Message from a fan...
My name is Glen Roethel. I created John’s website before he went on to write songs with John Lennon, and I have re-created it because John Redgate was simply too special, too kind, and too talented to lose track of. We met at SummerSongs (the stellar songwriting camp founded by Penny Nichols) in 2005 and became very fast friends singing Beatles songs into the wee hours together with 80 other rabid fans. Fast-forward some 10 years or so, and you’d find John and me playing Beatles-themed concerts together; that’s when I saw this humble man’s gifts shine – he was the greatest, most heart-full, and gracious performer I have ever known. He would engage every single person in an audience! Now, whenever I perform, I think of John and wish for a tiny fraction of his light to shine through me. Please listen to his songs and his stories. Buy his music or the fan club swag I designed for him at my streaming website, streamable.cc. Proceeds will go to his family. Thank you. ~ Glen
A Bit About Me (John Redgate)
Born and raised in Bridgeport, Connecticut, I fell in love with music and songs at an early age. Listening to my grandfather’s easy keyboard style with popular songs from the ‘20’s and ‘30’s, while my Uncle Tom was introducing me to Boogie Woogie piano, my musical journey began. When the Beatles invaded, I grabbed a guitar and started strumming. Years later I ended up impersonating Paul McCartney for a spell in the Broadway show Beatlemania and then reprising that role in spin-off shows in Tokyo and Las Vegas.
Rewind to my years at Georgetown University where I had great fun performing on campus and around town with my band Bread and Water, and then with the vocal group Lazy River which landed a record deal with a West coast label. Off we flew to L.A., leaving behind D.C. memories of opening for Doc and Merle Watson for a week at the Cellar Door, and sharing the stage on one occasion with Emmylou Harris.
Fast forwarding, I had a long stint as house pianist at the Comedy Store in Hollywood, worked for many years as a radio monitor at ASCAP’s New York office, and eventually settled into the most rewarding work of all, entertaining seniors at nursing homes around Connecticut. Along the way I’ve studied songwriting with Jack Segal, Tom Paxton, Bob Lind, and Hugh Prestwood, among others. I’ve taught classes at SummerSongs, a great camp near Woodstock, New York, and contributed to records by Penny Nichols, Anne Marie Menta, and Dick Neal, to name a few.
Did I mention I recently released my own CD? I think you’ll like it, a modest effort but entertaining, I do believe. And the songs roll on…