Early Life
Born in San Diego, California, Stewart was the son of horse trainer John S. Stewart and spent his childhood and adolescence growing up in southern California, living mostly in the cities of Pasadena and Claremont with his parents. He graduated in 1957 from Pomona Catholic High School, which at the time was a coeducational school. He demonstrated an early talent for music, learning the guitar and banjo. He composed his first song, "Shrunken Head Boogie," when he was ten years old. In an interview in Michael Oberman's Music makers column (The Washington, DC Star Newspaper) on Oct. 30, 1971, Stewart said, "I bought a ukelele when I was in Pasadena. I would listen to Sons of the Pioneers records. Tex Ritter really turned me on to music. 'I Love My Rooster' was Top Ten as far as I was concerned."
Read more about this topic: John Stewart (musician)
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