BRATTLEBORO-Acoustic guitarist Leo Kottke will perform at the Latchis Theatre, 50 Main St., on Sunday, Nov. 10, at 7 p.m.
Kottke was born in Athens, Georgia, but left town after a year and a half. Raised in 12 different states, "he absorbed a variety of musical influences as a child, flirting with both violin and trombone, before abandoning Stravinsky for the guitar at age 11," report event organizers in a news release.
Kottke says his influences include the country-blues of Mississippi John Hurt, John Phillip Sousa, and Preston Epps. He joined the Navy underage, and eventually lost some hearing "shooting at lightbulbs in the Atlantic" while serving on the USS Halfbeak, a diesel submarine.
Kottke had previously entered college at the University of Missouri, dropping out after a year to hitchhike across the country to South Carolina, then to New London and into the Navy, with his 12-string guitar. "The trip was not something I enjoyed," he has said, "I was broke and met too many interesting people."
Discharged in 1964, he settled in the Twin Cities area and became a fixture at Minneapolis' Scholar Coffeehouse, which had been home to Bob Dylan. He issued his 1968 recording debut LP Twelve String Blues, recorded on a Viking quarter-inch tape recorder, for the Scholar's tiny Oblivion label.
After sending tapes to guitarist John Fahey, Kottke was signed to Fahey's Takoma label, releasing what has come to be called "the Armadillo album." Fahey and his manager Denny Bruce soon secured a production deal for Kottke with Capitol Records.
Kottke's major-label debut, Mudlark, was released in 1971 on Capitol Records. It positioned him "somewhat uneasily in the singer-songwriter vein, despite his own wishes to remain an instrumental performer," according to the news release. Kottke flourished during his tenure on Capitol, as records like 1972's Greenhouse and 1973's live My Feet Are Smiling and Ice Water found him branching out with guest musicians and honing his guitar technique.
With 1975's Chewing Pine, Kottke reached the U.S. Top 30 for the second time; he also gained an international following thanks to his continuing tours in Europe and Australia.
Kottke has received two Grammy nominations for Best Album for Children and Best Country Instrumental Performance. His collaboration with Phish bassist Mike Gordon, Clone, caught audiences' attention in 2002. Kottke and Gordon followed with a recording in the Bahamas called Sixty Six Steps, produced by Leo's old friend and Prince producer David Z.
Tickets range from $36–$51 and are available at bit.ly/789-Kottke.
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