Member Since: 8/26/2004
Band Website: tomgillam.com
Band Members: TOM GILLAM ON THE WEB
Joe Carroll (Producer,Engineer,Mandolin,Acoustic Gtr,Baritone Gtr,)
JOE ON MY SPACE
Dave Latimer (Drums, Percussion) D.L. ON MY SPACE
Tim McMaster (Bass, Backing Vox) Tim ON MY SPACE
Craig Simon (Guitars ,Banjo, Bkg Vox) CRAIG ON MY SPACE
Influences:The Allman Brothers, Neil Young, The Monkees, Johnny Cash, Manassas,Stephen Stills,Aimee Mann, Chris Whitley, Led Zeppelin,Sheryl Crow,Lucinda Williams,Emmylou Harris,Gillian Welch,Patty Griffin,BuddyMiller,Uncle Tupelo,Son Volt, Wilco,The BottleRockets,Flying Burrito Brothers,Steve Earle,Eagles,Joe Walsh, The Stones,Buck Owens,Hank Williams,Merle Haggard, The Byrds,Poco, Continental Country
Sounds Like: the eagles-meet-allmans-meet-joe walsh crashin' jackson brownes' divorce party!-
PROMO VIDEO "NEVER LOOK BACK" ~2007 "NEVER LOOK BACK"..Directed by Tom Dolan'NEVER LOOK BACK"
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Check These Reviews for an Idea of what people say:-----
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"Outside The Lines" (95 North)Tom Gillam has spent a decade developing his craft, while flirting with the Country world and enjoying success in the Americana realm. On his new release, Shake My Hand, Gillam bursts into the mainstream, applying his impressive songwriting and performing skills to tunes with a wider appeal. Nowhere is that more evident on this rocking first single, "Outside The Lines," the autobiography of someone who proudly does things his own way. If you need comparisons, think So-Cal Country Rock of the early-70s, a la The Eagles, but that doesnt mean it sounds dated. Its quite the opposite, as this is one of the freshest sounding releases to hit this year. Thats why KPIG, KZRC, Morehead State Public Radio, KFAN, KAXE and KRCL were the first in.Jack Barton
Sr. Director/Triple A
FMQBFriday Morning Quarterback 2/17/05
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No Depression Magazine Review
No Depression Jan. 2005
Often it seems the best practioners of roots-rock are those who tread a line between solid songcraft and punkish abandon. By that measure, Tom Gillam ranks high indeed. Fallings somewhere along a continuum that includes vintage country-rockers such as Poco and Nashville rebels such as Steve Earle, the New Jersey-based Gillam has a knack for injecting combustible energy into hooks and melodies evocative of classic country-pop.
Of the three full-length albums Gillam has released thus far, Shake My Hand is by far his most assured. Right from the start, on the crashing chords that introduce the blustery "Outside The Lines", Gillam sounds like a man reveling in the knowledge that he's hitting his stride as an artist. The main ingredients in his arsenal - walls of rhythm guitar, radio-friendly vocal harmonies, stinging slide work, and a rebellious spirit-are there in that opening salvo.
Other high points include the swamp-boogie-meets-pop "Take It Easy On Me" (think solo Joe Walsh, had Walsh been born on a bayou), the kiss-off swing tune "Your Parting Gift", and a hard-as-nails rocker titled "One Step At A Time" that brings to mind John Hiatt at his most scruffy.
Shake My Hand owes much of its power to Gillam's longtime backing band, the aptly-named Tractor Pull. In fact, Gillam's weak spots are generally the ballads, where, without the band's feisty interplay to propel him, he sometimes comes off as cliched(both musically and lyrically). But such moments are few. For the most part, Shake My Hand finds Gillam assimilating his various influences into a rough-hewn,organic fabric.
