John McCusker

John McCusker
McCusker during the Festival Interceltique de Lorient in 2012
Background information
Born	(1973-05-15) 15 May 1973 (age 43) Bellshill, Scotland
Genres	Folk rock, folk, Alternative country, Rock and roll
Occupation(s)	Musician producer composer Musical Arranger
Instruments	Violin, tin whistle, cittern, guitar, backing vocals
Associated acts	Battlefield Band, Mark Knopfler, Paul Weller, Roddy Woomble, Kris Drever, Eddi Reader, Kate Rusby, Heidi Talbot
Website	johnmccusker.co.uk

John McCusker (born 15 May 1973) is a Scottish folk musician, record producer and composer. An accomplished fiddle player, he had a long association as a member of the Battlefield Band beginning in the 1990s and was later a band member and producer for folk singer Kate Rusby. He has served as producer and arranger for artists in a range of genres and also has several solo albums to his credit.

McCusker was born in Bellshill, 15 May 1973 near Glasgow, Scotland, to an Irish mother who encouraged him to learn to play the fiddle beginning at age seven. He became a regular in local youth orchestras and ceilidh bands and formed the band Parcel O'Rogues (named from Robert Burns' Sic a Parcel o' Rogues in a Nation) with some schoolmates when he was 14. A couple of years later he gave up a place at the Royal Scottish Academy in Glasgow to go on the road with the Battlefield Band.

McCusker spent eleven years as a member of the Battlefield Band. By the time he left he had composed a catalog of songs, and had become a highly regarded traditional musician. McCusker also guested on albums with many musicians including Ocean Colour Scene, Paul Weller, Teenage Fanclub, Danny Thompson, Eddi Reader, Tim O'Brien and Linda Thompson. By then he was already involved with folk singer Kate Rusby. He joined her band, became her producer and married in August 2001. They divorced in 2006.