Artist description John Sheehan is a Composer/Guitarist/Singer/Songwriter from Ringwood, NJ. Sincere listeners of his music have compared him to such diverse artists as; Leo Kottke, Jorma Kaukonen, Mark Knophler, Michael Hedges, John Prine, Steve Earle, and Jimmy Buffett. John gives credit to J.S.Bach and John Fahey as well as many more . He has opened for, and/or performed with guitar greats Tal Farlow, John Renbourne, and Adrian Legge; as well as,singer/songwriters Jonathan Edwards and Dave Malett. His Modern Man cd is currently up for it's third Indie-Music nomination in two years, from Just Plain Folks.com. He has won awards from NomaMusic and Kweevac .com . His third cd ,"Notes from Suburbia" is due out sometime in 2002. His tongue-in-cheek songs such as "Modern Man", "Thursday Night Open Mic", "Beyond Your Means", and "My Habits Are Killing Me" tell something of his sense of values as well as humor. He mixes compassion and gratitude into his performances, also, with "Come Here Friend", "As I Stand" "Life Song", "Headed Out To The Woods" and "Self Made Man". John's guitar instrumentals are steeped in the traditions of European classical and American contemporary styles. Most requested are "Jump into the Fire" , "The Villain", "Hog Farm" and "Cliffs of Moher". As First Place winner of the 1991 Candi-Creek Banjo Works Guitar Competition, he was awarded a new D-16 Martin Guitar, autographed and presented by C.F. Martin, IV. Performing original tunes on the Banjo, he took First Place in the Banjo Contest at the Old Mill Village Music Competitions in August, 1997.

Music Style Acoustic/Electric, Eclectic Fingerstyle Guitar

Musical Influences Fingerstyle guitar, Kottke, Fahey, Knophler, Kaukonen...The classical guitar and Rennaisance lute repertoires.

Similar Artists Has been compared to fingerstyle guitarists; Hedges, Renbourne and German guitarist,Peter Finger. His singer/songwriter material has been compared to John Prine and Jimmy Buffet.

Artist History Fingerstyle guitarist John Sheehan is a veteran musician performing in tri-state NJ, NY, and PA. He has two self-produced CDs of original folk/country rock/acoustic music; INSTRUMENTAL SOLO GUITAR and MODERN MAN.He is also known for his Rennaisance Lute house concerts. Throughout his dedicated career, fingerstyle guitarist John Sheehan has blazed musical trails in pursuit of excellence and creativity. A major league player and composer, Sheehan has, for the past 20 years, earned himself critical accolades and the respect of his contemporaries and fellow musicians, while influencing a new crop of guitar players with his blazing speed, unerring sense of taste and finesse. At age 16, John started playing guitar to counter act his own adolescent loneliness and hyperactivity. Soon, he found a personal focus in classical music that gave his soul and spirit a new and needed metamorphosis. With guitar in hand, John was able to cope productively as an adult artist . After studying classical guitar at William Paterson College, Sheehan took to the road playing rock, folk and country in bars and restaurants. Although these musical experiences gave John the stage confidence he needed to play in any situation, the music itself was not always fulfilling. By the late 1980's John was ready for a change. Gathering the best musical memories and influences and amalgamating them into a style was not easy. John wrote, produced and played music that would send a clear artistic message to the world. Instrumental Solo Guitar was released in 1995 to favorable critical acclaim. It is a collection of 12 bluegrass/folk/classical tracks demonstrating John's mind boggling guitar "chops" and propensity for fine melody. "This collection of musical metaphors," he explains "depicts personal traits, habits, strengths and weaknesses spanning the last 15 years of my life. Some were written with the thought in mind of real places and people and some are purely imaginary. Live radio performances include National puplic radios/ WAMC's The Round Table with Paul Elisha and Susan Arbetter, and WFMU's Irene Trudell show. His voice, mandolin playing and guitar appear on five other albums; Picking and Sliding the Blues by Larry Amato, Nice Hat by Bobby Syvarth, Parhelion, Scott Appel (One Man Clapping Records) and Nine of Swords, Scott Appel (School Kid's Records) Barrelhouse, Eclectasy. Compilations; WFMU's "Pearl Diving Near the Hudson", Crossroads CD Sampler 99, Oasis Acoustic 2000 and Bumpskey.com "Carry On"..... Jim Ankrom .

Instruments John plays acoustic and electric six and twelve string guitars, nylon string guitar and banjo. Other instruments used on the

Albums Instrumental Solo Guitar (1995); Modern Man (1999)

Press Reviews ROBERT HICKS,ALL MUSIC GUIDE:"His vocal songs show simple humor, yet say something profound about humanity."---- PAUL ELISHA NPR'S WAMC "THE ROUND TABLE" ALBANY, NY: "Guitarist extraordinaire!"---- EDDIE RUSSEL/COUNTRY EASTERN WEST/COLUMBIA, TX: "Modern Man" arrives....& WOW.....what a full course meal of variety". ----GRASS ROOTS ENTERTAINMENT, ATLANTA, GA: "Sheehan transcends the Americana/Bluegrass/Folk scene with an eclectic fingerstyle of playing guitar".---- GAJOOB MAGAZINE'S(Salt Lake City ,Utah) review of 'Instrumental Solo Guitar' says "Sheehan's style and expressive performances are quick to reveal a soul of their own."---- MICHAEL PARRISH: SINGOUT! "Deftly picked original instrumentals with a contemporary flair."---- JIM LEE: DIRTY LINEN says "There's enough intriguing music and playing to keep any guitar player happy."---- MICHAEL ALLISON - THEGLOBALMUSE.COM "John uses a fingerpicking style and pumps out some amazing phrasing that is unmatched by today's standards."

Location Ringwood, NJ - USA

Copyright notice. All material on MP3.com is protected by copyright law and by international treaties. You may download this material and make reasonable number of copies of this material only for your own personal use. You may not otherwise reproduce, distribute, publicly perform, publicly display, or create derivative works of this material, unless authorized by the appropriate copyright owner(s).