Karl Valentine

Karl Valentine is a singer/songwriter who was born in New York and raised in Philadelphia during the height of the folk scene on the East Coast. Studying with folks like Chris Smither and Danny O'Keefe, Karl has played a long list of clubs from coast to coast--among them the Tin Angel in Philadelphia, the O.K. Hotel in Seattle, the Sioux City Folk Festival in Iowa, The Pacific Northwest Folklife Festival and Sweetwater in Mill Valley, CA. Most recently, Karl developed a close relationship with the late Chris Whitley, who has inspired and motivated Karl to seek the Big Sky Country.

Residing in Center City, Philadelphia, Karl has completed four albums, three of which are available online through CD Baby, Amazon.com and iTunes. His key influences have been Jackson Browne, Stephen Stills, James Taylor, Chris Whitley, Tom Waits, Suzanne Vega and Cat Stevens. Karl tours mainly in the Pacific Northwest and the East Coast northern seaboard. He plays a 1957 00-18 Martin and an Olson SJ when playing solo, and a Tom Anderson Strat when touring with his friends.

His lyrics are very narrative, with tales of love and loss, political outrage, sociological and philosophical reflections, forged in the crucible of late 20th century rock, spiced with equal measures of blues, jazz and folk. Karl has teamed up with Joel Tipke, a guitar prodigy from Spokane now based in Seattle. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll break a few lamps, you'll be happy if you're in love, and you won't need to ask why.