Stereo master cincinnati9/20/2023 ![]() ![]() Jimmy fell back on these words from the Great Man during many low moments. Stick with it.” The advice was conveyed to Jimmy in a Las Vegas artist’s rehearsal room, while Armstrong studied the youngster’s sheet music and played “Didn’t We,” which he immediately recognized as a hit. Early in Jimmy’s career, during a random meet up, Louis Armstrong encouraged Jimmy to “stick with it, Kid.Billy, who admits to having spent a lot of time thinking about Jimmy’s music, summed up Jimmy’s trademark move stating that Jimmy’s characters prove that “ordinary people can be thinking extraordinary thoughts”- the essence of “Wichita Lineman.” Billy Joel referred to Jimmy as “an American icon.” Billy “deconstructed” the lyric of “Wichita Lineman” prior to presenting Jimmy with the Johnny Mercer Award at a Songwriters Hall of Fame Ceremony (2003).Jimmy’s influence on his peers and other songwriters is singular. The Highwaymen (Cash, Nelson, Kristofferson, Jennings named their supergroup after Webb’s song).Richard Harris and Donna Summer (both reach number one, twice, with the same song).Here is a small sample of the list, in no particular order! Webb’s music shows no bounds and no expiration date. The list extends over genres and generations. Motown artists Billy Eckstine, the Supremes, and Brenda Holloway were among the first to record Webb’s music.įew songwriters, and perhaps no other living songwriter, can boast the far-reaching range of artists who have recorded their songs. Jimmy’s schooling was at Motown where he was hired as a writer while still in his teens. ![]() ![]() And his songs have been recorded by the foremost interpreters of these genres. Webb’s music runs the spectrum of modern music genres: country, pop, rock, jazz, rap, heavy metal, new age, gospel, disco, EDM, classical-and more. “ Webb is also superb at leading songwriting lectures and guest speaking on the subject. If you get a chance to see him live, grab it. It’s hard to believe one guy could have written all these amazing songs. As Paul Zollo wrote in Songwriters on Songwriting, “A night with Jimmy at the keys is not unlike getting to hear George Gershwin or Cole Porter live. Sinatra, Elvis, Louis Armstrong, Art Garfunkel, Linda Ronstadt, Harry Nilsson, Richard Harris, Glen Campbell. Jimmy walked with giants and regales audiences with stories of Mr. His humor and storytelling create such a personal atmosphere that the audience cries, laughs and sings as if in the presence of a long lost relative here for a brief visit. In his live shows, Jimmy’s intimate style is juxtaposed against his stature and exquisite piano skills. Webb has been dubbed a modern-day Gershwin/Porter/Berlin and is considered to be a bona fide progenitor of the Great American Songbook, yet at the same time appeals directly and widely to the country/pop/rock/rap culture of today. With songs including “Wichita Lineman”, “By the Time I Get to Phoenix”, “The Worst that Could Happen”, “MacArthur Park”, “Galveston”, “Didn’t We”, “All I Know”, “The Highwayman”, “The Moon is a Harsh Mistress”, he is clearly beloved by the best voices and admired by songwriters everywhere. He is always on the lists of the most important songwriters. His catalog of music and lyrics spans multiple genres and appeals to all living generations. Jimmy Webb’s songs are deeply embedded in our culture. ![]()
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