-Russell Hall
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Twangcast.com Review
TwangcastTheres a reason that Tom Gillam's latest release it floating around on the upper end of the Americana charts: theres some damn fine music on it. This is the honky-tonk-influenced roots-rock that will always find a place in every music fans heart, and sounds fresh no matter when it is played.The Phil Lee drive of the opening cut Outside the Lines basically sets up the audio scene. Walls of overdriven guitars and pedal steel licks in the right places, accenting the vocals, which Gillam has the right amount of heartfelt croon and just a wee bit of grit. Most of the lyrics are heart-on-sleeve, with some worthwhile descriptors, but there are some standout stories here as well. Such is the case with Abby & Andy. While the storyline of love from the wrong side of the tracks has been told before, Gillam has a way of using rhymes that make it extremely catchy. Other quality tracks are Stand By You, which is very tributary to Sweethearts-era Byrds, and the Hank Williams Jr. like romp of Your Parting Gift. All of the tracks show Gillams wide variety of influences while still staying close to the roots of rock and country.Gillams sound will give the listener a good idea of how fun he and his band can be live. This is good-time music, while still giving a nod to concern. This disc is a definite winner for the party-hardy crowd. Reviewer: Matt Merta
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Shake My Hand Review
Take Country Back(Hayden's Ferry) Shake My Hand is the third release from New Jersey native and, presently, Philadelphia based Tom Gillam. Tom serves up a tasty brew of Americana country-rock that's anchored in classic 70s era southern/country rock influences that includes everyone from the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band to the Eagles to Skynyrd to the Allman Brothers and just about everyone in-between. He combines his skilled slide guitar work with touches of steel guitar, fiddle, mandolin and nicely done harmonies to deliver his well crafted self-penned songs.Shake My Hand opens with "Outside The Lines," a jangly country-rocker that has an early Eagles groove to it, almost similar in style to a rowdy, though somewhat slower version of "James Dean." The bluesy, self-reflective man-in-the mirror tale, "Disappearing Act" is a standout, while the heartbreaker, "Take It Easy On Me" shows a bluesy Allman Brothers influence in it's stellar guitar work. Steel guitar, some outstanding flourishes of Spanish guitar and a Tex-Mex beat highlight the ballad of starcrossed lovers, "Abby & Andy." Tom incorporates fiddle and mandolin into the rootsy "Stand By You," giving this gently breezy country-rocker a bluegrass flavor, reminiscent of classic Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.Tom cranks things up with some swampy, bluesy southern rock in the terrific title track, "Shake My Hand." He keeps the party going with a rowdy roadhouse two-stepper about calling a relationship quits with "Your Parting Gift." Tom offers up a great steel driven, bluesy, swaying ballad about second chances, "Please Come Home," the kind of first-rate song that you'd expect to find on a Delbert McClinton album. "I Could Be The One" delivers an opposite message, one about longing for a first chance. "One Park Lane" is a bouncy country-rocker about longing to go back and start over with a first love. The tale of a guy trying, but having a hard time towing the line is told in the shuffling, swaggering roadhouse rocker "One Step At A Time." "Over And Over" is a captivating song, moody and haunting, with an exotic Eastern influence that describes a man under the powerful spell of a woman. The album closes with the quietly mournful ballad, "Ali Says She's Leaving" that tells the aching story of a fading love.Tom Gillam possesses a warm, pleasing voice and while his songs show he's strongly influenced by the 70s era southern/country-rockers, he's most assuredly not an imitator nor is it the typical watered down sanitized version of the real thing Nashville's been offering up over the last decade or so. He's got a style of his own, with strong, well crafted songwriting. What really pushes Tom over the top is his excellent slide guitar work and the stellar musicianship of his backing band Tractor Pull, comprised of Craig Simon on guitar, Dan Showell on drums, Tim McMaster on bass and Joe Carroll, who also serves as producer, on mandolin. Tom Gillam has indeed delivered a strong, impressive set of Americana based country-roots-rock with Shake My Hand.Standout Tracks: "Outside The Lines," "Disappearing Act," "Shake My Hand," "Your Parting Gift," "Please Come Home," "One Step At A Time," "Over And Over"On The Net: www.tomgillam.com
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Shake My Hand Review
Freight Train Boogie
TOM GILLAM 4STARS
Shake My Hand... (Hayden's Ferry)
Soulful country rock, strong harmonies, ringing slide guitar. It's not the Palomino club in the early seventies but east coast artist Tom Gillam's new release, Shake My Hand. Engaging songwriting and solid vocals inhabit this disc, his debut on Hayden's Ferry. Produced by band member/multi instrumentalist Joe Carroll, Gillam's work takes it's place in a line that stretches from Poco and the Eagles to Whiskeytown and The Jayhawks. Songs such as "Outside The Lines" and "Disappearing Act" show a confident writer with a personal touch. Backed by his crack outfit called "Tractor Pull" Gillam's recent live set at the Americana Music Conference showed that he's ready to make his mark.
