Mark Fosson

Songwriter and guitarist Mark Fosson grew up in Kentucky, where he began writing songs while he was still in his early teens. In the late '70s he sent some song demos to John Fahey's West Coast-based Takoma Records, and Fahey, impressed with what he heard, offered Fosson a recording deal. Fosson lost no time in relocating to Los Angeles and began recording with Fahey, but as bad luck would have it, Takoma was in some difficulty, and the label soon folded. Fahey allowed Fosson to retain the master tapes of the sessions, however. Now located on the West Coast, Fosson met fellow songwriter Edward Tree, and the two began working together, eventually forming the Bum Steers, a country-tinged group, in the late '80s. Fosson material appeared on several soundtracks through the 1990s. In 2001 he began collaborating with singer/songwriter Lisa O'Kane, who recorded several of his songs, and Fosson also began recording a solo project, Jesus on a Greyhound, which was eventually released on Big Otis Records in 2005. The record drew positive reviews and Fosson was frequently compared to Americana artists like Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Joe Ely, John Prine, and Guy Clark. The Fahey material finally saw the light of day as The Lost Takoma Sessions from Drag City Records in 2006.