Mark Cool

Biography

Mark Cool is an American classic whose musical honesty is fresh, organic, and timeless. Cool, (yes that's his real name), grew up in Syracuse NY, in a collective household that occasionally hosted traveling folk singers and was filled with music. Now a North Carolinian, Cool shares the kind of talent and values he learned from his roots in live shows worldwide.

Cool's passion and style has already won him acclaim throughout the US and Europe. Selected by Americana-UK magazine as one of the top 20 of the year, his first release Introducing Mark Cool and the Folk Stars (with special guest Folk Star Dom Flemons of the Carolina Chocolate Drops on banjo and harmonica) has been played on a few hundred radio stations in the U.S. and abroad.

". . .  honesty, integrity, simplicity, humour, understatement,

restraint, a ‘joire d’vivre’ that can only be found in folk

who know exactly where the bottom and the top can be found . . .

this is a rootsy, country, bluesy exposition of the highest order. "

                                             - Paul Villers, Americana UK magazine

Cool’s self-produced Folk Star Recordings are authentic and he keeps a strong ear to the earthy textures of real life. His voice is rich with depth and compassion, often compared to Woody Guthrie and Townes Van Zant, and his finger-style acoustic guitar is a testament to the music of Elizabeth Cotton, whose accompanist was one of Cool's guitar teachers. (Libba lived the last years of her life in Cool's hometown in NY.)

Cool's new cd "Pie", is comprised of 11 songs; 6 new original tunes including the popular "Dream Time", an anthem of the 'economic downturn', 4 fingerstyle instrumentals (one composed by Cool), and a cover of the country chestnut Delta Dawn, with stellar guest vocals by Sherry Honeycutt. Pie was recorded at Overdub lane studios in Cool's hometown, Durham ,NC. The disc was mastered at the Kitchen, in Carrboro, NC, a stone's throw from the tracks where Cotten wrote the folk standard "Freight Train". Cool was joined in the studio by an excellent group of local musicians; Harris "Greenie" Marley, Art Champagne, David Shore, and Scott Laird.

Cool played his third European tour in May, '09. His "100 house concerts tour" continues, and the songwriter will promote Pie with tour dates in the US and another trip abroad scheduled for Summer '10.

Mark grew up listening not only to classic folksingers, but also to his father's extensive collection of Johnny Cash lps and a regular diet of am dial country radio. Grandpa Elmer played banjo in a bluegrass trio. Cool found his own way around the guitar early in his teens, traveling to Hollywood in his 20's, where he attended Musician's Institute, played in bands, and wrote songs.

Divorced and the proud father of 2 great kids, Cool supported his family for years as a carpenter. He's now laying down the hammer in favor of the guitar more and more as he transitions into a full time recording and touring career.