{{short description|American singer-songwriter}}
'''Dana Cooper''' is an American singer-songwriter from Missouri. His awards include the 2014 Heritage Musician award from the Pilgrim Center for the Arts in Kansas City, MO and Folk Alliance International's 2015 Spirit of Folk award. He has performed on Austin City Limits, Mountain Stage and at the Kerrville Folk Festival. Cooper's songs have been recorded by a long list of artists that include Trout Fishing in America, Rex Foster, Claire Lynch, Maura O’Connell, Pierce Pettis, and Susan Werner.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|title=Dana Cooper, Roughly Speaking|last=Tyer|first=Brad|date=September 1, 1994|work=Houston Press}}</ref> Fellow singer-songwriter Buzz Holland has said “Cooper is a person who can sing like an angel and play like the devil.”<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://buttonwood.org/event/eric-taylor-dana-cooper/|title=Eric Taylor & Dana Cooper|date=March 18, 2017|website=The Buttonwood Tree: Performing Arts and Cultural Center|access-date=April 25, 2018|archive-date=June 27, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180627005636/http://buttonwood.org/event/eric-taylor-dana-cooper/|url-status=dead}}</ref> {| class="wikitable" |+ !Singer-Songwriter !Dana Cooper |- |'''Born''': |April, 1951 |- |'''Hometown:''' |Kansas City, MO |- |'''Dates Active:''' |1970s - Present |- |'''Genre:''' |Pop/Rock/Folk |- |'''Styles:''' |Contemporary Folk |- |'''Associated Acts:''' |Shake Russell, Jack Saunders, Michael Marcoulier, John Vandiver |}
== Early music and career == Dana Cooper was born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1951. From an early age, he expressed an interest in singing and playing drums, guitar, and harmonica. By thirteen he had begun writing his own songs and by sixteen he was regularly performing at the Vanguard Coffeehouse and Sign Coffeehouse in Kansas City.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/dana-cooper-mn0000953195|title=Artist Biography|last=Harris|first=Craig|date=2018|website=All Music|access-date=April 25, 2018}}</ref> He was awarded several scholarships, but only attended college for a year before dropping out to focus on music.<ref>Cooper, Dana. "Dana Cooper oral history and transcript." (2017) Rice University: {{hdl|1911/97402}}.</ref>
Cooper moved to Los Angeles in the early 1970s to work on his debut solo album with Elektra Records. ''Dana Cooper'' was released in 1973, featuring Leland Sklar on bass and Russ Kunkel on drums.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Acclaimed singer-songwriter Dana Cooper still feels the love|last=Granberry|first=Michael|date=January 2016|work=Dallas News}}</ref><ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/artist/1088064-Dana-Cooper|title=Dana Cooper|website=Discogs|language=en|access-date=2018-06-26}}</ref> Around 1975, Cooper's longtime friend and fellow songwriter Shake Russell began to send letters to Cooper, encouraging him to move to Houston, Texas.<ref name=":1" /> In 1977, Cooper was finally convinced and moved to Texas, where he began writing, performing and recording with Russell. They formed the Shake Russell/Dana Cooper Band shortly after Cooper arrived. Their bandmates included Michael Mashkes on bass and guitar, Jim Alderman on drums and piano, and Pete Gorisch (and, later, Riley Osbourn) on keyboard.<ref name=":4">{{Cite news|title=Coming into their own|last=Adamson|first=Dale|date=September 7, 1980|work=Houston Chronicle}}</ref> The group played gigs in the Houston club circuit like Anderson Fair, Steamboat Springs, and Rockefeller's''.'' During its five-year run, the Shake Russell/Dana Cooper Band released three albums. The self-produced ''Songs on the Radio'' (1978) sold over 10,000 copies between Houston and Austin without the help of a major distributor.<ref name=":4" /> In 1980, the group appeared on Austin City Limits. ''The Shake Russell/Dana Cooper Band'' was released through Michael Brovsky's South Coast Records branch of MCA; the album took two years of work before it was released in 1981.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" /> In 1982, the Shake Russell/Dana Cooper Band worked with the Michael Marcoulier Band and John Vandiver to produce the ''Comin’ Home'' album on Twin Dream Records.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Comin' Home|last=Racine|first=Marty|date=February 7, 1982|work=Houston Chronicle}}</ref> The band separated shortly after, though members would continue to play together occasionally over the years.
