Music
Press
"'A Normal Life' [is] a catchy - and more importatnly, funny - collection of pop songs." Time Out New York
“I am so taken with Garry’s unique brand of humor and storytelling. The songs are
very sneaky. They reach up and grab you in the heart when you least expect it.” Victor Mignatti, Grammy-nominated filmmaker.
“What every producer looks for most in an artist is uniqueness, especially in this YouTube, everybody's-in-show-biz age. Talent is a bonus. Garry Novikoff delivers on every front, and his charming, engaging, intelligently catchy songs are so intensely personal that they are absolutely universal." Richard Barone, producer, recording artist, performer, composer, and author.
“There is a poignancy when Garry Novikoff sings in “Dog on the Moon” that he dreams of being, in his next life, the first dog to touch down on Mars.” Popular Science
“Surreal” Smithsonian Air and Space
“My favorite ditty [on To Touch the Stars] is unquestionably Garry Novikoff’s joyous ‘Dog on the Moon.’ It hilariously condenses both the media circus that accompanies space ‘celebrities’… and the ‘what might have been’ feeling held today by so many of us who grew up during the Apollo era.” Jeff Berkwits, Science Fiction Weekly
“A charming folk song…I identify with that fellow!” Jonathan Schwartz, WNYC and XM radio on “Dog on the Moon.
“‘Good Night Rabbit’ and ‘Lenny’ [are] two aching memories swirled into heartbreaking songs of love and loss.” Bob Sherman, WFUV
“Garry Novikoff is one of the most important artists of our time.” Julie Flanders, October Project
- Various
Discography
Garry's full length 17-track debut CD "A Normal Life" was released late 2008 independently on Trigger Me Music.
The song "Dog on the Moon" was released on the compilation CD "To Touch the Stars" on Prometheus Music in 2004 in partnership with the Mars and National Space Societies.
The song "Dog on the Moon" has been played on WFUV, WNYC (by DJ Jonathan Shwartz) and several radio stations across the country. The live version from "A Normal Life' is currently being played on Sirius XM's the Village. The song "I Like Men" has been played on Sirius OutQ
Photos
Bio
Whether singing about modern relationships, childhood disappointment, cross-dressing or unconventional uses for hot sauce, master storyteller and award-winning singer/songwriter Garry Novikoff infuses his songs with equal doses of humor and pathos. His songwriting style has been described as Harry Chapin meets Barenaked Ladies over at the Fountains of Wayne on Avenue Q.
The buzz surrounding A Normal Life, Garry’s much-anticipated debut CD, began with “Dog on the Moon,” an uproariously touching song about canine jealousy. Originally released on the CD compilation To Touch the Stars, “Dog” found an immediate champion in singer/songwriter Christine Lavin, one of the compilation’s co-contributors. It was soon played by DJs across the country, including the legendary Jonathan Schwartz on WNYC and Bob Sherman on WFUV. “Dog” was featured on the TV show Daily Planet on Canada’s Discovery Channel, and was singled out for rave reviews in the press. Popular Science praised the song’s poignancy, Smithsonian Air and Space dubbed it “surreal,” and Jeff Berkwits of Science Fiction Weekly, called it “joyous” and “hilarious.” The success of the song eventually led to an onstage performance with Pete Seeger at New York’s Merkin Hall. On her website, Christine Lavin described the concert as “Garry’s ‘A Star is Born’ moment.”
As a performer, Garry brings an intensity to his live shows unmatched by most artists today. Among the many venues he has played are New York’s aforementioned Merkin Hall, Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall, the Cutting Room, the Pyramid Club, Don’t Tell Mama, the dearly missed Bottom Line, Nashville’s Bluebird Café, and the Lizard Lounge in Paris. Garry has shared stages with Pete Seeger, Jane Siberry, Christine Lavin, Tom Chapin and Work o’ the Weavers. He was a featured writer/performer in the Songwriters Hall of Fame New Writers Showcase, and the MAC/ASCAP showcase with Avenue Q creators Jeff Marx and Bobby Lopez.
When it came time to record the full-length album, prestigious producer and former Bongos frontman Richard Barone stepped in to produce a number of tracks. Among them “I Like Men,” a deceptively innocent gay anthem, is gaining popularity all over the country on satellite radio’s Sirius OutQ station.
Garry’s love of story songs about everyday people began while he was working as a singer/pianist in the Alsace-Lorraine region of France. He discovered the chanson realiste, a style popularized by artists like Edith Piaf. This influenced his writing, as on the title track of A Normal Life in which a man on mood-stabilizing medication mourns his former insanity. The tracks “Lenny” and “Good Night, Rabbit” were described by WFUV DJ Bob Sherman as “two aching memories swirled into heartbreaking songs of love and loss.” Grammy-nominated film director Victor Mignatti sums it up by saying: “The songs are very sneaky. They reach up and grab you in the heart when you least expect it.”
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