Josh Ritter
Josh Ritter |
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Josh Ritter is an American singer-songwriter born in Moscow, Idaho in 1976. Ritter began writing songs while attending Oberlin College. He eventually changed his major from neuroscience and graduated in 1999 with a self-created American History through Narrative Folk Music major.
His style is in the tradition of folk music and ballads - influenced by Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and Leonard Cohen, among others - with an emphasis on complex imagery combined with dense lyrics.
Ritter appeared at the 2002 Newport Folk Festival, the 2005 Oxegen Festival and has headlined with artists such as Joan Baez. Baez later released her own version of Ritter's song "Wings." Ritter's 2003 full-length album Hello Starling debuted at #2 on the charts in Ireland, where Ritter has developed a loyal following. He was signed by a United States record label, V2 Records, in 2005 and Hello Starling was re-released. On April 19, 2006, his latest album, The Animal Years, was released to stellar reviews.
Ritter's fifth album, The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter, was released on August 21, 2007.
Discography
Albums
- Josh Ritter (1999, self-released)
- Golden Age of Radio (2001, re-released January 22, 2002)
- Hello Starling (September 9, 2003)
- The Animal Years (March 20, 2006 in UK, April 11, 2006 in U.S.)
- In the Dark - Live at Vicar Street (November 24, 2006, Ireland only)
- The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter (August 21, 2007 in U.S.)
EPs
- Come & Find Me Remix EP (2002)
- 4 Songs Live EP (February 22, 2005
- Good Man EP (August 18, 2006, Ireland only)
- Live At The Record Exchange EP (August 19,2006)
- Girl In The War EP (August 29, 2006 on iTunes, November 27 2006 in UK)
Singles
- "Hello Starling (Snow Is Gone)" (May 31, 2004, UK single)
- "Thin Blue Flame" (2005, U.S. promo-only single)
- "Lillian, Egypt" (May 29, 2006, UK single)
- "Wolves" (July 25, 2006, U.S. promo-only single)
See also
External links
- Official website
- Signature Sounds
- The Official Josh Ritter Fansite
- American Gothic - Josh Ritter interview
- Fabchannel.com - Video of the 2006 Josh Ritter concert in Amsterdam
- Josh Ritter collection at the Internet Archive's live music archive
- Audio interview with Josh Ritter at In House Radio
- Interview with Josh Ritter at I Guess I'm Floating
- Review of "The Historical..." at The Album Project