Jack Nissenson

Jack Nissenson (1933-June 24, 2015 in Montreal)[1] was a member of the Mountain City Four, a Canadian folk music group, based in Montreal and active in the 1960s. In addition to Nissenson, the group consisted of Peter Weldon, Kate McGarrigle and Anna McGarrigle.[2]

Before the Mountain City Four, Peter Weldon and Jack Nissenson were members of a traditional folk band called Pharisees. When Weldon and Nissenson met the McGarrigle sisters, they formed the Mountain City Four.[3]

Nissenson recorded an early concert performed by Bob Dylan at the Finjan Club on Victoria Street in Montreal in July 1962.[4] He made the recording with an old British-made reel-to-reel tape recorder, so the quality of the recording is exceptional. This recording remains as one of the most sought-after early recordings of Bob Dylan with collectors and fans.[5]

Nissenson moved to Toronto in 1975.[1] During the late 1970s and 1980s he sang and played guitar with a political folk group in Toronto called Bread and Roses.

Upon returning to Montreal, Nissenson continued to play folk music for many years as a solo singer and with a group named "The What Four" (with Peter Weldon, Marvin Segal, John Knowles and often Jane McGarrigle).[6][7] He was also an accomplished storyteller and belonged to a group called Word of Mouth Productions with storytellers Dylan Spevack-Willcock, Sarah Comrie, and John David Hickey.[8]

Nissenson died in Montreal on June 24, 2015.