JOHN MCDAID
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About

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​"A mischievous guitarist and vocalist with a gift for the inimitable phrase."
​                             — Robert Coover, The New York Times

John McDaid is a singer-songwriter from Portsmouth, Rhode Island. Over his 40 years of performing, he's played his geek-inflected songs at political events, science fiction conventions, and NYC venues including Speakeasy and Folk City. His songwriting has earned international recognition, including prizes at FilKONtario and the Ohio Valley Filk Fest and a featured concert at the 2019 World Science Fiction Convention in Dublin. In 2020, he took first place at the Common Fence Music Community Hoot. He has been twice  nominated for Best Writer/Composer in the Pegasus Awards. An award-winning science fiction short story author, he brings a writerly focus to his lyrics, complemented by a guitar style that draws on contemporary and traditional folk. Contact: [email protected].


Trail Of Mars

"The standout here is McDaid's lyrics - superb, funny, weird and unexpected poetry in the mode of a Leonard Cohen or Bob Dylan in Subterranean Homesick Blues mode."
​                                            —Cory Doctorow


"If you are a lover of clever lyrics, then this should satiate your word lust. McDaid delivers his material with a Randy Newman/Leonard Cohen/Dire Straits feel."
​                                           —John Fuzek, Motif

Winner of the John Culkin Award from the Media Ecology Association. Fully automated luxury geek folk that takes on mediated political reality, social justice, and assorted existential crises. Ten-song studio album featuring an amazing crew of musicians, recorded remotely from June-August 2020, so you know it's topical AF.


Listen on
Spotify
Apple Music/iTunes
​Amazon Music
Produced by John McDaid
​
Recorded, mixed, and mastered by Mark Dann
markdann.com

Craig Akin—Bass
craigakin.com

Abbie Gardner—Dobro (Down To The River, Into Thin Air), Vocals (Down To The River, Walking Off The Earth)
abbiegardner.com

Tracy Grammer—Violin, vocals (Buy The Ticket, Take The Ride, Gioconda Smile, Walking Off The Earth)
Recorded at The Blue Room, Greenfield, MA
tracygrammer.com

Jim Henry—Electric guitar (Lost In Translation, Sigmund Freud's 11th Dream, Gioconda Smile, Trail Of Mars), mandolin (Lost In Translation, Walking Off The Earth)
jimhenry.net

Laurie MacAllister—Vocals (Down To The River)
lauriemacallister.net

Eric Parker — Drums

Album art by A.D. Puchalski
angeldevilland.com

All music and lyrics ©2020 John McDaid (ASCAP)

Video

Demo album available on Bandcamp

Upcoming gigs

March, 2023 Consonance
Milpitas, CA
Date/time TBA
Interfilk guest

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