Born and raised in Maywood, Illinois, Prine learned to play the guitar at age 14. He attended classes at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music. After serving in West Germany with the U.S. Army, he returned to Chicago in the late 1960s, where he worked as a mailman, writing and singing songs first as a hobby and then as a club performer.
A member of Chicago's folk revival, a laudatory review by critic Roger Ebert built Prine's popularity. Singer-songwriter Kris Kristofferson heard Prine at Steve Goodman's insistence, and Kristofferson invited Prine to be his opening act, leading to Prine's eponymous debut album with Atlantic Records in 1971. The acclaim Prine earned from his first LP led to three more albums for Atlantic. He then recorded three albums with Asylum Records. In 1981, he co-founded Oh Boy Records, an independent label where he released most of his subsequent albums.
Widely cited as one of the most influential songwriters of his generation, Prine was known for humorous lyrics about love, life, and current events, as well as serious songs with social commentary and songs that recollect sometimes melancholy tales from his life.
Prine was the son of William Mason Prine, a tool-and-die maker, and Verna Valentine (Hamm), a homemaker, both originally from Muhlenberg County, Kentucky. He was born and raised in the Chicago suburb of Maywood. In summers, they would go back to visit family near Paradise, Kentucky. Prine started playing guitar at age 14, taught by his brother, David. He attended classes at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music, and graduated from Proviso East High School in Maywood, Illinois. He was a U.S. Postal Service mailman for five years and was drafted into the United States Army during the Vietnam War era, serving as a vehicle mechanic in West Germany before beginning his musical career in Chicago.
Prine is widely regarded as one of the most influential songwriters of his generation. He has been referred to as "the Mark Twain of songwriting".
Johnny Cash, in his autobiography Cash, wrote, "I don't listen to music much at the farm, unless I'm going into songwriting mode and looking for inspiration. Then I'll put on something by the writers I've admired and used for years—Rodney Crowell, John Prine, Guy Clark, and the late Steve Goodman are my Big Four ..."
Roger Waters, when asked by Word Magazine in 2008 if he heard Pink Floyd's influence in newer British bands such as Radiohead, replied, "I don't really listen to Radiohead. I listened to the albums and they just didn't move me in the way, say, John Prine does. His is just extraordinarily eloquent music—and he lives on that plane with Neil [Young] and [John] Lennon." He later named Prine as among the five most important songwriters.
Prine's influence is seen in the work of younger artists, whom he often mentored, including Jason Isbell, Amanda Shires, Brandi Carlile, Sturgill Simpson, Kacey Musgraves, Margo Price, Tyler Childers, and Robin Pecknold.
The last song Prine recorded before he died was "I Remember Everything", released on June 12, 2020, alongside a music video. It was released following the two-hour special tribute show, A Tribute Celebrating John Prine aired on June 11, 2020, which featured Sturgill Simpson, Vince Gill, Jason Isbell, Kacey Musgraves, Bonnie Raitt, Rita Wilson, Eric Church, Brandi Carlile and many other country artists and friends.[45] On the first night of the 2020 Democratic National Convention, Prine singing "I Remember Everything" was the soundtrack to the COVID-19 memorial video.
One Red Rose
John Prine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Hardly a sound was left from the birthday party
The kitchen light fell asleep on the bedroom floor
Me and her were talking softer
Than all the time before I lost her
Picture sat on top of the chest of drawers
Pressed between the holy alphabet
Probably wouldn't believe you if you told me
But what I never knew I never will forget
Rainy nights get dark real early
Her dress was soft and her hair was curly
We danced around the table to the old banjo
Rainy nights were made for lovers
We lay there still beneath the covers
And I ain't never felt like that before
One red rose in the Bible
Pressed between the holy alphabet
Probably wouldn't believe you if you told me
But what I never knew I never will forget
One red rose in the Bible
Pressed between the holy alphabet
Probably wouldn't believe you if you told me
But what I never knew I never will forget
What I never knew I never will forget
In John Prine's song "One Red Rose," the singer reflects on a past moment shared with a lover during a rainy night. The setting is one of stillness as the rain pours down onto the tin roof of a home where a birthday party once took place. The kitchen light has fallen asleep, leaving the scene in darkness. The singer and their lover converse softly, with the picture of a lost loved one sitting on top of a chest of drawers as a melancholic reminder of past loss.
The couple dances around the table to the sound of an old banjo, with the rainy night seemingly made for lovers. The singer describes the softness of their lover's dress and the curls of their hair. The two retreat beneath the covers and the singer experiences a feeling of intimacy they have never felt before. The mention of the one red rose pressed between the holy alphabet in the Bible is a reference to the mourning tradition of placing flowers in a Bible to honor a loved one's memory.
Line by Line Meaning
The rain came down on the tin roof
The sound of raindrops falling on the tin roof was the only sound to be heard
Hardly a sound was left from the birthday party
The excitement of the birthday party had faded away to silence
The kitchen light fell asleep on the bedroom floor
The light from the kitchen had fallen asleep on the bedroom floor, casting a soft glow on the room
Me and her were talking softer
We were whispering to each other, trying not to disturb the peacefulness of the night
Than all the time before I lost her
Our conversation was more quiet than it had been before we broke up
Picture sat on top of the chest of drawers
A picture of her was sitting on top of the chest of drawers
One red rose in the Bible
There was a red rose pressed between the pages of a Bible
Pressed between the holy alphabet
The rose was pressed between the holy pages of the alphabet
Probably wouldn't believe you if you told me
I wouldn't have believed it if you had told me this would happen
But what I never knew I never will forget
The experience was new to me, and it would remain unforgettable
Rainy nights get dark real early
Rainy nights tend to get dark earlier than other nights
Her dress was soft and her hair was curly
She was wearing a soft dress, and her curly hair looked beautiful
We danced around the table to the old banjo
We danced in circles around the table to the sound of an old banjo
Rainy nights were made for lovers
Rainy nights are perfect for spending time with your loved one
We lay there still beneath the covers
We lay there motionless, wrapped up in the covers
And I ain't never felt like that before
I had never felt that way before in my life
One red rose in the Bible
There was a red rose pressed between the pages of a Bible
Pressed between the holy alphabet
The rose was pressed between the holy pages of the alphabet
Probably wouldn't believe you if you told me
I wouldn't have believed it if you had told me this would happen
But what I never knew I never will forget
The experience was new to me, and it would remain unforgettable
What I never knew I never will forget
I had never experienced something as unforgettable as this before
Lyrics © Downtown Music Publishing
Written by: JOHN E. PRINE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind