On October 12, 1997, John
Denver died when the plane he was flying crashed into Monterey
Bay, California. With his death, the Earth lost it’s most
gifted and influential spokesman. John had worked to end world
hunger, save the rain-forests, make people aware of the need to
protect the environment, save endangered species, and much more.
He did this through his gift 
of
song and financial donations. He was instrumental in the creation
of many organizations and groups that are now at the fore-front
in the war for the environment. He left an incredible legacy.
After his death, many people began to wonder what
would happen to the causes that John had supported. Who would carry on his legacy and
continue to fulfill his dreams? The answer became immediately clear. The fans of John
Denver, those who had supported his works during his lifetime, would continue in his stead
after his untimely departure. We would try to fill the void he left behind, and continue
what he had begun.
That was the reason this project was started. It
grew from the simple idea of creating a web-site that would host "home-spun"
versions of John’s songs, into a complete CD project compiled by his many admirers.
The profits from the sale of the CD would be sent to John’s favorite charities. As
the project began to progress, several issues arose. In order to maximize the amount of
money that could be donated, each artist would need to pay for the cost of recording the
songs they wished to include. Studio time was donated to "mix" and
"master" the final project. Monies for the duplication of the project were
accepted, with each donor realizing they would get no interest back from their initial
investment. It was decided that all proceeds from this project would be donated to the
Plant-It 2000 Foundation, on behalf of "The Fans of John Denver."
The
call for tapes went out, and many people sent them in. Some were
"karaoke" style, with vocalists singing over pre-recorded
tapes. Other submissions came in as sheet music; original compilations
of words and music on paper, but no music. Many came in that had
been recorded on "boom box" style recorders, since the
artists could not afford to go into a professional recording studio.
Still more arrived that were not finished; they needed to have
additional instruments added and be professionally "mixed."
In all, over thirty people became involved in this project.
Finally, it was time to select the songs that would be included
on the CD. Musicians volunteered their time and effort to try and help those who had
submitted sheet music or "un-finished" tapes. Each tape was listened to, over
and over again. The "karaoke" tapes were the first to be removed from the list,
as it was too expensive to obtain the recording rights for these "previous
performances." Tapes that could not be enhanced to CD quality had to be culled to
maintain the sonic integrity of the project. Finally, the decision had to be made as
to the "flavor" of the project, which would eliminate another handful of
entries. This was the hardest portion of the entire process.
At each
stage of the selection process, a committee of four individuals
listened to each song, and ranked them into various categories.
The criteria that each song was judged against was that it must
be a high quality recording, be "pleasing" to the ear
(very subjective), and should equally represent both the original
recording and the artists own personality. Each time the committee
met, the list was whittled down a little more. Finally, the committee
agreed on the artists that would be represented on the CD. The
final arrangement of songs all had a complimentary style, and
told a cohesive story when put together.
It was not possible to use every submission. I
wish it was. As the producer of this project, I was given the opportunity to hear each and
every entry. I read pages and pages of lyrics and poems. I spoke with each artist on the
telephone or through e-mail, and got to know something about each one of them. I came to
know and understand how much John Denver, his music, and his works meant to each and every
one of them. I heard stories that made me laugh, and others that made me cry. I met a lot
of dear people and made many good friends along the way. I thank each of them for their
time, talent, and enthusiasm. This has truly been a labor of love.
