story about John Prine in Alaska

Legendary Prine leaves fans primed for rootsy folk
By Erica Goff
Originally published Friday, August 15, 2008 at 12:00 a.m.Updated Friday, August 15, 2008 at 12:00 a.m.
FAIRBANKS — To local music lover Trudy Heffernan, John Prine is more than just a folk music entertainer.
“He is, to me, one of the all-time heroes of music,” Heffernan said, proud to bring Prine to Fairbanks for a second time in his career.
Heffernan is co-owner of Mace and Trudy’s Acoustic Adventures, which helps bring folk, bluegrass, blues, Celtic and other genres of acoustic artists to Fairbanks. Prine performed in the area in 2002 and she’s been trying to bring him back ever since.
“It didn’t just come together, it took a lot of work,” she said. “It was an uphill battle to get an offer big enough and have the right things come together at the right time.”
Heffernan’s diligence paid off and, it turns out, Aug. 22 will be the right time, and Hering Auditorium will be the right place. Hearing Prine during his first visit brought back memories, she said, but meeting him put things in a new perspective, and likely made her and even more devoted fan.
“I happened to catch him as he was leaving the stage and told him that the first music I ever bought was John Prine on eight-track,” she said.
His down-to-earth response was what caught her.
“He said, ‘You know, I have a ‘68 Cadillac that has an eight-track in it.’ He was just so nice and such a real person,” Heffernan said.
That characteristic can be noted in Prine’s songwriting, Heffernan said, because it discusses things “real, regular people” can relate to.
“It has been said that John Prine sings about ordinary people in an extraordinary way,” she explained. “He’s not singing about a famous person, he’s singing about an anonymous old person or an anonymous soldier who just returned home, hooked on morphine.”
An Illinois native, Prine’s rise to fame began with the 1971 release of his self-titled debut album. It included a few of what have become signature songs, such as “Illegal Smile,” “Sam Stone” and “Paradise.” His career since has been monumental, belting out numerous albums, reaching the Billboard U.S. Top 100 chart, winning Grammys and garnering a devoted fan base.
Staunch fans will know favorite tunes and such career facts as Prine’s successful battle with throat cancer in 1998, and his performance in the Library of Congress in 2005 — he was the first singer/songwriter to do so. Heffernan said those who believe themselves to be unfamiliar with Prine’s career may not be as lost as they think.
“A lot of people know John Prine songs without knowing it is him,” she said, noting such hits as “The Great Compromise” and “In Spite of Ourselves.”
Describing Prine’s style is not easily done, Heffernan said, because of its divergent nature: It is “more complicated than it seems, but also simpler than it seems.” He is often serious, making tongue-in-cheek comments about his opinions on such things as war and other political issues, and he also can be quite “goofy” at times, Heffernan said, using topics that “make you think, ‘Where did that come from?’”
Tickets for Prine’s Fairbanks concert are available by calling Accoustic Adventures, 488-0556, online at www.acousticadventures.com, and at Grassroots Guitar. Heffernan said the floor seats are sold out but balcony seats are still available.
What: Folk musician John Prine
When: 88 p.m. Aug. 22
Where: Hering Auditorium
Tickets: $45, available at Grassroots Guitar, www.acousticadventures.com or by calling 488-0556
Contact staff writer Erica Goff at 459-7523.