Prudence Johnson is an American folk and jazz singer.
Prudence Johnson | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 1952/1953 Moose Lake, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Genres | Folk, jazz |
| Occupation | Singer |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Labels | Red House |
| Website | www |
Early life and education
editJohnson grew up in a musical family in Moose Lake, Minnesota. She earned a bachelor's degree in international studies from Hamline University.[1]
Career
editIn the early 1970s, Prudence was a co-founder with Tim Sparks of the vocal jazz group Rio Nido. The group recorded three albums and performed extensively, most often in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area.[2][3]
After her time with Rio Nido, she recorded three solo albums for Red House Records: Vocals, Songs of Greg Brown, and Little Dreamer, the latter a collection of children's lullabies from around the world which earned Johnson a 1992 Grammy Award nomination.[3]
She was awarded a McKnight Fellowship to record Moon Country, a collection of Hoagy Carmichael songs. She collaborated with four Minnesota composers to create A Girl Named Vincent, a presentation of the poetry of Edna St. Vincent Millay set to music.[4]
In 2005, Johnson produced, directed, and performed in a musical production about the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald titled Ten November. The production featured Claudia Schmidt, Ruth McKenzie, Kevin Kling and Peter Ostroushko. She produced the album.[5] The production tells the story of the sinking of the ship from the point of view of crew members, local sailors, and the wives of crew members.
She has been a guest on the radio program A Prairie Home Companion. Johnson's film credits include Robert Redford's A River Runs Through It in a role as a singer and Robert Altman's A Prairie Home Companion as herself.
Discography
editSolo
edit- Little Dreamer (Red House, 1984)
- Vocals (Red House, 1987)
- Dick King Classic Swing and Prudence Johnson: King Swings, Pru Sings (1998)
- Songs of Greg Brown (Red House, 1991)
- Moon Country (Sleeper, 2002)
- S' Gershwin with Dan Chouinard (Sleeper, 2004)
- Gales of November (Sleeper, 2005)
- Peru (Sleeper, 2006)
With Rio Nido
edit- I Like to Riff (1978)
- Hi Fly (1983)
- Voicings (1986)
References
edit- ^ French, Laura (3 May 2015). "My Job: Prudence Johnson, vocalist". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ^ "Matt Peiken journalism website". Archived from the original on 2006-05-22. Retrieved 2008-02-01.
- ^ a b Canter, Andrea (February 2005). "Prudence Johnson and Dan Chouinard: February 3rd at the Dakota". Jazz Police. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
- ^ "Prudence Johnson: "A Girl Named Vincent"". beta.prx.org. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ^ New Music Arts. Archived 2006-12-16 at the Wayback Machine