Biography

Dan Pettitt was born Daniel Austin Pettitt on the 9th of March 1975 in Grantham, England. He grew up in a small village called Moorsholm in North Yorkshire, and attended a nearby Steiner school in a village called Botton. The school had an emphasis on creativity and he began drawing, from depicting The Bible stories to creating his own comics.

Later, attending a Quaker school, Dan's love of drawing continued and he took an interest in pencil and experimenting with shade, also drawing the work of Bruegel. Around this time he became inspired by reading horror fiction such as Ramsey Campbell, James Herbert and Stephen King, Dan wrote a collection of short stories and two novels, also winning his school poetry award.

As a teenager Dan became more interested in music, listening to his parents vinyl and Cd collection. He was drawn to music such as Simon & Garfunkel, The Beatles, Bruce Springsteen, REM & other artists. Dan's biggest influence was Bob Dylan, inspired he began learning the acoustic guitar, soon writing and recording songs.

  From early on Dan Pettitt has been a prolific songwriter compiling ‘official’ and ‘unofficial’ albums annually, a labour of love with an imagined audience and fictitious commercial output. Dan has continually focused on the craft of song, concentrating on structure, lyrics, arrangements, themes and concepts.

Over the years he has performed with a number of bands and collaborated with a variety of musicians, both locally and further afield. Dan has become known as a gifted musician, respected by his peers and enjoyed by his fans. His work receives acclaim as classic examples of song-writing, traditional balladry and social commentary, distinguished by a strong melodic sense and a winning way with words.