Although called “the leading singer/songwriter of the New Folk movement” by Rolling Stone Magazine, Wild Rose Moon director George Schricker states “John Gorka is really just a nice guy to be around. His innate shyness on stage disarms the audience and warms them to his material –suddenly he’s into a song and his commanding baritone and unique lyrical approach rivet the audience’s attention. When he lets loose with a ballad, like ‘Love is Our Cross to Bear’, you can feel the room shiver with delight.”
Originally from New Jersey, Gorka got his start in eastern Pennsylvania while attending Moravian College as a philosophy and history major. In college he rented a room at a neighborhood coffeehouse–Godfrey Daniels—and started engineering sound there. During that time, he encountered Canadian singer-songwriter Stan Rogers, Eric Andersen, Tom Paxton, and Claudia Schmidt and he was soon performing his brand of songwriting and taking it to New York City. In 1987 he signed up with Minnesota-based Red House Records, did a stint with Will Ackerman’s Windam Hill label, and then returned to Red House.
John has shared many tours with notable friends—Nanci Griffith and Mary Chapin Carpenter among them. His video for the single “When She Kisses Me” found a long-term rotation on VH-1’s “Current Country,” as well as on CMT and the Nashville Network. His rich multifaceted songs full of depth, beauty and emotion gained increasing attention from critics and audiences across the country, as well as in Europe where his tours led him through Italy, Belgium, Scotland, Ireland, Holland, Switzerland, and Germany. Over his career, John has produced eighteen albums, a songbook, and many DVDs.
John will give a short 50-minute concert on Friday, March 1st, at 7 p.m. and then, after a brief break, stay on to perform for the Wild Rose Moon Radio Hour to be recorded before the live audience for later distribution. Wild Rose Moon is in historic downtown Plymouth. Tickets are $25 and may be purchased at ASK for Flowers or online for a slight surcharge at www.wildrosemoon.com, or at the door, if available.
