I don’t believe there is or has been any group that cares about the earth MORE than John Denver Fans!! Now, I don’t want to start any arguments (lol) but in my opinion, the number of people inspired to be aware of the environment by John Denver is much larger and far-reaching than any other individual, corporation or non-profit.
John Denver saw the earth as our mother. He encouraged us to honor mother earth, made us aware of the many things threatening our environment, and he challenged us to do something, no matter how small, to change it for the better….and that’s what we did.
Let’s celebrate Earth Day and John Denver by listing the things he did to help the environment, or a song he wrote to raise awareness. List just one thing in the comment section and we will see how long we can make the list!
Listen to “Earth Day Every Day”. I especially love the beautiful beginning to this song:
Randy Sparks passed away this past February 11, 2024, at the age of 90.
Randy was a colorful and influential person in the Folk Music Industry. He was also very personable and approachable, and he LOVED to tell stories.
One of the stories he told us (and many others over the years) was the story in which he credits himself as the person who gave John Denver his stage name.
Henry John Deutschendorf Jr. was performing at Randy’s club Ledbetters, when Randy commented his name wouldn’t fit on a marquee. Randy suggested that John take the last name of Denver (Randy had written and recorded a song called “Denver” and he said the sheet music was laying there so he suggested that). John resisted. He very adamantly wanted to keep his family name, but he finally and reluctantly went with Randy’s suggestion.
The John Denver connection with Randy Sparks continued with John Denver recording other songs of Randy’s, including “Today” and “Saturday Night in Toledo, Ohio” on multi-platinum albums.
Blogs are supposed to be short – so this is my own abbreviated version of a very long and detailed story that Randy told me and Jim. Randy was a wonderful storyteller, he greatly influenced Folk Music history and many aspiring singer/songwriters…learn more on Wikipedia and The New Christy Minstrel website.
Rest in Peace: Lloyd Arrington Sparks (July 29, 1933 – February 11, 2024)
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