Johnny Cunningham

Johnny Cunningham (27 August 1957 – 15 December 2003) was a Scottish folk musician and composer, instrumental in spreading interest in traditional Celtic music.[1]

Johnny Cunningham
Born(1957-08-27)27 August 1957
Portobello, Edinburgh, Scotland
Died15 December 2003(2003-12-15) (aged 46)
New York City
GenresCeltic, folk, rock
Occupation(s)Musician, producer
InstrumentsFiddle
Years active1972–2003
Associated actsSilly Wizard, Relativity, Nightnoise

Johnny Cunningham was born on 27 August 1957 in Portobello, Edinburgh. Along with his brother, he was raised as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but later became inactive.

He was a founding member of Silly Wizard, as well as a member of Relativity, The Raindogs, and Nightnoise.[1] Throughout his career, Cunningham was also a fiddler, composer, and producer. His younger brother, Phil Cunningham, is a multi-instrumentalist best known for his piano-accordion and whistle playing. He is also a former member of Silly Wizard and was involved in promoting Scottish traditional music. Cunningham died of a heart attack on 15 December 2003 in New York City at the age of 46.[1]

Discography
  • Thoughts from Another World (1981)
  • Fair Warning (1983)

With Phil Cunningham

  • Against the Storm (1980)

With Silly Wizard

With Relativity

  • Relativity (1986)
  • Gathering Pace (1987)

With Nightnoise

With Celtic Fiddle Festival

  • Celtic Fiddle Festival (1993)
  • Celtic Fiddle Festival: Encore (1998)
  • Rendezvous (2001)

With Susan McKeown

With Thomas Moore (spiritual writer)

With The Raindogs

With others

Composer

In the 1990s Johnny worked with the New York-based theater company Mabou Mines on a theatrical production, "Peter & Wendy". He composed music and lyrics for this musical adaptation of J.M. Barrie's play "Peter Pan," which won two OBIE Awards. The soundtrack album from this innovative production was recorded and released nationally in 1997. Productions of "Peter & Wendy" have been presented and revived numerous times.

References
  1. Harris, Craig. "Johnny Cunningham". AllMusic. Retrieved 11 September 2014.


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