John has been singing and enjoying folk songs for as long as he can remember (which is longer than he cares to remember). The child of camp-director parents, his earliest memories included the songs of Woody Guthrie and Josh White.

On August 15, 2008, John’s new CD, “Side Effects,” (c)2008, was released on Fraternity Records. Full details on this album of newly composed and recorded songs appear elsewhere on this site. Copies of this CD, are available through John’s on-line distributor, CD Baby at http://cdbaby.com/sprungjohn2 as well as John’s earlier CD, “Remember Me and Other Songs, (c) 2004, at www.cdbaby.com/sprungjohn. Samples of songs from both CDs may be heard on CD baby, Amazon and iTunes. (Make sure to check for discounts when purchasing more than one copy of either CD from CD Baby.)

John’s songs have been played on many folk-oriented stations across the country, most recently by Rich Warren on November 29, 2008 as part of his long-running program, “The Midnight Special.” Rich played “Social Insecurity” and “The Folksingers Sweet Bye-and-Bye.” Rich reprised “Sweet Bye and Bye ” on his December 27th program, as part of a tribute to folk artists who died in 2008 (e.g John Stewart, Davy Graham, Artie Traum, Nick Reynolds and Odetta) .

On November 15th, Walt Graham’s “Acoustic Connections” Veteran’s Day program played the “The Glory of Their Times,” from “Side Effects.” Walt used the song title as the name of this excellent commemorative program.
Earlier, the September 13th “Acoustic Connections” featured three songs from “Side Effects,” “The Gift,” “Social Insecurity,” and “Remember Me.” Walt was kind enough to refer to “Side Effects” as “John’s great new album,” and played “The Folksingers’ Sweet Bye-and-Bye” on his September 20th show, which was a “theme” program consisting of songs in which various folk musicians paid homage to the people who went before. The three most recent shows can currently be “downstreamed,” by going to WSHU.org and hitting up “Acoustic Connections.” Fans of folk music will never be disappointed when tuning in to this fine show.

“The Glory of their Times,” was written as a tribute to the veterans of World War II. This moving song had its first play by veteran folk-singer and host, Oscar Brand, on WNYC’s “Folksong Festival.” Oscar, after listening to “Side Effects,” responded, “It’s a good CD, and just right for air play.” John was fortunate to introduce his earlier CD on Ron Olesko’s shhow “Traditions,” on WFDU.FM, in 2005, and has been invited to be Ron’s guest on “Traditions,” as well, where he will discuss “Side Effects,” and will play both live and recorded cuts from it. Please watch this website for time and date. Ron played John’s satirical song, “Social Insecurity,” on his October 26, 2008 show. This cut pokes fun at President Bush’s late-lamented plan to permit some of an individual’s social security dollars to be diverted to private investment accounts. “Side Effects” was recently praised on WESU.FM (88.1) as a “good album,” with “Joshua,” singled out as “a nice topical folk song.” Look to this posting for updates on air play.

As for how all this began, after an unsuccessful attempt to learn the guitar at age seven, John contented himself with the ukelele until finally picking up the guitar the summer after high school. After a stint as a member of a high school “doo-wop” group, John and two college fraternity bothers at Alfred University (Bob Levine and Mike Weiner), formed a trio soon to be known up and down the fabled southern tier of western New York as the “Five minus Two.” (“Get it?”)

Playing at local hotels, radio shows and campus functions, and for such diverse audiences as the Hornell Rotarians and the Wellesville Junior Nurses Association, the group hit its performing zenith at New York’s “Bitter End” shortly after graduation. Early the next year, the trio opened for the Brandywine Singers at a concert held at their alma mater. Later that year, they recorded two songs for Roulette Records, one of which was a civil rights song called “He Was My Brother,” composed by the then unknown Paul Simon. John swears it was released, and has posted a reward for anyone owning a copy. After the group broke up for such disparate and mundane reasons as (1) one member’s having to repeat Experimental Psychology in order to graduate, (2) another entering Law School, and (3) in John’s case, an inability to avoid the draft. John (an abject failure at college R.O.T.C.) was somehow commissioned an officer in the United States Air Force. Throughout his years in the service during the Vietnam-era (in which he inflicted casualties on neither side), John continued to hone his folk-singing skills. Both as a single and in a series of long forgotten trios, he played numerous night clubs and folk venues along the Mississippi Gulf Coast, including “Trader John’s,” “The Gulf Winds,” “The Edgewater,” and (now it can be told) “The Jefferson Davis Junior College for Women.” During this period, John was proudest of a children’s concert he did for rural Mississippi’s Head Start Program, which was itself in its infancy.

Since that time, John has played a goodly number of public gigs and private parties in and around the New York area, including “Y’s,” and many performances at children’s schools . He has shared the stage with, among others, Happy Traum, Lynn Lavner, the New London Trio*, and the Flagstaff Singers. He has played at Brooklyn College, Western Connecticut Teachers College, the summer Borough Hall Concerts, Cousin Abe’s, BMW’s, the Eastland Folk Festival, a reunion night at the old Loews Kings, the Montauk Club, Vox Pop, and (all too many) street fairs. He has twice appeared at the Hurdy-Gurdy Folk Music Society’s “Zeke’s Place.”

(*Speaking of “The New London Trio,”  trio member Fred Pape (see photo gallery) recently contacted John after viewing this website.  They have exchanged music, photos, and family updates.  Fred is alive and well, and living in Alaska with his lovely wife in a log cabin he is proud to have built.)

John’s 1998 concert recording “John Sprung…Still Live at Zeke’s Place” was released in 2000 on Folklaw Records © 2000 and—according to ASCAP—recently went “tin.”

In 2002, John first appeared as Ron Olesko’s guest on the radio show “Traditions,” on WFDU-FM.  As mentioned above, he had a return visit with Ron on the occasion of the release of “Remember Me and Other Songs,” in May, 2005, and–most recently–a second “Mother’s Day ” appearance on May 10, 2009.   On this most recent program, John gave four live performances from his latest CD, “Side Effects.” Over the years, John been fortunate to have had his songs played on many commercial as well as affiliate stations of National Public Radio across the country. John is a lawyer in his “day job,” but tries not to let it interfere with his folk-singing. He picks and sings in what he describes as “a variety of styles and abilities.”

 His repertoire consists of a combination of traditional and composed folk, and folk-oriented songs, both funny and sad; As a performer, John strives to combine music from the great folk song-bag, with songs of his own composition. All in all, John is an untraditional traditional folksinger. John is particularly interested in tying songs to the periods in which they were written, believing that folk songs provide an excellent barometer of the times they reflect. His goal is to help keep folk music alive, something he hopes “Remember Me and Other Songs” and “Side Effects” will, in their own small way, contribute to.