other instruments, and he didn't get a guitar until Christmas when he was twelve. ^[6]

[edit] Later years

In 1993 Jorgenson formed the guitar trio Hellecasters, along with Will Ray and Fairport Convention guitarist Jerry Donahue. Originally intended as a temporary collaboration, the Hellecasters went on to release several albums during the 1990s. Their debut, Return of the Hellecasters, released in 1993 won both the "Album of the Year" and "Country Album of the Year" awards from Guitar Player Magazine.

In 1994 Jorgenson was invited to join Elton John's band for an 18 month tour. Jorgenson remained with the band for the next six years performing both live and in the studio.

Jorgenson has played a prominent role in the re-birth of the Gypsy jazz genre. In 2004 Jorgenson was asked to portray legendary Jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt for the film, Head in the Clouds.

Jorgenson continues to perform and tour with his own gypsy jazz ensemble, The John Jorgenson Quintet.