John Sebastian

b. 17 March 1944, New York, USA. The son of the famous classical harmonica player John Sebastian. John Jnr. is best known for his seminal jug band/rock fusion with the much-loved Lovin' Spoonful in the '60s, which established him as one of the finest American songwriters of the century. When the Spoonful finally collapsed Sebastian started a solo career that was briefly threatened when he was asked to become the fourth member of Crosby, Stills And Nash, but he declined when it was found that Stephen Stills wanted him to play drums. In 1969 his performance was one of the highlights of the Woodstock Festival, singing his warm and friendly material to a deliriously happy audience. His tie-dye jacket and jeans appearance, warm rapport, and acoustic set (aided by copious amounts of LSD) elevated him to a star. Sebastian debuted in 1970 with an outstanding solo work JOHN B SEBASTIAN, containing much of the spirit of Woodstock. Notable tracks like the autobiographical Red Eye Express and the evocative How Have You Been, were bound together with one of his finest songs, the painfully short She's A Lady. Less than two minutes long, this love song was perfect for the times, and was a lyrical triumph with lines like ‘She's a lady, and I chance to see her in my shuffling daze, she's a lady, hypnotised me there that day, I came to play in my usual way, hey’. Simply accompanied by Stills' and Crosby's mellow Gretsch guitar, it remains a modern classic. Sebastian faltered with the uneven FOUR OF US, a travelogue of hippie ideology but followed a few months later with REAL LIVE, an engaging record, recorded at four gigs in California. At that time Sebastian was performing at a punishing rate throughout Europe and America. TARZANA KID in 1974 sold poorly, but has latterly grown in stature with critics.
At this time Sebastian was working with the late Lowell George, and a strong Little Feat influence is shown. The album's high point is a Sebastian/George classic, the beautiful Face Of Appalachia. Two years later John was asked to write the theme song for a US comedy television series, 'Welcome Back Kotter.'The result was a number 1 hit, Welcome Back. Astonishingly, since then, no new album had appeared until 1992, when a Japanese label released his most recent songs. Throughout that time, however, Sebastian never stopped working. He accompanied Sha Na Na and NRBQ on many lengthy tours, appeared as a television presenter, wrote a children's book and among other commissions he composed the music for the 'Care Bears' television series. Severe problems with his throat threatened his singing career at one point. He declined to be part of the 1992 reformed Lovin' Spoonful. Sebastian was, is and always will be the heart and soul of that band. He returned with the delightful TAR BEACH in 1993. Although long-term fans noted that his voice was slightly weaker the album contained a varied mixture of rock, blues and country. Many songs he had written a decade earlier were included, the most notable being his uplifting tribute to Smokey Robinson; Smokey Don't Go.