Acoustic guitarist Leo Kottke was raised in 12 different states. As a result, he absorbed a variety of musical influences as a child. After adding a love for the country-blues of Mississippi John Hurt to the music of John Phillip Sousa and Preston Epps, Kottke joined the Navy underage. Discharged in 1964, he settled in the Twin Cities area and became a fixture at Minneapolis’ Scholar Coffeehouse, which had been home to Bob Dylan and John Koerner.

After sending tapes to guitarist John Fahey, Kottke was signed to Fahey’s Takoma label.  Fahey and his manager Denny Bruce soon secured a production deal for Kottke with Capitol Records. Kottke flourished during his tenure on Capitol, as records like 1972′s “Greenhouse” and 1973′s live “My Feet Are Smiling” and “Ice Water” found him branching out with guest musicians and honing his guitar technique.

Kottke has been awarded two Grammy nominations; a Doctorate in Music Performance by the Peck School of Music at the U of Wisconsin, Milwaukee; and a Certificate of Significant Achievement in Not Playing the Trombone from the U of Texas at Brownsville with Texas Southmost College.