J.K.
COLTRAIN
J. K. Coltrain was born in Columbus, Ohio. He spent his
early childhood days between there and West Virginia where his
parents operated a small Mom & Pop grocery store. His Dad
also was an excellent auto mechanic and in fact owned a number
of repair shops over the years and was a weekend stock car racer.
One reason why J. K. is a Nascar fanatic to this day:)
J.K. grew up surrounded by music & musicians. His
cousin, Buddy Starcher was a professional recording artist on
Columbia Records and was one of the founders of the Starday recording
label and performed on the then popular Midwestern & Louisiana
Hayrides. He also introduced the late Keith Whitley who first
appeared on Buddys weekly radio show in Charleston, West Virginia
when he was 8 years old. J. K. made his own first appearance on
radio at age 12 and first TV appearance at age 14.
His Uncle & Grandpa performed together at churches
throughout the South. That's where J. K. made his first appearance
singing in church at the ripe old age of 11. His first professional
job was at age 14 when he began singing with The Pleasant Hill
Quartet. A well-known gospel group at the time.
Of course in his teens he had to try his hand in high
school dance bands like Fire n' Ice and The Four Aces but by age
20 he had returned to his first love country music. At that time
J. K. helped form a 7 piece country rock group called 'The Southern
Express'. They garnered a great deal of regional success and opened
for many popular groups at that time such as The Nitty Gritty
Dirt Band, Poco & The Marshall Tucker Band.
He first cracked the country music charts in 1987 with
a self-penned song, West Virginia You're Still My Home. Since
then he has made many appearances on numerous radio & TV shows
including The Nashville Showcase, The Midnight Jamboree &
Stars of Tomorrow. J. K. has toured throughout the US & Canada
and worked with some of the greatest names in country music. Jerry
Reed, Loretta Lynn, The Bellamy Brothers, Conway Twitty, Buck
Owens, George Jones, Tammy Wynette & Jerry Lee Lewis to name
just a few.
J. K's future plans include to continue touring with
his group 'The Nashvillains' in support of his new CD and makin'
new friends. Watch for them in your area to catch a superb country
show.