EARMILK: “Gary Marks shares liberating and uplifting track ‘The Elemental Line’,” April 2026
“A powerhouse talent who has pushed the conventions of industry expectations, Crossroads is a rare chance to discover a songwriter whose work bridges generations rooted in sheer passion for the craft over everything else. Selected as an official Record Store Day UK/Europe for an April release, this vinyl exclusive traces the continuity of a songwriter whose voice has remained steady and powerful across five decades.”
Read Gary Marks's full biography on EverybodyWiki
Gary Marks Biography | American Singer-Songwriter
Gary Marks’s album Crossroads was selected as an official Record Store Day UK/Europe 2026 vinyl release.
Gary Marks has never fit neatly into one genre, which is part of the point: his music moves from folk-jazz roots into lyric-driven rock without losing its harmonic intelligence or independent moral center.
The Hustle Podcast: “Episode 570 - Gary Marks,” April 2026
“Wholly unique music that will blow your mind.”
Reliving My Youth Podcast: “Gary Marks,” May 2026
“Gary Marks... might be one of the best singer/songwriters you’ve never heard of.”
Since 1974, Marks has released twelve albums, several of which have received substantial critical coverage.
In the 1970s, Marks released three folk-jazz albums featuring musicians who would eventually be icons of modern jazz, including John Scofield, Art Lande, Paul McCandless, and David Samuels.
In the '80s and '90s he became known as one of the most unique and sophisticated rock songwriters in the San Francisco Bay Area.
He has also written more than twenty novels and novellas, including his signature novel, The Dance and the Diamond Sky.
Gary’s first recording from 1974, Gathering, featured John Scofield, David Samuels, and Michael Cochrane. It was re-released on vinyl and CD as a “folk-rock-jazz classic” in Europe in 2006, in Japan and Asia in 2016, and again in Europe in 2025.
Gary’s second and third albums, Upon Oanda's Wing (1977), and Thoughts of Why (1978) featured John Scofield, Paul McCandless of the band Oregon, Art Lande (ECM), Bill Douglass, and Mark Isham. Both albums were re-released in Europe, Japan and Asia in 2012 and 2013, and again in 2025.
Starting in the 1980s, Marks stopped touring. While falling out of the industry spotlight, he wrote and recorded eight privately released albums.
Cris Williamson and Teresa Trull recorded three of Marks's songs from that era on Country Blessed (1989): For Molly’s Sky, The Love We Take, and Soulful Days.
Soulful Days was also included in The Essential Cris Williamson in 2005.
Marks also wrote the song Only Time Can Tell, and co-wrote A Step Away, the title track, on Trull’s 1986 album.
In 2020, Marks founded the We Love Hawaii Food Project in Maui, Hawaii for which The Maui News named him one of its 2020 "People Who Made a Difference."
In 2024, Marks co-wrote “IDOLS” with Sony/Alamo Records rising star Reuben Aziz for his breakthrough album how did we end up here?
Early Life and Influences
Gary Marks was born in Manhattan, N.Y. in 1950. His mother was a child prodigy violinist who graduated from Juilliard. But his mom also loved R&B, rock, folk, jazz, and Motown…. Ray Charles, The Beatles, Dylan’s early recordings, Joni Mitchell, John Coltrane, Keith Jarrett, and Motown were Marks’s early influences.
The 1970s: Gathering, Upon Oanda's Wing, and Thoughts of Why
In 1974, Marks self-produced and released Gathering after being offered free recording time at Ultra Sonic Studios in New York. He was accompanied by his band of future jazz greats, including guitarist John Scofield, pianist Michael Cochrane, and vibraphonist David Samuels. The LP was distributed internationally by J.C.O.A. He toured the U.S. and Europe before settling down in California in 1976.
During this time, Gary introduced Scofield and Samuels to three other brilliant jazz musicians that he had met on the West Coast: Art Lande, Mark Isham, and Paul McCandless of the group, Oregon. They were all soon playing on Marks’ new recordings, Upon Oanda's Wing (1977), and Thoughts of Why (1978).
Michael Cochrane playing with Gary, 1973
John Scofield playing with Gary, 1973
Gary and Art Lande rehearsing for Santa Barbara Opera House, 1976
Jazz Magazine, Vol. 3: “Review of Upon Oanda’s Wing,” 1979
“. . . A flow chart of ‘Upon Oanda’s Wing’ might closely resemble some of Milton Nascimento’s EMI albums, which still serve as a paragon for anyone trying to be equally convincing across the board, from tight vocals and arrangements, to wide open instrumental playing.”
