Patrick Park
Encyclopedia
Early life
Park grew up in Morrison, ColoradoMorrison, Colorado
The historic Town of Morrison is a Home Rule Municipality in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The population was 430 at the 2000 census...
. He was exposed to the arts at an early age: his mother was a published poet, and his father was a doctor who enjoyed playing folk and blues records and the guitar at home. Park himself began to write songs in his early teens and played in bands starting in middle school
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
.
He moved to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to try and start a music career, but left after less than eight months for Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, working numerous odd jobs that ranged from clothing store retail clerk to karate
Karate
is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It was developed from indigenous fighting methods called and Chinese kenpō. Karate is a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands. Grappling, locks,...
teacher to support himself.
In 2000, Park completed his first demo collection, now known as The Basement Tapes. He recorded the songs in the back of a store owned by a friend's girlfriend since he did not have enough money to use a studio.
Career
Park befriended producer Dave Trumfio (WilcoWilco
Wilco is an American alternative rock band based in Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo following singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup has changed frequently, with only singer Jeff Tweedy and bassist John...
, Earlimart
Earlimart (band)
Earlimart is an Indie rock band based in Los Angeles, California. They are named for the town of Earlimart, California. Their sound bears resemblance to Elliott Smith and Grandaddy, as well as to contemporaries like Pedro the Lion, with whom they performed in a 2004 tour. The band's sixth...
) later that year. He and Trumfio wrote, recorded, and mixed material for Park's debut album during the summer months of 2002 and has since worked very closely with him on various EPs and LPs. Singer/songwriter Tim Easton, pedal steel player Eric Heywood, and drummer Dave Kostiner joined them in the studio. During this time, Park also played live concerts as the opener for Julia Fordham
Julia Fordham
Julia Fordham is a British singer-songwriter based in California. Her professional career started in the early 1980s, under the name "Jules Fordham", as a backing singer for Mari Wilson and Kim Wilde.-Career:...
, Gomez
Gomez (band)
Gomez are an English indie rock band from Southport, comprising Ian Ball , Paul "Blackie" Blackburn , Tom Gray , Ben Ottewell and Olly Peacock . The band is distinguished for having three singers and four songwriters, employing traditional and electronic instruments...
, Beth Orton
Beth Orton
Beth Orton is a BRIT Award–winning English singer-songwriter, known for her 'folktronica' sound, which mixes elements of folk and electronica. She was initially recognised for her collaborations with William Orbit and the Chemical Brothers in the mid 1990s. However, these were not Orton's first...
, and Richard Buckner
Richard Buckner
Richard Buckner is an American singer-songwriter born in California. After living in Edmonton, Alberta for a number of years, he currently resides in Brooklyn, NY...
.
He signed a deal with Hollywood Records
Hollywood Records
Hollywood Records is an American record label owned by Disney Music Group, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company.-History:Hollywood Records was founded in 1989 by then-Disney CEO Michael Eisner with the idea of expanding the music operations of the company and to develop and promote...
in 2003, and Under the Unminding Skies EP was released that February. Park's first studio album, Loneliness Knows My Name
Loneliness Knows My Name
Loneliness Knows My Name is the full-length debut LP by singer-songwriter Patrick Park, released in 2003. Some of the songs have achieved popular status through their use on the television programme The O.C..-Track listing:#"Thunderbolt" – 2:56...
, followed in 2004. Disappointed by low sales, he later commented: "[Hollywood Records] had no idea what to do with me. They're a pop label, so they were always trying to fit a square peg in a round hole
Square peg in a round hole
A square peg in a round hole is an idiomatic expression which describes the unusualindividualist who could not fit into a niche of his society.-English literature:...
." He has since moved to Curb Appeal Records
Curb Appeal Records
Curb Appeal Records is an American record label founded in Kansas City, Missouri by The Get Up Kids guitarist and Blackpool Lights frontman Jim Suptic.-History:In July 2005, The Get Up Kids split up, leaving the members to pursue their own side-projects...
and released his second full-length album, Everyone's in Everyone
Everyone's in Everyone
Everyone's in Everyone is the second full-length LP by singer-songwriter Patrick Park, released in 2007. "Life Is a Song" has achieved popular status through its use on the television programme The O.C.. In "The O.C...
and his EP Songs of Peace - Songs of Protest, while continuing to tour across the U.S. For his third full-length album Come What Will (2010), Park moved back to Badman Recording which released his EP Under the Unminding Skies in 2003.
Park received moderate attention following airplay for "Life Is a Song", which was chosen as the final song on the series finale of the Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
teen drama
Teen drama
A teen drama is a dramatic television series with a major focus on teenage characters. The genre was relatively non-existent for the first 45 years of television; it came into prominence in the early 1990s...
The O.C.
The O.C.
The O.C. is an American teen drama television series that originally aired on the Fox television network in the United States from August 5, 2003, to February 21, 2007, running a total of four seasons...
.
Patrick Park will be opening for Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
winning artist Shelby Lynne
Shelby Lynne
Shelby Lynne is an American singer, songwriter and actress. The success of the 1999 album I Am Shelby Lynne led to her winning the Grammy Award for Best New Artist, even though she had been active in the music industry for some time...
at a one night only charity event to benefit Alzheimer
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...
's research on September 1, 2011 at the Yost Theater
Yost Theater
The Yost Theater and Ritz Hotel is a Nationally recognized Historic Place located in Santa Ana's Downtown Historic District. Under the ownership of the Olivos Family it became a movie house for the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema. In recent years it housed various church organizations and underwent...
in Santa Ana
Santa Ana
-People:*Saint Anne, mother of the Virgin Mary*Santa Anna , Native American tribal leader*Antonio López de Santa Anna , Mexican general and President-United States:*Santa Ana, California...
.
Discography
- Basement Tapes EP (2000)
- Under the Unminding Skies EP (2003)
- Rarities EP (2003)
- Patrick Park EP (2003)
- Loneliness Knows My NameLoneliness Knows My NameLoneliness Knows My Name is the full-length debut LP by singer-songwriter Patrick Park, released in 2003. Some of the songs have achieved popular status through their use on the television programme The O.C..-Track listing:#"Thunderbolt" – 2:56...
(2003) - Monday Nights at Spaceland Live LP (2006)
- Everyone's in EveryoneEveryone's in EveryoneEveryone's in Everyone is the second full-length LP by singer-songwriter Patrick Park, released in 2007. "Life Is a Song" has achieved popular status through its use on the television programme The O.C.. In "The O.C...
(2007) - StickBirdSongs EP (2007)
- Songs of Peace - Songs of Protest EP (2007)
- Come What Will (2010)