Tom Kan PA
2008-01-21 18:37:29 UTC
LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- John Stewart recorded some of pop
music's most
acclaimed solo albums, helping create a style that came to be called
Americana,
but he was always best known for writing the Monkees' enduring hit
"Daydream
Believer."
John Stewart had a top 10 hit in 1979 with "Gold," with Stevie Nicks
singing
backup.
Stewart, who came to prominence in the 1960s as a member of folk
music's
Kingston Trio, died Saturday at a San Diego hospital after suffering a
brain
aneurism. He was 68.
"He was a lovely man and a very gentle soul and I guess the only thing
you can
say today is that the world is less one great songwriter," the
Monkees' Micky
Dolenz told The Associated Press on Sunday.
Stewart left the Kingston Trio shortly before the Monkees released
"Daydream
Believer" in 1967, then went on to record nearly four dozen solo
albums,
including the critically acclaimed "California Bloodlines" and "Bombs
Away Dream
Babies." The latter included the hit single "Gold," in which he dueted
with
Fleetwood Mac's Stevie Nicks.
Still, as with "Daydream Believer," he was likely best known for
writing songs
for others, including Joan Baez, Nanci Griffith, Roseanne Cash and
Anne Murray.
"He was a cult hero, he never made it super huge," said his manager,
Dean Swett.
"He was one of those outlaw rebels, one of the people who refused to
conform to
what the record labels expected him to be."
A husky-voiced singer and accomplished guitarist who delivered his
lyrics in a
poignant, often longing voice, his music was hard to classify. It fell
somewhere
between rock, country and folk and eventually came to be called
Americana.
He wrote "Runaway Train," a country hit for Roseanne Cash, and
"Strange Rivers,"
which Joan Baez included on her 1992 "Play Me Backwards" album. Nanci
Griffith
dueted with him on "Sweet Dreams" and Murray, like the Monkees before
her, had a
hit with "Daydream Believer."
"There are certain songs that you just go in humming. It was one of
those,"
Dolenz said of "Daydream Believer," which also was Stewart's best-
known
recording. Although he sang background to Davy Jones' lead on the
Monkees'
version, Dolenz performs the song himself at his solo shows.
"To this day it is one of the biggest songs that I do in concert," he
said.
Stewart joined the Kingston Trio in 1961, replacing Dave Guard in the
group that
had helped usher in an American folk music revival in the late 1950s.
"John truly was the right fit. A first rate entertainer and gifted
songwriter,"
the group said in a statement on its Web site.
He recorded more than a dozen albums with the trio before going on to
a solo
career in 1967. A year later he released "California Bloodlines,"
which included
the minor hit "July You're a Woman." "Bombs Away Dream Babies" came
out in 1979.
He eventually recorded more than 40 solo albums. Others included "The
Lonesome
Picker Rides Again, "Airdream Believer" and "Rough Sketches," the
latter a
collection of songs about the iconic American highway "Route 66."
Stewart was said to be at work on still another album at the time of
his death.
Stewart's wife, Buffy, and children were at his side when he died,
according to
a statement on the Kingston Trio's Web site. There was no immediate
word on
funeral arrangements.
music's most
acclaimed solo albums, helping create a style that came to be called
Americana,
but he was always best known for writing the Monkees' enduring hit
"Daydream
Believer."
John Stewart had a top 10 hit in 1979 with "Gold," with Stevie Nicks
singing
backup.
Stewart, who came to prominence in the 1960s as a member of folk
music's
Kingston Trio, died Saturday at a San Diego hospital after suffering a
brain
aneurism. He was 68.
"He was a lovely man and a very gentle soul and I guess the only thing
you can
say today is that the world is less one great songwriter," the
Monkees' Micky
Dolenz told The Associated Press on Sunday.
Stewart left the Kingston Trio shortly before the Monkees released
"Daydream
Believer" in 1967, then went on to record nearly four dozen solo
albums,
including the critically acclaimed "California Bloodlines" and "Bombs
Away Dream
Babies." The latter included the hit single "Gold," in which he dueted
with
Fleetwood Mac's Stevie Nicks.
Still, as with "Daydream Believer," he was likely best known for
writing songs
for others, including Joan Baez, Nanci Griffith, Roseanne Cash and
Anne Murray.
"He was a cult hero, he never made it super huge," said his manager,
Dean Swett.
"He was one of those outlaw rebels, one of the people who refused to
conform to
what the record labels expected him to be."
A husky-voiced singer and accomplished guitarist who delivered his
lyrics in a
poignant, often longing voice, his music was hard to classify. It fell
somewhere
between rock, country and folk and eventually came to be called
Americana.
He wrote "Runaway Train," a country hit for Roseanne Cash, and
"Strange Rivers,"
which Joan Baez included on her 1992 "Play Me Backwards" album. Nanci
Griffith
dueted with him on "Sweet Dreams" and Murray, like the Monkees before
her, had a
hit with "Daydream Believer."
"There are certain songs that you just go in humming. It was one of
those,"
Dolenz said of "Daydream Believer," which also was Stewart's best-
known
recording. Although he sang background to Davy Jones' lead on the
Monkees'
version, Dolenz performs the song himself at his solo shows.
"To this day it is one of the biggest songs that I do in concert," he
said.
Stewart joined the Kingston Trio in 1961, replacing Dave Guard in the
group that
had helped usher in an American folk music revival in the late 1950s.
"John truly was the right fit. A first rate entertainer and gifted
songwriter,"
the group said in a statement on its Web site.
He recorded more than a dozen albums with the trio before going on to
a solo
career in 1967. A year later he released "California Bloodlines,"
which included
the minor hit "July You're a Woman." "Bombs Away Dream Babies" came
out in 1979.
He eventually recorded more than 40 solo albums. Others included "The
Lonesome
Picker Rides Again, "Airdream Believer" and "Rough Sketches," the
latter a
collection of songs about the iconic American highway "Route 66."
Stewart was said to be at work on still another album at the time of
his death.
Stewart's wife, Buffy, and children were at his side when he died,
according to
a statement on the Kingston Trio's Web site. There was no immediate
word on
funeral arrangements.