John Kruth

John Kruth is a musician, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, teacher, and biographer whose writing grows from close listening and performance experience. His books have examined Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Townes Van Zandt, the Beatles, John Lennon and Yoko Ono, and other figures in popular music. Rhapsody in Black was published by Backbeat Books in 2013 as a biography of Roy Orbison. Drawing on interviews, photographs, recording history, and a selected discography, Kruth traces Orbison’s development from his Texas childhood and Sun Records period to the dramatic vocal style and enigmatic stage presence that defined his career. The book also addresses collaboration, touring, business, and the private losses that shaped Orbison’s music without treating the songs as mere illustrations of biography. A later paperback added a new afterword. Kruth’s own work across mandolin, guitar, flute, and numerous other instruments informs his attention to arrangement, performance, and the practical creation of recorded sound.