ARTIST Johnny Butten

A brief biography.... Born 2nd February 1964, Taunton, Somerset UK, son to a coalman and a housewife John Edward Butten had a somewhat 'colourful' childhood. His Father, Frank, was brought up fighting on the streets of Peckham, London and in the early years of Johnny's life it would seem he was destined to be a boxer/fighter. Although his Father worked hard for a living, he also played hard, and it was a rarity that he would come home sober. Amid all the arguing and fighting in the home and regular 'holidays' into foster homes, Johnny harboured a talent for music, which was discovered when he was 9 yrs old. A regular viewer of 'The Beverly Hillbillies' Frank was intrigued by 'the banjo sound'. Some months went by before the Earl Scruggs instruction book/ LP were discovered and Frank acquired an old banjo and began teaching himself. This was the turning point in Johnnys' young life.... Johnny was intrigued by what his Father was doing and so Father taught son. In doing so Frank stopped the drinking and over some years, home life gradually got better although it was never what you would call 'stable'. At 15 Johnny left home, having already won numerous banjo/talent competitions, continued to study at Huish's Grammar School, passing 7 'O' levels and moved on to an apprenticeship in Carpentry & Joinery at Somerset College of Arts & Technology. He passed his City & Guilds with credits. At 16, he joined a local band, Denver Spur and served what he calls 'a 3 year apprenticeship' with them, learning the ropes and traits of a pro musician. He started playing guitar (acoustic and electric) and later studied fiddle, mandolin, viola, cello, bass (electric and upright) dobro and even ukulele. His dexterity and inventiveness on all instruments soon earned him an unrivalled reputation, as did his breathtaking speed & clarity - on the banjo in particular. Johnny has worked with some of the finest musicians in his field, including such great names as Bill Keith, Kenny Baker, Josh Graves and Bob Black to name but a few. He has won many international awards for his playing - on all instruments, (many of which were when he lived in the U.S.A) and has experience in all areas of the music industry at international level, from roadie to manager and everything in between. In 1987 he had a near fatal car crash, following a late night gig. Johnny had been working 7 days a week as a carpenter and gigging 6 to 7 nights per week in an effort to 'make it' in the music business. One Sunday night in July 1987, while driving home from a gig 40 miles away, Johnny fell asleep at the wheel of his car and woke up to find himself going backwards off the side of the road down a 26 foot drop, resulting in a compressed fracture of the spine. Estimated speed at the time of the crash was 90mph. Luckily he suffered no permanent disability and was back on his feet about 6 weeks later. In 1989 he put together the award winning country band 'Hard Cash' taking the BCMA award. He is rated as one of the top bluegrass banjo players in the world and one of the best multi - instrumentalists in Europe. In 1998, he was one of three nominees for European fiddle player of the year award - in Vienna. Now divorced, Johnny did marry (9 yrs) and quit music to spend time building a home, something he had always longed for as a child. During this time he worked in various guises, as a truck driver, metal fabricator, carpenter, sewer worker, shop assistant, mechanic, just about any job he could find to make ends meet for the family. In 2000 he returned to the music industry, striking up a good friendship with vocalist Alan West and performing at country music venues and acoustic music clubs around Europe. In the last 3 years, Johnny has pursued his first love, the banjo, and has recorded several projects, including his album 'Contrasts of my imagination' on which he plays all the instruments, sings and has written several tracks himself. He also wrote and recorded a trance/dance track which he hopes to release as a single later in 2007. Johnny now spends his time teaching, depping, recording (sessions) and gigging around the country. He writes a tech help page for the CBA (www.cornishbluegrass.co.uk) and enjoys holding workshops/seminars around the UK and Europe. Why not drop in to his myspace profile and have a listen to some other stuff...and say hi! http://www.myspace.com/johnnybutten or go to the official website www.johnnybutten.com