John Morgan
Westerville, Ohio United States
Genres:Folk, Jazz - Latin , Jazz - JazzPop/Light Jazz, Pop - Adult Contemporary, Specialty - Christmas/Holiday, Latin - Jazz, Latin - Brazilian - Bossa Nova
Bio:
John Morgan is a fingerstyle guitarist who lives in central Ohio, USA. The Journey - Places Real and Imagined, his first CD was released in 1996.
“There''''s a reason most "unknown" guitarists are unknown. Either they are simply not blessed with the gift, or their heroic day-to-day routine of slogging through mundane commercial enterprise to support their families restrains them from an unbridled pursuit of artistic excellence. Though John Morgan is as far as can be from a household name, his gift must be uncommonly generous, or he paradoxically draws on a creative force engendered by his life and family that is magically transmuted into great music unbefitting that of an unknown. This Ohioan''''s melodic solo fingerstyle composition is similar to that of Phil Keaggy, another excellent player and writer whose musical roots were nourished in a similar place and time. The tracks from "The Journey-Places Real and Imagined" could be easily intermixed with Keaggy''''s Dove-award winning "Beyond Nature" without causing a stir or departing thematically. The liner notes refreshingly indicate that "all songs were performed in standard tuning", almost a rarity in solo fingerstyle performance these days, and even more surprising considering the booming harmonics nursed bell-like from Morgan''''s Taylor 710. "Streams of Mercy, Showers of Blessing" begins as a disquieting collage of suspenseful arpeggios, resolving pleasingly into a requited and reassuring familiarity.
"Diamonds in the Snow" similarly pits two disparate sensations against each other, a harsh diminished riff spinning around a luminously comfortable theme sounding like the opening guitar line to "Scarborough Fair". Perhaps metaphorically recapitulating something deeper, Morgan has a feel for tension and redemption in his music.” Alan Fark www.minor7th.com September/October 2001
