John
Charles Unger
Contemporary
Violin Artist (acoustic and electric), Guitar, and Piano.
J.
C. Unger has a 'Feel Good' style that is beyond categorizing.
Just listen and enjoy!
J.C.
Unger was born in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.
He spent his childhood years in the Leamington - Kingsville area.
His musical career began at the age of eight when, as a Christmas
gift, he received a violin and his subsequent studies at St.
Joseph's School of Music in Leamington resulted in a Silver
Medal for the highest marks given in a Canadian competition.
At the age of twelve he began to play the guitar and piano
and also wrote his first song. Bands formed and broke up and
all the while John continued to hone his songwriting skills.
One day in 1968, while recording with his band, The Dorian,
in a Canadian studio, the trumpet player for Ray Charles
stopped in, heard the recordings, and two weeks later they were
signed with G.M. Records from Detroit, Michigan.
Late night trips to Detroit over the next year produced The
Dorian's first album, Garden of Love,
which was soon released world wide on London, Vanguard
and E.M.I. Records. The single, Help
For My Waiting, which was written by John and the group's
producer, became a top-ten hit in the Mid-West
and in Europe. A European tour was scheduled
but never materialized. Meanwhile, John worked in the same
studio as Bob Seger, Teagarden and Van
Winkle, and Aretha Franklin, and learned
recording techniques from their engineers.
In
1973, John joined a Las Vegas style show-band called
Half And Half Plus One and they played to sold-out
show-rooms from Las Vegas to Ft. Lauderdale.
One of their bookings took them to Nashville to
perform in a huge supper club called The Glass Menagerie.
On their last night, just as their last show ended, the back of
the club caught on fire and very quickly the entire building was
in flames. John and his bandmates frantically tore down their
equipment as they were due in Las Vegas the next
day. Suddenly the lights went out and the rest of the
scramble ensued in the dark. Suffering from smoke inhalation
and exhaustion, they managed to get everything out.
In nineteen seventy eight, John and his long time collaborator Gary
Praeg, now a producer for M.C.A., formed a band called
Shivers and their version of This Old Heart
of Mine, the Isley's hit, was top ten
requested on ten major radio stations throughout the U.S. and Canada.
The group was on Capitol in Canada and Private
Stock in the U.S.
One
year later, one of John's songwriting demos was heard by Al
Hudson and One Way. He was signed by M.C.A.
and his song Now That I've Found You was recorded
by One Way in 1979, and is the first song on the
album. This event almost earned John his first Gold
Record as a song writer, with sales reaching only 400,000,
falling short of the 500,000 needed for Gold Record status.
In
1980, John opted for a more peaceful way of life which allowed him
to remain close to his family in Romulus, Michigan.
He helped to raise three children; Michael, Jason, and Julia, and
began performing in the Downriver area under the
name of J.C. Unger. He played The
Holiday Inn and McBob's Pub in
Taylor, Mrs. Robinson's Tavern in
Southgate, The Sportsman's Den in Riverview,
Mr. Nick's and Fratello's in
Trenton, The Ford, Grosse Isle,
and West Shore Yacht clubs on Grosse
Isle, the Metro Airport Hilton
in Romulus, Sports '50s in Wyandotte,
Mountain Jacks in Birmingham and Royal
Oak, and The Dearborn Tavern in Dearborn.
Also
in 1980, J.C. opened his own recording studio, Sugar Lieu, to share
the knowledge he had gained over the years and to continue recording
his own songs. The studio is currently a State of
the Art digital facility and some of his clientele have
traveled great distances to benefit from the studio's quality and
also J.C.'s production expertise. J.C.
is a member of Taxi, an L.A. based company composed
of top industry recording professionals who teach the art of songwriting
and record production. He makes frequent trips to L.A.
to learn his craft and nurture his record industry relationships.
He continues to enjoy performing in nightclubs and restaurants in
the Michigan area.
From
1990 to the present, Unger has performed, produced and written songs
with Detroit lyricist Melodie Cox. Since 1994, he has
also been performing as a solo artist in supper clubs in the metropolitan
Detroit area.
J.C.
Unger's CD "Electric Gypsy,"
features original contemporary violin music. This music is
beyond categorizing. Some call J.C. Unger's music Easy
Listening, others Jazz, others New
Age. You can hear a classical flavor in it as well.
It is 'feel good' music that spans all age groups and many musical
categories.
You
can purchase his CD "Electric Gypsy" from Harmony
House in the U.S., in Canada at Colasanti's
and Dale's Music Room in Leamington, At The
Grand when you hear him perform live, or at Amazon.com.
Currently,
you can hear J.C. Unger live
at The Grand, 2651 W. Jefferson, Trenton, Michigan
on Friday and Saturday nights from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
