John’s recording career began with Fontana Records in 1965. 57 years later, he is still composing and recording.
COMPOSER SINGER/SONGWRITER PRODUCER MUSICIAN AUTHOR
1 “BIRTH”
Samples OF THE MUSIC
2 “SUNRISE”
3 “DAWN OF TIME”
4 “UTOPIA”
5 “AWAKENING”
6 “eVOLUtion”
7 “DESTRUCtion”
“Earth Chronicle” takes the listener through our planet’s entire history, from its birth to the possible extinction of all life. The end is inevitable unless immediate action is taken to reverse mankind’s disregard for our only home in the universe.
We fly from the outer reaches of the universe past stars and through nebulae into a solar system where we witness a distant supernova. A black hole forms and consumes all surrounding matter. The black hole contracts and matter is recycled into its elements and molecules. Fierce bursts are seen from the black hole’s quasar.
Clouds of gases form giant nebulae. Matter begins to form. Galaxies form and stars become suns. A solar system begins to form from galaxies and order slowly emerges from chaos. A crust forms on the molten ball that will become Earth. The new planet is bombarded from all sides. The moon forms and becomes spherical.
A primordial soup of chemicals, gases and elements lays the foundation for organic life. The ocean subsides as torrential rain falls. Plants and trees begin to spring from the planet’s bare crust. Rivers start to run from the new mountains and carve courses on their way to join the oceans. Forests and plants spread and Earth gradually becomes green.
Tidal movement begins. Clouds form and a single landmass emerges from the ocean. Our solar system forms and planetary orbits begin. Volanoes erupt and form mountains of lava. The oceans evaporate as Earth warms and the Sun rises above the horizon for the first time. Islands emerge and the landmass begins to divide as tectonic plates move and form mountain ranges where they collide.
Meteorites bring elements of life to Earth’s crust and seas. Algae grows at water’s edges and organisms form and develop in the oceans. Primitive life eventually crawls onto land. Flowers and trees develop fruits and flowers. Insects develop. Primitive creatures give way to dinosaurs. Mammals develop. A vast meteor collides with Earth and debris hides the Sun. The Great Ice Age begins.
Man ‘the hunter’ emerges and spreads across the Earth. The Stone, Iron and Bronze ages lead to early forms of civilisation. Empires grow in Sumeria, Egypt and Rome. Holy wars, conquests and plagues ravage the planet. Great works of art and music are created. Slaves are transported from Africa to the ‘New World’ and beyond. The Industrial Revolution begins with early inventions.
With progress comes affluence, new empires, despots, wars, destruction, pollution, computers, terrorists, nuclear weapons, deforestation, floods, global warming, famine, plague and eventual disaster.
Cold And Misty Hours (Publisher: Arthur’s Mother / Valentine) A new recording of a song John performed live many times, but never got round to recording properly until now.  Recorded at the Bryant Whittle studio in Abbey Wood, London.  Matters Of The Heart (Publisher: Arthur’s Mother / Valentine) A recent song telling of unrequited love and one’s refusal to accept that it is not reciprocated or accepted  as such by the object of that affection.  Who’s Fooling Who? (Publisher: Arthur’s Mother / Valentine) Another song John used to sing live.  BBC Radio One and Capital Radio producer, Tim Blackmore said he should  record it.  He finally did.  I Was Solid Gone (Publisher: Arthur’s Mother / Valentine) Recorded at Ossie Byrne’s Village Way studio with Mick Flinn singing the harmony.  Poor Man’s Troubadour (Publisher: Arthur’s Mother / Valentine) Another song John used to perform live, sometimes with Paul Karas (Rare Bird) on bass and harmonies, but  with different lyrics.  Recorded at the Bryant Whittle studio.  Too Big For One (Publisher: Arthur’s Mother / Valentine) Prompted by memories of a stay in Nashville with Marijohn Wilkin and sessions with Waylon Jennings and  legendary producer/writer ‘Cowboy’ Jack Clement.  