Tom's site, Hayden's Ferry Records. Buy from amazon. Released Oct. '04, reviewed by Michael Meehan.-----------------------------------------------------
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from the philly weekly 4/20/01TOM GILLAM DALLAS
GOTHAMFrom the beer-soaked raucousness of the sadly departed Go to Blazes to the trad-bluegrass stylings of Jim and Jennie and the Pinetops, it seems our fair city has always had something good and twangy to offer. The national debut full-length from singer/songwriter Tom Gillam, Dallas (Gotham) is yet another respectable cog in Philly's alt-country/roots rock wheel of fortune. Gillam's rootsy brew is barroom-ready enough for those who remember GTB's paint-peeling Khyber and Silk City sets from back in the day, yet literary enough for those who prefer their twang tempered with WXPN sensitivity and politeness. The title track is the most polished and radio-friendly tune of the lot, thanks to a mix by Shelly Yakus, falling perfectly in between those two worlds, and steeped in the time-honored tradition of the troubadour vowing this town won't have him to kick around anymore. Gillam flirts with Nashville's new country gloss on "A Little Too Strange," but a smart arrangement and burrowing slide guitar keep things from getting too generic. "Fade Away" is far and away the album's shining moment, leaving the twang behind for a fine mist of mid-'70s California rock dust and glitter. Tightly stacked oohs and aahs give off a peaceful easy glow, while the meticulous weave of guitars and keyboards will have you scanning for Lindsey Buckingham's name in the production credits.
- - -PATRICK BERKERY
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FROM FREIGHT TRAIN BOOGIE SHORT REVIEWTOM GILLAM
Dallas.... (Gotham)Tom Gillam comes from Philadelphia and bringing some fiery slide guitar to a mostly Alt.Country-styled album to create something unique. I hear Goners-era John Hiatt, some Allmans, and even Skynard but it ain't regular rock 'n' roll. His songs are top-notch and he can bring it down for some nice country ballads too. This is rock label Gotham's first foray into the Americana format and I think they found a real winner in Gillam.- - - Reviewed by Bill Frater.-----------------------------------------------------
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02-07-01FROM ALT-COUNTRYArtist: Tom Gilliam
CD: Dallas Buy It!
Label: Gotham
Released: 2/6/01
Rating: 3.5 STARSSlide guitarist Tom Gilliam fits that broad Americana segment occupied by everyone from Sonny Landreth to John Hiatt. His first national release is a listenable collection of swamp boogie songs filtered with a few slower crooners.Gotham Records broke from their hard-rocking conventions when they signed Gilliam, but it was a calculated risk. For one thing, Gilliam is a solid songwriter who knows how to turn a phrase. My only criticism is that most of his songs follow a strict Nashville 101 songwriting trick where you lead up to the name of the song in the chorus. Some people really like that, but it sometimes made the songs a bit predictable.The music is streamlined for a wide pro-radio audience, especially the foot-tapping goodness of the title track. The first few songs are not as good as the last half of the record; it really picks up on songs like High. What grabbed my interest right away was that Gilliam decided to start the song with a heavy fuzzed out guitar and then intermingles his slide work later on. This sort of goes against the grain nicely, since your typical Sonny Landreth song almost always starts (and ends) with slide.I also really liked the shuffle-rock song A Place Called When as Gilliam does his best vocals on the record and tones down the swampiness a bit. Anyone who likes slide and appreciates the album-oriented rock sound of earlier Todd Snider records should check this one out.Reviewed By: John Brandon-----------------------------------------------------
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Reviews
All Music Guide
Singer-guitarist Tom Gillam's corner of the Americana/alt-country world features rocked-up country often smothered in his searing guitar work. The album's tone is set on the opener, "Diamonds in the Rough," an Allmans-flavored rocker with Gillam's trademark electric slide all over it. What might set this artist apart from the pack, however, is his songcraft -- most noticeable on the title track, which has just the right balance of guitar crunch, winning melody, and manly anguish. Dallas bears the influence of the long history of roots rock success stories, from The Flying Burrito Brothers to the Allman Brothers to Tom Petty to the Jayhawks (particularly on the guitar intro to "Got to Make it Work," which sounds an awful lot like the Jayhawks' "Sister Cry"). It's wise to file this under highly likable.
- - - Erik Hage, All Music Guide
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TOM GILLAM: Contact
--Manager/Bookings
Joe Carroll Treehouse Productions
609.417.3159
treehouseprods (AT) Yahoo (Dot) com
http://www.tomgillam.com
--Radio Promo
Al Moss Promo
Nashville Tn
amosspromo (AT) aol(dot)com
http://www.almosspromotion.com
Publicity/Promo/Press
--Mark Pucci Media
Atlanta Georgia
mpmedia(AT) bellsouth(DOT)net
http://www.markpuccimedia.com/
--Distribution
Burnside (BDC) Frank Brandon
1522 N Ainsworth st
Portland
Oregon
503 231 0876
503 231 0420 FAX
frank[at]bdcdistribution[dot]com
http://www.bdcdistribution.com/
-Europe
Blue Bose Records
RAUHECKSTR. 10
ABSTATT
GERMANY
49-(0)7062-955444
info(AT)bluerose-records(DOT)com
http://bluerose-records.de/
Record Label: TREEHOUSE RECORDS
Type of Label: Indie