Paul McCandless playing with Gary, 1976
The 1980s and 90s: A Stylistic Shift
In 1985, Gary’s music took a dramatic stylistic change. His fourth major album release, Only Time Can Tell, gathered together some of the best rock players in the San Francisco Bay Area. Teresa Trull recorded the title track on her album A Step Away a year later.
Marks’s cassette-only album Past the Nightwatch, a continuation of that rock style, was reviewed in the Oakland Tribune and the San Francisco Bay Guardian in 1991.
Oakland Tribune: “Gary Marks: Past the Night-Watch,” June 2, 1991
“Marks shows a knack for turning a mature lyric about love, relationships and finding a place in the world into a catchy and memorable song, something rare in pop music these days.”
San Francisco Bay Guardian: “Gary Marks, Past the Nightwatch,” Best of San Francisco & The Bay Area (18th Annual Salute), July 31, 1991
“Marks is a meticulous craftsman, injecting modern-pop song forms with interesting harmonic subtleties and jazz-rooted sensibilities.”
Teresa Trull and Gary, Great American Music Hall
The Real World & Cris Williamson and Teresa Trull Collaborations
Gary's follow-up album in 1988, The Real World, brought him further commercial success as a songwriter. Cris Williamson and Teresa Trull recorded three songs from “The Real World” on their duo album, Country Blessed: Soulful Days, The Love We Take, and For Molly’s Sky.
Backing Marks’s lead vocals on The Real World were Bonnie Hayes, Teresa Trull, and Vicki Randle.
Stef Burns played electric guitar. Burns eventually went on to work with the Alice Cooper Band and Narada Michael Walden. Tony Saunders played bass.
Marks arranged and programmed the drum parts, and played piano, keyboards and acoustic 12-string guitar.
Literary Career: The Dance and the Diamond Sky
In 1988, Marks completed his first novel based on his experiences as a teenager in the 1960s, The Dance and the Diamond Sky. As U.S. politics began to deteriorate during the Bush-Cheney administration, and again during the Trump era, Marks continued to revise his novel to underscore the fact that while history may not repeat itself, human nature does.
At its core, this book is about a small circle of friends navigating life and love during a time when their country is in political turmoil, and no longer knows what it believes in.
Lessons learned sooner or later: Those who march blindly to the drumbeat of law and order will soon be marched to their own front door, and to the doors of their children.
Review by Reprezent Magazine
Alexis Sattler, former Putnam editor, on The Dance and the Diamond Sky:
“ .... From the first page I felt like I’d traveled back in time. There’s a lyricism to both the language and the plot that’s mesmerizing..... Gary Marks is a clear talent.”
The Dance and the Diamond Sky used personal and historical events from the late 1960s as a backdrop for highlighting current social and political issues that resonate today.
A revised edition was released in 2025.
Gary Marks considers The Dance and the Diamond Sky his signature novel.
Robb Literary, Los Angeles: “Review of the novel The Dance and the Diamond Sky by Gary Marks”
“An amazing book beautifully written about a critical time in our country’s history. Though this coming of age tale is about a time decades removed, The Dance and the Diamond Sky generates wisdom that directly reflects upon the internal and external struggles we face today. There are no cliches here. There is humor, plenty of drama, and a great ending. A story that needed to be written finally was. . . .”
If All They Said Was True & Private Releases
Gary's next recording, If All They Said Was True, was released in 1994, and introduced eight new songs.
Rehearsing with band for If All They Said Was True in Gary’s Studio
Marks continued writing and producing albums without touring. During this time he wrote two piano method books: The Gary Marks Piano Method I and II (1990). They were sold nationwide, and are still available on Amazon. Marks taught piano privately for more than three decades, including a period teaching his method at Sonoma State University, and continues to teach advanced students remotely by Zoom and FaceTime.
In 2003, he privately released his album, Bountiful.
In 2007, Gary privately released, A Whisper Can Change the World, mixed by Grammy award-winning mixing engineer, Jim Scott. Mark Needham mixed two of the songs.
In 2010, Marks privately released, From Here, mixed by Grammy award-nominated mixing engineer, Mark Needham.
