Piece image

A Musician's Life: Gordon Gano (of Violent Femmes fame)

From: WXPN
Series: A Musician's Life
Length: 05:01

The son of a minister, Gordon Gano hardly seemed like an obvious candidate to front the 1980's post-punk band, The Violent Femmes. But his smart lyrics and manic energy spoke to disgruntled teens, and the band attracted a healthy following. Today, Grodon Gano is still making music. His latest release is called "Under the Sun". He's Tracey Tanenbaum's guest on this edition of "A Musician's Life". Read the full description.

Gordongano_small Gordon Gano grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  He was one of eight children.  He formed the Violent Femmes with Brian Ritchie shortly after graduating from highschool.  In 1983 the band released its self-titled debut album.  It went on to make several records over the course of a 25 year history.  The Violent Femmes became models of teen angst.  Gano has just released his second album along with the Ryans.  It's called "Under the Sun". 

To hear the full audio, sign up for a free PRX account or log in.

Also in the A Musician's Life series

Piece image

A Musician's Life: Marcia Ball (05:00)
From: WXPN

Austin based musician Marcia Ball is best known for her infectious brand of Louisiana Swamp rock and two-fisted piano playing. And even though she comes from a musical ...
Piece image

A Musician's Life: Graham Parker (05:00)
From: WXPN

Veteran songwriter Graham Parker joins Tracey Tanenbaum on this edition of "A Musician's Life". Early in his career, critics in his native Britain tagged Parker "an angry ...
Piece image

A Musician's Life: Exene Cervenka (05:00)
From: WXPN

As one of the leaders of the seminal LA band X, Exene Cervenka is punk rock royalty. On this edition of "A Musician's Life" Exene takes us through her life. She also reveals ...
Piece image

A Musician's Life: Wendell Holmes (of the Holmes Brothers) (05:00)
From: WXPN

The Holmes Brothers have been entertaining audiences with their uplifting blend of gospel, blues and R&B for three decades. Their latest album "Feed my Soul" was inspired by ...
Piece image

A Musician's Life: Shelby Lynne (05:00)
From: WXPN

On this edition of "A Musician's Life" Tracey Tanenbaum speaks with Shelby Lynne. In 2001 she won a Grammy for best new artist. At the time, Lynne had about a half dozen ...
Piece image

A Musician's Life: The Swell Season (05:00)
From: WXPN

On this edition of "A Musician's Life" Tracey Tanenbaum speaks with Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova of The Swell Season. Most people will remember the pair from the 2007 ...
Piece image

A Musician's Life: Mike Gordon of Phish (05:00)
From: WXPN

When Phish formed in the early '80's they played to audiences in their college town of Burlington, Vermont. By the mid 1990's, they were performing in amphitheaters to sold ...
Piece image

A Musician's Life: Josh Ritter (05:00)
From: WXPN

In 2006 Paste magazine named Josh Ritter one of the top 100 living songwriters. But shortly after completing his 2008 album, "Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter", the ...
Piece image

A Musician's Life: Jace Everett (05:00)
From: WXPN

You may not know his name but if you're a fan of HBO's "True Blood" you know Jace Everett's baritone. Each week Jace's song "Bad Things" accompanies the program's opening ...
Piece image

A Musician's Life: Luka Bloom (05:00)
From: WXPN

To his fans his story is legendary. Ireland's Barry Moore began playing music with his older brother Christy when he was a young teenager. He reinvented himself on a plane ...

Piece Description

Gordon Gano grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  He was one of eight children.  He formed the Violent Femmes with Brian Ritchie shortly after graduating from highschool.  In 1983 the band released its self-titled debut album.  It went on to make several records over the course of a 25 year history.  The Violent Femmes became models of teen angst.  Gano has just released his second album along with the Ryans.  It's called "Under the Sun".