John Prine was born in Maywood (Illinois) in 1946 and is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Over the years, his musical style has spanned many genres such as contemporary folk (an umbrella term encompassing a wide variety of genres - emerging in the mid 20th century and onwards - which were associated with traditional folk music), progressive folk (a genre that uses the introspective, intricate music of post-Dylan folk as a starting point, and adds new layers of musical and lyrical complexity, often incorporating various ethnic influences), progressive bluegrass (a subgenre of bluegrass that expands its sonic palette either by adding elements of jazz, folk, country, and rock, or by amplifying the instruments), country, and Americana (contemporary music that incorporates elements of various American roots music styles, including country, blues, roots rock, R&B, folk, and bluegrass, resulting in a distinctive roots oriented sound). He's had a stellar career with 18 studio albums, 2 compilation albums, 1 Christmas album, 2 live albums, 1 video album, and 3 music videos. He's received many accolades including 3 Grammy Awards and he's widely regarded as one of the most influential songwriters of his generation.