In 2013, Marks privately released No Turning Back, recorded by Lynn Peterson who worked with Fleetwood Mac.
A six-song album, Alien Nights, was privately released in October of 2021. His son, Shawn Marks, played drums on the title track.
Gary Marks Community Service from 1969 to 2020: The Alternative Natural Foods Co-op and the We Love Hawaii Food Project
In 1969, at 18, Gary Marks co-founded The Alternative, a nonprofit natural foods co-op in Oakland, California, funded by community memberships and run by member volunteers. It operated for more than three years and later appeared in his novel The Dance and the Diamond Sky.
In 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic left thousands of Maui families without work, Gary founded the We Love Hawaii Food Project, an all-volunteer nonprofit project that received its nonprofit status through the global charitable network Embracing the World. Gary seeded the project with his own money, matched by two friends, and ran it with his wife and children.
Families left unemployed by the pandemic received $100 food credits for healthy groceries at a locally owned natural food store on Maui where his family shopped. By the end of 2020, the project had provided an estimated 4,000 healthy meals to more than 200 Maui families.
In December 2020, The Maui News chose Gary Marks as one of its four "People Who Made a Difference." The Maui News: "Heroes in every shape and form," December 25, 2020 "Everyday people who fed, masked and protected our community during a time of unprecedented need." — Colleen Uechi The Maui News: "Healthy food for those in need," October 26, 2020 Hawaiian Moons co-owner Phil Reider said he could go "on and on about how amazing the Marks family is." — Dakota Grossman Read The Maui News profile: "Paying it forward"
Crossroads and the Return to the Spotlight
In 2026, Gary Marks’s album Crossroads was released by Lantern Heights Records as an official Record Store Day UK/Europe 2026 vinyl release.
Many positive reviews and features followed, including a Noise11 article by Paul Cashmere—a full feature in June 2026, discussing Gary’s entire career arc, including his Record Store Day UK/Europe Crossroads release, his eight privately released albums from 1985 to 2021, his early 1970s catalogue, and his seven international reissues.
Marksland Entertainment LLC
Gary Marks and his wife Theresa work as a team, managing Marksland Entertainment, LLC.
As Gary strives to become a 4.5 pickleball player, he also continues to teach piano privately to advanced students on an audition basis.
Gary is currently working on a new album and a new novel. News coming.
Follow Gary Marks on Instagram and Facebook.
Selected Independent Coverage
Paul Cashmere, Noise11: “Gary Marks Revisits Lost Albums With Release of ‘Sky High’ and ‘The Real World’”
Malvika Padin, EARMILK: “Gary Marks Shares Liberating and Uplifting Track ‘The Elemental Line’”
Klemen Breznikar, It’s Psychedelic Baby!: “Gary Marks: Staying Inside the Song on ‘I Guess It Never Stops’ and New LP Crossroads”
Dave Cantrell, Stereo Embers Magazine: “‘Sky High’ From the Ever-Prolific Singer-Songwriter Gary Marks’ Newest Album A Whisper Can Change the World”
Thomas H. Green, The Arts Desk: Review of Gary Marks’ Crossroads in “theartsdesk on Vinyl 98”
Achi Benetti, FAME Magazine: “Gary Marks Revisits Five Decades of Songwriting on Crossroads”
Mundane Magazine: “Gary Marks on Crossroads, Creative Independence, and Why the Patterns Never Really End”
PopDust: “Gary Marks Unearths Long-Lost Single ‘The Real World’ With a Remarkable Story Behind Its Recording”
Melissa Clarke, Americana Highways: “Video Premiere: Gary Marks ‘I Guess It Never Stops’”
Selected Historic Reviews
James V. Murray, San Jose Mercury: Review of Gary Marks and Upon Oanda’s Wing, December 14, 1977
W. Patrick Hinely, Jazz Magazine: Review of Gary Marks’ Upon Oanda’s Wing, 1979
Larry Kelp, Oakland Tribune: Review of Gary Marks, June 2, 1991
Derk Richardson, San Francisco Bay Guardian: Review of Gary Marks in the 18th Annual “Best of San Francisco & the Bay Area” issue, July 31, 1991
Website Design by Skylar Marks
Note: This page refers to Gary Marks, American singer-songwriter, musician, and author. Not to be confused with Gary Marks, the UNC political science professor, the professional golfer, or other individuals sharing this name.