Cooper went on to start his own power trio, ''DC3,'' a three-man indie rock-band featuring Al Del Gigante on bass guitar and Tim Davis on drums. The group released the indie single “Give Us the Money” in 1983, an eponymous self-produced cassette in 1985, and the ''Perpetual Man'' cassette in 1986.<ref name=":1" />[[Dana Cooper#cite note-:1-3|<sup>[3]</sup>]] The band changed its name to the Nuclear Family in 1987 and released a self-titled album.<ref name=":3" /> In 1988, Cooper and his wife moved to Nashville, Tennessee, so that Cooper could focus on his solo career.<ref name=":1" />
== Later music and recordings == Cooper released the solo CD ''Stone By Stone'' in 1992. ''Thrill of Love,'' a collaboration with Shake Russell and Jack Saunders, followed in 1994. ''Thrill of Love'' was named Album of the Year by the Houston Press/KLOL Music Awards.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Hot Sounds in the City|last=Sorenson|first=Edith|date=July 28, 1994|work=Houston Press}}</ref><ref name=":3" /> In 1995, Cooper released a live acoustic album, ''Roughly Speaking,'' which included a breadth of old and new material.<ref name=":1" /> His 1997 album ''Miracle Mile'', produced by fellow Kansas City native Josh Leo, featured guest appearances by Lyle Lovett and Maura O'Connell.<ref name=":3" /> ''Miracle Mile'' was nominated for a Nashville Music Award as “Best Pop Album” and was chosen by Performing Songwriter Magazine as one of the top DIY recordings of the year.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Songwriter Dana Cooper to play Sunrise Stage Nov. 11|last=Bartholomew|first=Dustin|date=November 7, 2017|work=Fayetteville Flyer}}</ref> ''Harry Truman Built a Road'' was named one of the best records of 2002 by the Tennessean and was also chosen as one of the best DIY recordings for that year. ''Made of Mud,'' released on King Easy Records in 2005, won Cooper the “Best Male Songwriter” award by Indie Acoustic Project. In 2010 Cooper began working with guitarist/songwriter/producer Thomm Jutz. Together they have recorded four projects, ''The Conjurer'' in 2010, ''Road Show'' in 2012, ''Building a Human Being'' in 2015, and ''Incendiary Kid'' in 2017.
Cooper has become an integral figure in the Nashville songwriting community, collaborating with renowned writers like Tom Kimmel, Kim Carnes and Don Henry. Cooper has been invited to participate in songwriting workshops from Belfast to Copenhagen to Austin.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://www.danacoopermusic.com/bio/|title=Artist Biography|last=Cooper|first=Dana|date=2018|website=Dana Cooper Music|access-date=April 25, 2018}}</ref><ref name=":1" />
== Discography ==
=== Solo work === {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Album !Label |- |1973 |''Dana Cooper'' |Elektra |- |1987 |''Nuclear Family'' |Skram Records |- |1988 |''Complicated Stuff'' |Self-published |- |1992 |''Stone by Stone'' |Jalapeno Records |- |1997 |''Miracle Mile'' |Compass Records |- |2001 |''Harry Truman Built a Road'' |Dog Eared Records |- |2005 |''Made of Mud'' |King Easy Records |- |2010 |''The Conjurer'' |Dog Eared Records |- |2012 |''Road Show'' |Dog Eared Records |- |2015 |''Building a Human Being'' |Self-published |- |2017 |''Incendiary Kid'' |Travianna |}
=== Collaborations === {| class="wikitable" |+ !Year !Performers !Album !Label |- |1978 |Shake Russell with Dana Cooper |''Songs on the Radio'' |Cherry Records |- |1981 |Shake Russell / Dana Cooper |''The Shake Russell - Dana Cooper Band'' |Southcoast Records, MCA Records |- |1981 |The Shake Russell/Dana Cooper Band, John Vandiver, The Michael Marcoulier Band |''Comin' Home'' |Twin Dream Records |- |1986 |Dana Cooper's DC3 |''Perpetual Man'' |Self-published |- |1998 |Shake Russell and Dana Cooper |''Love's Bright Campaign'' |Jalapeno Records |- |2011 |Dana Cooper, Annika Fehling |''Visby, Texas'' |Rootsy |}
== References == <references />
== External links == *{{official website|https://www.danacoopermusic.com/}} * [https://digitalprojects.rice.edu/houston-folk-music-archive/exhibits/show/dana-cooper/biography Dana Cooper Exhibit, Houston Folk Music Archive] (Woodson Research Center, Rice University) * [https://digitalprojects.rice.edu/houston-folk-music-archive/dana-cooper-oral-history Dana Cooper oral history] (Woodson Research Center, Rice University) * [https://www.discogs.com/artist/1088064-Dana-Cooper Dana Cooper Discography]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Dana}} Category:Living people Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:Singer-songwriters from Missouri Category:American male singer-songwriters Category:Singers from Kansas City, Missouri Category:Singers from Houston Category:Singer-songwriters from Texas