Lack Of Enlightenment Blues  (Publisher: Arthur’s Mother / Valentine) Written while at the Cannes Film Festival for a film based on the book ‘Body Politic’ by Paul Johnston.   The 2008 worldwide recession hit the film industry hard so the film was never made.  You Were A Lady (Publisher: Arthur’s Mother / Valentine) Written for a film about the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.  Produced by David Mackay.   Guitar: Bob Huff,  Drums: Charlie Morgan, Bass: David Mackay.  Back To Mexico (Publisher: Arthur’s Mother / Valentine) Inspired by visits to a restaurant in Covent Garden with guitarist Rod Alexander.  A very pleasant and  attractive Mexican waitress said she’d never return to Mexico and then did.  The rest was wishful thinking.   She’s A Gypsy  (Bryant / Dempsey Publisher: Angela Music Publishing) Terry Dempsey and John wrote the song on a train journey, but John can’t remember where to.  This is his  original never-released recording, produced by Nigel Gray at Surrey Sound Studios, Leatherhead, Surrey, UK,  and remixed in the Bryant Whittle studio.  Sir Cliff Richard recorded the song for his Green Light album,  produced by Bruce Welch, and performed it live on his world tours.
“POOR MAN’S TROUBADOUR” THE SONGS
“She’s A Gypsy” co-written with Terry Dempsey, recorded by Sir Cliff Richard on his ‘Green Light’ album and performed live.
Tracks from John’s 1972 Polydor album.
“Warm My Bed”
“Woodbine Annie” - inspired by a true story
“Lester May’s Country Band”
“No Strings” on Private Stock Records.
“Peace Will Be Mine” Polydor single.
SINGLES
“Daybreak”
“The Way You Are”
“Baltimore”
“If I Could Fly” single.
“Queen Of The Silver Star” - co-written with Terry Dempsey.
1965
1966
1967
1969
1968
1971
1971 (EP + 2 tracks)
1972 album
1973  No 1 in Belgium, Top 10 in Holland.
1973
1975
1977
1978
1978
1978
1975
1976
1977
Two early recordings also appeared on compilation albums in 2010 and 2011
1969 Australian No1 1969 Compilation album
1968 Single A-side 1968 Australia album
1979 album
1978 album
1975 single 1975 album
1977
1990 Double album
2003 No 1 in UK Music Video chart.
1976 album
1987 album
2008 album 3 songs
John D. Bryant started his musical career at school. He was in Tooting band The Shifters, who gigged extensively and appeared on ITV’s ‘Ready, Steady, Win’. John went solo and recorded the first of three singles for Fontana Records in 1965, Tell Me What You See. He appeared on ‘5 O’clock Club’ and supported the Small Faces at Streatham Ice Rink. The Shadows recorded John’s Dear Old Mrs Bell as their first vocal single in 1968. John went on to record singles for Decca and MCA before signing a 5-year deal with Polydor records in 1970, recording five singles, an EP and an album between ’70 and ’73, then going on to release singles on Pye, Tony Visconti’s Good Earth label and Private Stock Records. John played the Rainbow, Queen Elizabeth Hall, the Marquee, the Cambridge Folk Festival, and had a residency at Smalls after-theatre restaurant in Brompton Road, alternating with the Dudley Moore Trio. On radio, he performed live on Folk Meets Country, Both Sides Now, Country Club and Speakeasy for the BBC and recorded sessions for Capital Radio. In 1974, his song, Painter of the Sky, reached the final of the first American Song Festival in Saratoga Springs where it was performed by José Feliciano. That gave him the opportunity to travel to Nashville and work with Marijohn Wilkin (One Day at a Time) and Clarence Selman (Jim Reeves’ manager). They introduced him to some of the real country greats, including Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings, and he played and sang on sessions with legendary producer, ‘Cowboy’ Jack Clement. In the 1970s John teamed up with an artist friend, Peter Edwards and wrote the story and songs for The Lion’s Tale, a musical about a lion cub. It was proposed as a concept album in aid of the WWF with a star-studded cast and Phonogram contracted as producers. Tim Rice and John worked together to