John Denver is a musician.
Henry John Deutschendorf Jr. ( December 31 , 1943 -- October 12 , 1997 ) , known professionally as John Denver , an American musician , singer-songwriter , record producer , activist , actor , and humanitarian , whose greatest commercial success was as a solo singer . After traveling and living in numerous locations while growing up in his military family , Denver began his music career with folk music groups during the late 1960s . Starting in the 1970s , he was one of the most popular acoustic artists of the decade and one of its best-selling artists . By 1974 , he was firmly established as America 's best selling performer , and AllMusic has described Denver as `` among the most beloved entertainers of his era '' . Denver recorded and released approximately 300 songs , about 200 of which he composed , with total record sales of over 33 million .