John Sebastian

As the frontman for The Lovin' Spoonful, John Sebastian was one of the fathers of folk rock. He was born in New York City's Greenwich Village on March 17, 1944 and would eventually become a leading light of the Village music scene. His father, also named John Sebastian, was a well-known classical harmonica player, his mother wrote for radio, and he was immersed in show biz from an early age. Like many young musicians of his generation, he became fascinated with folk and blues in the early '60s, when Greenwich Village was ground zero for such things. He played with the Even Dozen Jug Band and recorded with the likes of Fred Neil and Tom Rush before forming The Lovin' Spoonful in 1965. They released their debut LP, Do You Believe in Magic, that same year, and had a string of hits from their first three albums, including "Daydream," "Do You Believe in Magic," "Summer in the City," and others. But after 1967's Everything Playing, Sebastian went his own way. His first solo single, "She's a Lady," was released in 1968. The following year he performed at Woodstock and is seen in the film of the festival. His first solo album, John B. Sebastian, came out in 1970, and included contributions from Crosby, Stills & Nash. He released several more albums in the '70s, but never made much commercial headway until 1976. He was asked to provide the theme song for the sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter, and the song unexpectedly became a No. 1 hit. Nonetheless, after that Sebastian stepped out of the spotlight for many years, venturing into everything from soundtrack to children's books and musical theater production. He didn't release another album until 1992's Tar Beach, but he maintained a sporadic recording career in the years to come, including albums that tapped into his folk and jug band roots.