leaving on a jet plane

John Denver
born Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr.
(December 31, 1943 – October 12, 1997)


Folk singer, actor, and humanitarian whose popularity in the seventies made him a pop culture icon. He was born in Roswell, New Mexico into an Air Force family that moved around the country during his childhood. His grandmother gave him his first guitar when he was eleven and was playing in clubs when he attended college at Texas Tech University with a group called The Alpine Trio, changing his name to John Denver after the city from his favorite state. He dropped out of school, moved to Los Angeles, and joined The Mitchell Trio.   Denver wrote 'Leaving on a Jet Plane' in 1966 during an airport layover while he was in the trio: "Not so much from feeling that way for someone, but from the longing of having someone to love." It was originally called 'Oh Babe I Hate to Go'.

In 1967, the song was recorded by three artists:

 The Chad Mitchell Trio,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OuRPpqf_764

Spanky & Our Gang,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcxlT4uUiPE

Peter, Paul and Mary.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUD4y74YDik


Two years later Peter, Paul and Mary took the song to the top of the charts, making it the last number one song of the sixties. This was just as Denver decided to go solo. It helped his career; but it would take another two years for him to break through on his own with his classic song, 'Take Me Home, Country Roads', the first of many huge hits for him. In 1977, he was named Poet Laureate of Colorado. At the height of his success, Denver became involved as an activist in several causes from the environment, homelessness, poverty, hunger, and censorship to the Chernobyl disaster and the African AIDS crisis. He co-founded the Windstar Foundation to promote sustainability and environmental awareness.   He also developed a love of flying and got his pilot's license: “I enjoy flying a lot. That’s one of my favorite things...I have over 2,000 hours and pilot-in-command of a Learjet. I fly my own plane. I have an open-cockpit biplane. It does acrobatics and stuff.”

On October 12, 1997, he was killed when his experimental Rutan Long-EZ plane crashed into the Pacific Ocean near Pacific Grove, California. The plane had a problematic fuel selector valve which was positioned behind the pilot seat. It required him to turn completely around to reach; and, while doing so, the plane went into a steep drop and hit the water. His body had to be identified from fingerprints.






“Perhaps love is like a resting place, A shelter from the storm, It exists to give you comfort, It is there to keep you warm, And in those times of trouble, When you are most alone, The memory of love will bring you home”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9GePJCDtGY




 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLBKOcUbHR0





All my bags are packed I'm ready to go
I'm standin' here outside your door
I hate to wake you up to say goodbye
But the dawn is breakin' it's early morn
The taxi's waitin' he's blowin' his horn
Already I'm so lonesome I could die
So kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that you'll wait for me
Hold me like you'll never let me go
Cause I'm leavin' on a jet plane
Don't know when I'll be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go

There's so many times I've let you down
So many times I've played around
I tell you now, they don't mean a thing
Every place I go, I'll think of you
Every song I sing, I'll sing for you
When I come back, I'll bring your wedding ring
So kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that you'll wait for me
Hold me like you'll never let me go
Cause I'm leavin' on a jet plane
Don't know when I'll be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go

Now the time has come to leave you
One more time let me kiss you
Close your eyes I'll be on my way
Dream about the days to come
When I won't have to leave alone
About the times, I won't have to say
So kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that you'll wait for me
Hold me like you'll never let me go
Cause I'm leavin' on a jet plane
Don't know when I'll be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go