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Apr 07, 2020 John Prine By Mark Moody Photography by Danny Clinch

The singing mailman has delivered his last note. Beloved singer/songwriter John Prine succumbed to COVID-19 today. Born in Maywood, Illinois, Prine served in the U.S. Army and worked as a postal carrier while honing his songwriting skills during the Chicago folk revival of the early ’70s. Prine’s self-titled debut arrived in 1971 and included live set staples such as “Sam Stone” and “Hello In There.” Hailed by the masters themselves, Prine was able to claim legends such as Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash as fans.

Prine released over 15 studio albums in his career and recorded duets with artists ranging from Iris DeMent (“In Spite of Ourselves”) to Melba Montgomery (“We Must Have Been Out of Our Minds”). His own label Oh Boy Records was launched in 1984. Prine has been married to current wife and manager, Fiona, since 1996. With two Grammy winning albums, The Missing Years and Fair & Square, Prine also received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020.

Noted for his wry wit, topics of his songs ranged from divorce to murder to fishing—and that’s all in the same song (“Lake Marie”). There is no doubt that over the past week since Fiona announced Prine’s illness that millions have had a smile brought to their faces during trying times via renewed exposure to his work. Whether listening for the first time or recalling his always welcoming live sets, Prine’s was an easy taste to acquire. One of Prine’s classic lines, “half an inch of water and you think you’re gonna drown” becomes particularly poignant given two successful battles over cancer. This time unfortunately it was too much to overcome for someone that seemingly always found a way forward regardless of the odds. Rest easy Mr. Prine.

In our My Favorite Album print issue we interviewed actor/musician Chris Sullivan (This Is Us) about John Prine’s self-titled debut. Read the article here.

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