Peter Lang (guitarist)
Peter Lang | |
---|---|
Birth name | Peter Lang |
Born | January 6, 1948 |
Genres | Folk, American Primitivism, New Acoustic, roots music |
Occupation(s) | Musician |
Instruments | Guitar |
Labels | Takoma Records, Flying Fish, Waterhouse Records, Aspen Records, Horus Records |
Peter Lang (born January 6, 1948) is an accomplished acoustic guitarist, from the same genre, American Primitive Guitar, as the better-known guitarists Leo Kottke and John Fahey. All three artists shared the Takoma Records label, and a joint-titled album released in 1974 features a selection of songs from each.
Biography
Peter Lang was discovered in 1972 by legendary guitarist John Fahey. Lang's first solo album, entitled The Thing at the Nursery Room Window, was released in 1973. Along with Lang, Fahey launched the careers of other notable artists on Takoma Records, including Kottke, George Winston, Robbie Basho, Bola Sete and others.[1] Peter Lang toured, and recorded for nearly ten years, developing a reputation as one of the nation's top acoustic players. In the 70's he was in good company, having recorded or performed with Ry Cooder, John Fahey, Jerry Garcia, Chet Atkins, John Hartford, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Emmylou Harris, Leo Kottke, Freddie King, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, John Hammond, Keith Jarrett, Phoebe Snow, Maria Muldaur, The Yellowjackets, Robben Ford, and many others.
Lang's musical career was postponed in the 1980s, to allow him to pursue a career in animation and special effects production. He took time out from this position in 1999 to pursue music once again, culminating in the release of Dharma Blues in 2002. This was followed by Guitar in 2003.[2] Both Lycurgus and Prime Cuts were re-released in 2003 with bonus tracks.
On October 31, 2009, the following text was posted on http://langfund.org[]:[3]
Peter Lang, a fixture in traditional American Music for forty years, was involved in an Automobile Accident in May 2008. He suffered neck and back injuries including nerve impingement which has affected the use of his left hand. His no fault insurance provider has refused to cover medical expenses that continue to accrue. His medical insurer will not cover his expenses as they consider them the result of the Automobile Accident. The auto insurer has taken the position that the problems are due to preexisting conditions. Unfortunately it has headed to the court system. In the meantime Lang's expenses continue to mount. The purposes of this fund are to help defray costs until there is resolution. To compound this problem Lang also had surgery in February of this year to have infected bone removed from his skull coupled with ear surgery following a protracted illness. In May he also underwent hip replacement surgery. Needless to say his performance schedule has been severely impacted (and may continue to be based on the continuing issues with his auto injury and the insurance issue). Whatever you might consider will be greatly appreciated by Peter and his family.
Awards
- Grammy Nomination, 1975 (Lycurgus)
- Guitar Player Magazine 1974 – Readers Poll, " Best New Guitarist" category
- Minnesota Music Awards, "Best Guitarist" 1981, 1982, 1988
Discography
- The Thing at the Nursery Room Window, (1973) Takoma Records
- Lycurgus, (1975) Flying Fish
- Prime Cuts, (1977) Waterhouse Records
- Back to the Wall, (1978) Waterhouse Records
- American Stock, (1986) Aspen Records
- Dharma Blues, (2002) Horus Records
- Guitar, (2003) Horus Records
- Live at Charlotte's Web, (2007)
- Testament, (2008) Horus Records
Compilations
- Leo Kottke, Peter Lang & John Fahey, (1974) Takoma Records
- Friends of Fahey Tribute, (2006) Slackertone
- The Revenge of Blind Joe Death: The John Fahey Tribute Album, (2006)
Bibliography
- Co-author of the book 20th Century Masters of Finger-Style Guitar, 1982, Stropes Editions, Ltd.[4]
References
- ↑ Goodwin Raheja, Gloria (June 2002). Hintz, Paul, ed. "Peter Lang Records and Performs Again" (PDF). Guitarist – A Publication of the Minnesota Guitar Society 13 (3): 5,6. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ↑ Pales, R.J. "Dirty Linen magazine story and interview, April/May 2006". dirtylinen. Archived from the original on May 24, 2006.
- ↑ langfund website Accessed on January 29, 2010. Archived January 9, 2010 at the Wayback Machine
- ↑ Stropes.com website.
External links
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