Johnny Coppin

Johnny Coppin

Johnny Coppin is an English singer-songwriter, composer, poetry anthologist and broadcaster from the United Kingdom, born in 1946. He plays guitar and piano and is best known as one of the founding members of Decameron. He also writes and records as a solo artist and has released a long series of albums.

Early groups and Decameron

Coppin first forms a band called The Shifters with his cousin Martin Wright on bass, Neil Dunwoody on guitar and Howard Jones on drums. He then comes to prominence as a founder of Decameron. The group starts in 1968 as a duo with Dave Bell, who sings and plays guitar, bass guitar and percussion. Coppin and Bell write most of the band’s songs throughout its existence. Decameron becomes a four-piece in 1969 with the addition of Fenn, formerly of Love to Mother, on vocals, guitar and mandoline, and Geoff March on vocals, cello, fiddle and keyboards.

Solo work and collaborations

Coppin’s first solo album is Roll On Dreamer. After that he regularly releases albums. His later work includes Breaking the Silence, a 2007 album made with Mike Silver. In 1977 he forms his own band with Phil Beer on guitar, fiddle and vocals, Steve Hutt on bass and vocals, Candler on drums, and Tony Bennett on guitar and vocals.

Other projects

He also collaborates with Nigel Mazlyn Jones on the albums Ship To Shore and Sentinel, which are released in 1976 and 1979 respectively.