build the list of performers, but the project was left up in the air when the MD of Phonogram left suddenly. John turned to producing, but while recording tracks for Polydor with the hugely talented writer/pianist/singer, Brian Chatton, the sessions were arbitrarily cancelled in favour of a little-known punk band, The Jam. John left Polydor and signed to Private Stock. He gave up recording when the label closed. In 1985, he set up a design partnership in New Bond Street, with a client roster which included Marks & Spencer, Tesco and Avon Cosmetics. One strange commission was to buy and restore an ex-pirate radio ship, formerly Laser 558, and move it to the Costa Del Sol to compete with Radio Gibraltar. One night the ship was raided by a group of thugs intent on stealing it. John and his partner responded by hiring a group of ex-SAS guys, who stormed the ship brandishing serious weaponry. The ship was eventually impounded by the DTI when the anchor chain broke and it strayed into British waters. After the partnership was dissolved in 1988, John went on to launch and edit Satellite Times magazine when the first Astra satellite went up. The magazine was so successful that Robert Maxwell, Asil Nadir, Richard Desmond and Conde Nast all made offers to buy it, but any deal was scuppered by the non-executive Chairman. John resigned and went freelance again as a designer/illustrator until 1992, when he was asked to join the staff of the Brit Performing Arts School in Croydon, where he taught A-level music technology and grade 8 classical guitar. At the same time, John worked with producer David Mackay on the Up With People stage show concepts, writing three songs for their World In Motion show, while continuing to develop The Lion’s Tale, now renamed Delta Ball, which opened the Stoppard Theatre in Yorkshire as a musical play in 2000. Tom Stoppard described the new £1.5 million Tom Stoppard Centre as a "brilliant theatre" and after opening it, he watched pupils perform part of a new musical play called The Delta Ball by the school's head of art, Peter Edwards, and composer, John Bryant. York Press interview 2001 In 2004, John was commissioned to write a score and songs for a feature film about the death of Diana, Princess of Wales and, in 2006, he set up Bryant Whittle Ltd with Amanda Whittle to develop and produce concepts for film and TV. John went on to conduct a forensic investigation into the death of Princess Diana, and his book, The Diana Jigsaw, was published at the end of August 2019. John is now planning to make a film of the same name, based on his investigation. Meanwhile, John completed a seven-movement orchestral suite, Earth Chronicle, and realised that he should put together a new album of his unreleased recordings. The result is The Poor Man’s Troubadour, which is now available to download on Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music, Pandora, Amazon, Google Play, Tidal, iHeartRadio, YouTube, Deezer and many more. John has since released ‘We Are Refugees’ for the Ukraine Appeal, a new version of ‘Peace Will Be Mine’ and ‘If I could Fly’, as well as completing his ‘Earth Chronicle Suite’ for orchestra, choir and soloists. He has also written two books.
‘New Faces’ Series 1 Final 1973
New Ash Green with Paul Karas (bass) and Eric Woods (gtr)
I Was Solid Gone
On the yacht Harmony 2 at the Cannes Film Festival
In the garden during lockdown entertaining the weeds
Peace Concert, Dublin 1974
Overzealous hairdresser?
For all enquiries, please email us at:
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For music publishing enquiries regarding songs, please contact: Arthur’s Mother Music / Valentine Music Ltd 26 Litchfield St, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9TZ T: +44 (0)20 3540 8941
info@valentinemusic.co.uk
https://music.amazon.co.uk/artists/B01GUAT3OW/john-d-bryant?marketplaceId=A1F83G8C2ARO7P&musicTerritory=GB
https://music.apple.com/us/artist/john-d-bryant/1122166431
https://youtu.be/PY0sx4ZX8lo
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