Smalltown Poets

Smalltown Poets
Background information
Origin Georgia, US
Genres Christian rock
Years active 1996–2004, 2010–present
Members Michael Johnston
Danny Stephens
Byron Goggin
Kevin Breuner
Miguel DeJesús

Smalltown Poets is a Christian rock band formed in 1996. It was formed in Tifton, Georgia by high school friends Michael Johnston (guitars/vocals), Danny Stephens (keyboards), and Byron Goggin (drums), along with (then) Nashville musicians Kevin Breuner (guitar), and Miguel DeJesus (bass).

The band started under the name Villanelle.

Career

Smalltown Poets achieved recognition with their eponymous first album, released on Ardent Records in 1997. This release earned the band the first of its two Grammy nominations (Best Gospel Rock Album) and numerous Dove Award nominations. Despite line-up changes, the band stayed active for more than ten years, releasing three albums on Ardent Records and one on BEC Recordings.

Smalltown Poets went on hiatus several months after their fourth studio album called It's Later Than It's Ever Been, but regrouped in the fall of 2010 to begin production on a Christmas album due out in 2011 (co-produced and mixed by former Smalltown Poets drummer Matt Goldman). In anticipation of that full-length release, the band released a Christmas single in December 2010 titled "In the Bleak Midwinter."

The full-length project, Smalltown Poets Christmas, was released on Nov. 1st, 2011, on the band's own Friendly City Records label and is available on iTunes, Amazon.com, CDBaby.com, and other online media outlets.

In 2012, the Smalltown Poets' original band line-up released a digital EP, "Under the New Sun". The new release can be downloaded via a link on their Facebook page, or at CDBaby, Amazon.com, and iTunes.

Christmas Time Again, Smalltown Poets second Christmas album will be released on November 25, 2014 followed by live performances in a few towns. They funded this project through a campaign on PledgeMusic which allowed fans to support the project and receive a digital download in advance of the release. [1]

Band members

Smalltown Poets members

Discography

Other projects

References

  1. Francesco, JJ (2014-11-07). "Smalltown Poets Christmas: The Sequel". New Release Tuesday. NRT. Archived from the original on 2014-11-15. Retrieved 2014-11-15.

Further reading

External links