Biography

Lonnie Joe Fisher has been hiding in the Land of Oz for years, slinging a unique 5-string guitar with no G string. His voice is a blend of influences, such as Roy Orbison, David Bowie, Peter Murphy, and Buddy Holly. Pair that with diminished chords on an acoustic and you have haunting music that sends shivers down your spine.

Lonnie moved to Lawrence, Kansas (LFK) from the western part of the state in the 1990's, as the college town found its place on the national music scene. He had already been playing in a band, Sleepy Hollow, in Salina, KS; so his weird guitar-playing, mind-altering voice, and crazy antics were about to hit another level. 

The project he started next, Sturgeon Mill, played live venues all around the West and Midwest, with the song "Kill Yourself or I Will" charting in European countries. After Sturgeon Mill, he began experimenting with solo work and spending a lot of time at Black Lodge Studios in Eudora, Kansas in the 2000's. This is where his love for recording and producing blossomed with Ed Rose. A few projects came and went, but nothing really stuck until Lonnie Fisher & the Funeral.

This band had many incarnations as he moved from Lawrence to the Kansas City area in 2015. At one point, the project morphed into another one by the name of Red Moon Junkies, but the pandemic quickly halted that. As he has always done, he invited young and talented musicians into the fold as the world opened up again.

He found a new local recording home at Weights and Measures Soundlab, where he has been creating songs with Duane Trower like a madman since. Now, Lonnie produces and collaborates on a variety of projects. Some would say this is a new era of his mentorship of musicians who want to perform at a higher level. Studio sessions have at least one new musician adding their style and talent to tracks. This has become his favorite part of making music.

Every moment is precious to him as it is another moment he gets to play music. Lonnie has a remarkable life story: from surviving childhood injuries, to singing opera and playing baseball in college, to losing partners in tragic circumstances, and then surviving two strokes to finally find sobriety and the love of a family.

All these stories are woven into a large collection of songs, that only have the tip of the iceberg available online and capture the essence of the unexpected. But the best way to hear it is in Lonnie’s mesmerizing live performances, whether acoustic or with a full band. He is a skilled entertainer with over 1,000 live shows spanning across his career.