THE VOLGA GERMANS IN PORTLAND
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People > Notables > Richard Lawrence "Dick" Kniss

Richard Lawrence "Dick" Kniss

Richard Lawrence "Dick" Kniss was a bassist who performed for over four decades (beginning in 1964) with the folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary. At their concerts, his wife Diane reports, Dick was always introduced on stage by the trio as "the fourth member" of their group.
Dick Kniss
Dick is continually re-inventing approaches to our songs. Sometimes he's there at the beginning; helping to create the tone or mood of a piece while the trio's vocal parts are still evolving.  But personally, I think his greatest contributions come nightly!  I can't name another bass player who improvises so tastefully within the framework of folk music. -- Noel Paul Stookey (Peter, Paul and Mary)
When the trio disbanded for a time in the 1970s, Dick signed on as an original member of John Denver's band (Denver was also of German Russian descent), where he co-wrote the hit Sunshine on My Shoulders and The Season Suite, which became the number one song on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1974.

Dick, son of John Kniss and Bernice Cutler, was born April 24, 1937 in Portland, Oregon. His father's parents were Johannes Kniss Sr. (born October 30, 1878 in Norka, Russia) and Katharina Dorothea Müller (born November 16, 1878 in Norka).

His first instrument was a guitar, but he soon moved on to the bass. His musical career as a bass player began in San Francisco before moving to New York City. His roots were in jazz and during his prolific 58 year career he was a sideman to such notables as Herbie Hancock and Woody Herman.

Kniss was also active in the 1960's civil rights movement, and performed benefits for many causes, playing during the first celebration of Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday as a national holiday. 

Dick Kniss died January 25, 2012.

Sources

"Dick Kniss, a Bassist for Peter, Paul and Mary, Dies at 74," New York Times, January 28, 2012.

"Peter, Paul and Mary Bassist Dick Kniss Dies," Rolling Stone Magazine, January 12, 2012.

Ancestry.com
Last updated December 29, 2020.
Copyright © 1998-2023 Steven H. Schreiber
  • Home
    • About This Website
    • Reviews
  • History
    • Historical Timeline
    • Migration to Russia
    • Emigration from Russia
    • Settlement in America
    • Migration to Portland
    • Little Russia
    • A Short History of Albina
    • World War I
    • The Volga Relief Society >
      • Portland Volga Relief Society Subscribers 1921
    • World War II
    • Assimilation and Dispersion
  • Beliefs
    • Churches >
      • Albina Seventh-day Adventist Church
      • First United Mennonite Baptist Church
      • Ebenezer German Congregational Church
      • Free Evangelical Brethren Church >
        • German Evangelical Congregational Brethren Church
      • Second German Baptist Church
      • St. Pauls Evangelical and Reformed Church
      • Second German Congregational Church >
        • Evangelical Congregational Church
      • Zion German Congregational Church >
        • Rivercrest Community Church
    • Pastors
    • The Brethren
    • Denominations >
      • German Reformed Church
      • German Evangelical Synod of North America
      • Evangelical and Reformed Church
      • German Congregational Church
      • Seventh-day Adventists
      • United Church of Christ
  • People
    • Our People
    • Notables
    • Pioneers 1881-1892
    • Stories
    • Photographs
    • Help Identify These People
  • Community
    • Characteristics
    • Businesses >
      • Bakeries Retailers and Services
      • Garbage Haulers
      • Grocery and Meat Markets
      • Restaurants >
        • Helsers on Alberta
        • McCormick & Schmicks
        • Wildwood
      • Saloons and Taverns
      • Suppliers and Manufacturers
    • Employers
    • Education
    • Sports
    • Maps
    • Documentary
  • Traditions
    • Foods
    • Folk Medicine
    • Expressions
    • Weddings
    • Holidays
    • Folk Music
    • Funerals and Burial Sites
  • Resources
    • Family Research
    • Books and Video
    • Works Cited