John Denver
(1943-1997)
Inducted 2017
Henry John Deutschendorf Jr. was born in New Mexico and grew up in Texas learning to sing and play guitar, but as John Denver he started his solo career in Minnesota. After leaving the Mitchell Trio in 1968 as they dissolved, John moved to Edina, Minnesota and signed a solo recording contract with major label RCA Records. Although he gained iconic status after he later moved to Colorado, his early success in Minnesota and his marriage to Annie Martell (John’s biggest hit “Annie’s Song” was for her) from St. Peter, Minnesota makes him one of ours. While Denver’s early bookings were confined to small venues and coffee houses, his annual concerts at The Gustavus Adolphus Campus in St. Peter were his first large-venue concerts and were all sell-outs before he had a hit song. John wrote many of his songs- including “Sunshine on My Shoulders”- when he lived in Minnesota.
