Jon Vezner

Vezner was born on 5 June 1951 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. While completing a BA in Music Theory and Music Education at Minnesota Southwest State University, he played bass and sang in several bands. After graduation he briefly considered teaching music, but the placement of some of his compositions with recording artists led him to relocate to Nashville, Tennessee. Continued success followed, with cuts by Faith Hill, Janis Ian, Reba McIntyre, John Mellencamp, Ronnie Milsap, Lorrie Morgan—who recorded the Alan Rhody co-write ‘Train Wreck Of Emotion’—and Clay Walker, whose 1998 chart-topper ‘Then What’ became one of the biggest. He also cut tracks with Kathy Mattea, whom he married in 1988. Co-written with Don Henry, ‘Where’ve You Been’ earned Mattea the Country Music Association Female Vocalist Award, a Grammy for Best Female Country Performance and gold certification, while bringing Vezner a Grammy for Best Country Song, Song Of The Year honours from the Nashville Songwriters Association and the title of NSA Songwriter Of The Year.

Additional co-writes include ‘A Few Good Things Remain’, ‘If I Didn’t Love You’—a Top 10 hit for Steve Warriner—‘Time Passes By’, ‘Whole Lotta Holes’, ‘Ashes In The Wind’, ‘Who’s Gonna Know’ and ‘All Roads To The River’. Working with Paul Williams he supplied Diamond Rio with ‘You’re Gone’ and the song ‘I Know Him By Heart’, which Vonda Shepard performed over the closing credits of a season-ending Ally McBeal episode. On the 2006 album Transitions Vezner sings six tracks and singer-songwriter Celeste Krenz sings the other six.