*** You probably don’t think of Jim Terr when
it comes to songwriting, but after hearing
this interview conducted by Diego Mulligan a
short time ago, I’m thinking that way. Jim may not have the
best voice (though it fits well on his more humorous tunes),
but he is one hell of a tunesmith. He leans toward Country—
that born between Country & Western and Modern Country— and
puts together songs in the manner of, say, Tom T.
Hall and Bob McDill— those of a
storytelling variety. Terr, for those who don’t know, owns Blue
Canyon Productions and has worked with Junior
Brown,Steve Young and Slim
Pickens (bet you didn’t know ol’ Slim recorded, did
you?). Terr played a special part in the life of Steve
Young, having re-released Young’s Seven
Bridges Road album, originally released on
Reprise Records (to read a Cliff’s Notes version of that
involvement, click
here). To fill you in a bit on Terr’s songwriting
skills and as a tribute to Diego Mulligan,
who evidently passed away just shortly after this interview
happened, Terr has made an
mp3
of the interview available online. Songwriters, you might
want to listen to
this.-Music blogger
Frank C. Gutch Jr.
"Jim Terr is a very talented
singer/writer
and I hope you enjoy his songs as
much as I do."
- Bobby Braddock
(writer of some of the most popular songs in the history
of country music, such as "He Stopped Loving Her
Today," "Golden Ring," "Something
to Brag About,"D-I-V-O-R-C-E", "We're
Not the Jet Set," "Old Flames Have New
Names", "Let's Talk About Me",
many others.
"A prolific creator of original wit and music, with a
dedicated following on the internet, his discovery is
still shamefully overlooked by the entertainment
industry." -Tony
Byworth, UK journalist and author, co-editor of the BILLBOARD ENCYCLOPEDIA OF COUNTRY MUSIC.
…[Jim Terr has been] described as a modern day Mark
Twain, Will Rogers, Jimmie Rodgers and Jackie Mason rolled
into one. Can I add to that list names like Shel
Silverstein, Tom T. Hall, Bobby Bare, Ray Stevens and
the likes--
master wordsmiths all, and country boys too…
-Brian Ahern, Country Music
& More (UK)
"Bodacious" -Dave
Barry
"Wise, witty and whimsical (and sometimes sad)" -Tony
Hillerman
"Some of the most thoroughly enjoyable tunes I've ever
heard...tiny monuments to songwriting...For whatever
elements came together to make the genius of Jim Terr and
his music happen, we should be truly gleeful, grateful and
gratified….” “He shares equal territory with
the folksy politicism of Phil Ochs, the
sheer songwriting skill of Townes van Zandt,
and the shamelessly naive sense of ironic humor of
Loudon Wainwright III."
-Bill Hutchison, Santa Fe Reporter
and Anthologist’s
Cabinet
Jim Marshall, British Country Music Bulletin:
An entertaining, description-defying
collection... If one were to invite comparisons, you'd perhaps
liken Jim Terr to Tom T. Hall, or, perhaps
Paul Craft.
"A highly creative, satirical Outlander and asskicking
comedian without parallel;
an excellent writer...reminds me of Calvin Trillin…
-Mike Malloy
"Jim Terr's spirit shows through consistently in his
songs... It's the droll, sardonic,
'cut-the-B.S.' outlook known around the world as
American." -James Fallows
"Jim Terr’s creativity and versatility are unmatched.
Well, almost unmatched." -Hodding Carter
III
"One of the true creative geniuses of our time. .This guy
does some of the best satire
in the business. One of the great comedic and auditory
geniuses of our day."
—Thom Hartmann
So there I was, at Las Vegas’ Old Town Plaza park, late
one Friday afternoon, by chance, hearing the New Mexico
Territorial Band perform tunes of the late 1800s on
traditional band instruments, in traditional costume.
Introducing the song, “Daisy, Daisy”
(Bicycle Built for Two), the announcer said that
this song was intended to promote the modern two-wheeled
bicycle which was just coming out at the time, replacing the
older “Velocipede” design:
I think she may have specifically mentioned “jingles”, but
in any case my mind started racing at the thought that
JINGLES – of which I’ve done many but always considered a
somewhat unsavory sideline to “pure” songwriting –
probably has a long tradition!
In addition to the radio and TV advertising
jingles of the 40s, 50s and 60s, the “Golden Age” of
advertising jingles, I realized there have probably
always
been songs intended to promote products, causes,
to fire up the team and the congregation – all the way
back to prehistoric, tribal times!
Suddenly my own work - including my many
nationally broadcast songs and satires -
appeared in a more historical, important, “dignified”
context. Among the many jingles I’ve done over the years, a
couple of the best-known are the “Sing
a Song of Snapple” jingle which was
reportedly the most popular of that national campaign in the
80s, and the “Toss
No Mas” jingle which is the
longest-running jingle in New Mexico, still running after at
least twenty years now!
As a historical exploration, looking at advertising,
promotion, publicity, evangelism, etc., – is a critically
important study, influencing all we do and all we go through
as a society. It needs more exposure, a closer look,
much greater awareness.
As a personal story, it’s about a process of
recognizing and acknowledging one's own accomplishments,
talents, building some self-esteem for the things done and
recognized for which I may have ignored or minimized –
but which I can see as part of an interesting,
significant historical stream!
What the market might be for such a documentary is wide
open, but “Sherman’s
March” (a historical yet “personal”
documentary - one of the first of the genre), did well, and
in this case a company or two might
help underwrite it, for the advertising exposure of
their jingle!
Previous
documentary workFoundation
reference
(Documentary will be distributed, at minimum, to state
libraries and
selected high schools, colleges, public access outlets,
online, etc.)
RAW VIDEO CLIPS OF DOC IN PROGRESS
(5 min.)
NASHVILLE INTERVIEW:
JINGLE IN PROGRESS
Tribute to Tom T. Hall & Bobby
Braddock
"ANY OLD TRAIN" - in the style of Van Morrison, I flatter myself to
think
You're Not the Only One
Small Cafe
Think you heard these in the 1960s??
142,000 views on Facebook - not too bad:
Do You Like to Jitterbug?
I Love You, George
* * * * *
Featured in the film, AND GOD CREATED WOMAN
A couple not-entirely-unknown JINGLES
Contact & to check on availability of products below
BOOK & CDs
Offer - the three items below.. The simplest way to do it right now...
All 3 for $22 postpaid - shipped immediately (US) Click here for Paypal and specify
autograph(s)
desired for each or for all.
CD 1. (17 of the 20 songs on this CD are from the book
below) Video sampler of above CD
CD 2
(shares only 1 song with CD above)
Book (88 pages)
“One of the true creative geniuses of our time. His is
a unique and valuable gift of populism and simplicity.
His work is wise,hard-hitting, unusually effective, and
deserves the support of everyone
who wishes for a more humane world. Especially in these
particularly divisive times, Jim has a gift
for bridging the ‘divide.’ One of the great comedic and
auditory geniuses of our day.” - Thom
Hartmann
