By Marcia Morgado

John Prine was known for a unique everyman poetic storytelling approach to music writing, Along with social commentary, Prine’s wry sense of humor shines strong; fused with down-to-earth humanity, it results in great songs about the human condition. From 1971 with well-known pieces as Hello in There, Paradise and Sam Stone to 2018’s Summer’s End and When I Get to Heaven (2018). The long trajectory includes gems like Lake Marie (1995) where real and imagined events masterfully intertwine in a mesmerizing creation. In Spite of Themselves. written for the film Daddy and Them, exudes a witty sense of humor.

Watching NPR’s 2018 Tiny Little Desk Concerts, provided an intimate view of his performing style. It was during the taping that he commented on writing many of his songs at Arnold’s Country Kitchen, a Nashville food landmark whose menu he knew like the chords of his guitar. He described how he and co-writer Pat McLaughlin worked together on Tuesdays “cause that’s the day they make meatloaf. And I love meatloaf.”

His most recent album, The Tree of Forgiveness (2018), was the first in 13 years with all new songs. It immediately became his most successful. On July 29, 2018, while at the Newport Folk Festival, he taped a brief commentary on it: “One of the easiest records I’ve ever made,” he said with typical humbleness. He admits that “this record’s got stardust or something, it’s got legs and it keeps on running around… it’s a great feeling, you know.”

Born in a Chicago suburb, the road Prine traveled took him from Illinois mailman to the Army and back to the Post Office, all the time composing songs in his head; songs that would turn him into a musical icon.

He battled and survived cancer twice, first in 1998 and again in 2013. On January 26, 2020, at 62^nd Grammy Awards, he received a Lifetime Achievement, three days later, he left for a European tour along with his wife, the fiercely socially committed Fiona Whelan Prine. They met in Ireland, in 1988 and moved in together in 1993; the couple has three sons. They visited Ireland before heading to Paris on February 10 for what was to be his last performance; he played at the Café de la Danse on the 13^th. The couple celebrated their final Valentine’s Day at the lovely Four Seasons George V, a block from the Champs Elysées. From the City of Light, they flew back to Nashville where Prine had an emergency hip replacement; Prine relished in dancing and was suffering from excruciating pain.

He battled and survived cancer twice, first in 1998 and again in 2013. On January 26, 2020, at 62nd Grammy Awards, he received a Lifetime Achievement, three days later, he left for a European tour along with his wife, the fiercely socially committed Fiona Whelan Prine. They met in Ireland in 1988 and moved in together in 1993; the couple has three sons. They visited Ireland before heading to Paris on February 10 for what was to be his final performance; he played at the Café de la Danse on the 13th. The couple celebrated their last Valentine’s Day at the lovely Four Seasons George V, a block from the Champs Elysées. They flew back to Nashville from the City of Light. Prine had an emergency hip replacement; he relished in dancing and was suffering from excruciating pain.

The February 18 surgery was successful, as Fiona posted on Instagram. On the 23rd, she complained of tiredness. The benefit concert To Nashville With Love went on without his participation, but the Prine Family’s commitment to rebuilding North Nashville continued. On March 17, Fiona posted that having felt tired, with a cough and shortness of breath, she tested positive for COVID-19, but that John’s test “came back indeterminate;” she recovered on the 30th. However, he was in the high-risk population. Hospitalized at Vanderbilt Medical Center, intubated on the 28th, after ten days on a ventilator, John Prine passed away on April 7. He was 73 and left behind a void difficult to fill. His family and the music world, along with millions of fans, grieve his loss. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVhA01J0Zsg