John Denver

From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia Henry John Deutschendorf Jr December 31 1943 October 12 1997 known professionally as John Denver was an American singersongwriter record producer actor activist and humanitarian whose greatest commercial success was as a solo singer After traveling and living in numerous locations while growing up in his military family Denver began his music career with folk music groups during the late 1960s Starting in the 1970s he was one of the most popular acoustic artists of the decade and one of its bestselling artists By 1974 he was one of Americas bestselling performers and AllMusic has described Denver as among the most beloved entertainers of his era Denver recorded and released approximately 300 songs about 200 of which he composed with total sales of over 33 million records worldwide He recorded and performed primarily with an acoustic guitar and sang about his joy in nature his disdain for city life his enthusiasm for music and his relationship trials Denvers music appeared on a variety of charts including country music the Billboard Hot 100 and adult contemporary in all earning 12 gold and four platinum albums with his signature songs Take Me Home Country Roads Annies Song Rocky Mountain High Calypso Thank God Im a Country Boy and Sunshine on My Shoulders Denver appeared in several films and television specials during the 1970s and 1980s He continued to record in the 1990s also focusing on environmental issues by lending vocal support to space exploration and testifying in front of Congress in protest against censorship in music He lived in Aspen Colorado for much of his life and was known for his love of Colorado which he sang about numerous times In 1974 Denver was named poet laureate of the state The Colorado state legislature also adopted Rocky Mountain High as one of its two state songs in 2007 Denver was an avid pilot who died at the age of 53 in a singlefatality crash while flying his experimental Rutan LongEZ canard aircraft