Tony Denikos

And here is THE WHOLE STORY: Some of my earliest memories are of riding along the country roads of central Maryland, singing songs like -- "Jack O' Diamonds" by Tex Ritter, "Born to Lose" by Ray Charles, "Caldonia" by Louis Jordan and "Pendulum Swings" by Roger Miller -- along with my Dad and sisters while my mom smiled at the landscape gliding by... A seed had been planted. After years of playing pubs and bars in various configurations I decided it was time to record my first release Naked & Smiling (1999) and included a mix of songs I'd written over the years.

Some of my earliest memories are of riding along the country roads of central Maryland, singing songs like -- "Jack O' Diamonds" by Tex Ritter, "Born to Lose" by Ray Charles, "Caldonia" by Louis Jordan and "Pendulum Swings" by Roger Miller -- along with my Dad and sisters while my mom smiled at the landscape gliding by... A seed had been planted.

After years of playing pubs and bars in various configurations I decided it was time to record my first release Naked & Smiling (1999) and included a mix of songs I'd written over the years. The Washington Post reviewed it calling me a, "Tunesmith in the best sense of the word", and folks started coming out to hear the band that I put together during the recording. A tradition of recording hard-luck, real-life songs mixed with humor and wit was born. I get requests for tunes from this CD at live shows to this day.

Time Tells Tales followed in 2003. I started to hone a more Americana sound, relying on my earliest influences as well as artists such as John Prine, CCR, Little Feat, Springsteen, James McMurtry, Lucinda Williams, John Hiatt, Richard Thompson and Steve Earle. Time Tells Tales was given a good deal of radio play in Europe and Free Form stations here at home and it seemed that I had found my true voice
somewhere in that gumbo of influences. The Tony Denikos Band had taken its' shape too and we started playing all across the Mid-Altlantic region.

In 2005, I headed to Nashville to begin my next project, Already Gone. I started laying down tracks with Timm Biery (Danny Gatton, Nils Lofgren). Timm brought in Dave Jacques (John Prine, Emmy Lou Harris), Dave Roe (Johnny Cash, Dwight Yoakam), and Warner Hodges (Jason and the Scorchers) on the project to record with Gantt Kushner, Scott and Jen Smith (Naked Blue) and myself ? what an amazing experience. Already Gone hit the streets with a bang in late 2009 and received critical acclaim from DJs and writers around the globe. It went to #2 on the EuroAmericana Chart and #7 on the Freeform American Roots (FAR) Chart right out of the gate.

And now in 2012, Under the Church is being released. I've been blessed once again by having tremendously talented musicians and producers work with me to create my vision for the CD. My thanks go out to Gantt Kushner, Scott and Jen Smith, and Timm Biery, for lending me their talents for this project. Under the Church goes to places both darker and more light-hearted than my previous releases. It allows me to claim my working class roots, reveal my small town disposition, and provide commentary on our current political climate. It may well be my best CD to date. I'll let you be the judge.

You can find me performing in any number of configurations - from acoustic solo to full on, rockin' five- piece band - from South Carolina to Texas to upstate New York. I have assembled a collection of some of the most talented musicians in the country to form my band Tony Denikos & the Working Poor - myself (Vocs, Guitars, Harmonicas), Gantt Kushner (guitar), Lee Townsend (BGVs, bass), Rick Weisenmiller (drums)
and Mark Riddle (BGVs, guitars). I feel honored every chance I get to share the stage with them.

I love performing almost as much as I love recording a new song. I cherish the connection
that my songs help me make with folks in ways only music can. I sure do hope I get a chance
to pick y'all a tune or two sometime soon.