Suzanne Stewart
Staff Writer
John Compton may have started his life in Panama, but he is 100 percent a Pocahontas County boy. He and his mom moved to the county when he was in the second grade and Marlinton was home until he graduated from Pocahontas County High School in 1984.
From there, Compton went on to be a traveling electrician for 25 years. He may not have made a living as a musician, but music was always in his soul. He was in the show choir and band in high school and picked up the guitar at the age of 13.
It wasn’t until 2018, however, when he formed his band, Amos Steel, that he was able to share his music with others.
“I actually formed it with my oldest son, Jonathan Compton,” he said. “He was with us for two years and then he and his wife blessed me with my beautiful grandson. He recorded our first record ‘West By God’ with us and then came off the road.”
There have been a few lineup changes as the band evolved into its current iteration, which has been working on songs for a series of EPs called the “Devil’s Backbone Recordings.”
Compton said he wanted to bring the band back to Marlinton to perform in his hometown and thanks to a phone conversation with Candy Harper, Amos Steel will perform Saturday, July 11, during Pioneer Days.
This won’t be the first time the band has performed in Marlinton. They were the headliners at Old Mountain Tavern in 2024 for the Zach Bryan Great American Bar Scene album release party.
Compton will return to the tavern Friday, July 10, for a solo performance before joining the band Saturday at Discovery Junction.
“We’re really excited about it,” he said. “I get to come home. Keef [Mack] has a camp out Steven Hole Run. He’s very attached to the area and Doodle [Hackworth] is very attached.”
Compton is no stranger to performing at Pioneer Days. He recalled that in 1987, he performed with his then band, Medicine Man.
While he’s been both a solo act and singer for a couple of bands that have seen lineup changes, Compton said the current Amos Steel is “the” band he’s been waiting for.
“This is the band I’ve waited for all my life,” he said. “Everyone writes great songs and everybody gets along – that’s a big thing. I’m really proud of the band and I just wanted to bring it home and share with everybody.”
Coming home will also be rejuvenating and a reunion for Compton, who tries to visit as often as he can from his home in Charleston.
“I haven’t gotten home as much this spring/summer as I’ve wanted to, but I will be coming in on Friday and then the rest of the guys will filter in behind us,” he said. “Then we’ll leave the following Monday, so I’ll get a few days at home.”
With a hectic life, it’s nice to have that time off and Compton said as soon as he steps into his aunt’s house and she greets him with a “Hello, precious,” all his worries just melt away.
“It’s just a really relaxing and great experience to come home,” he said.
Amos Steel’s first album, “West by God,” may be found on spotify.com
