I wrote my first song at the age of 12. Trust Me ....You DON'T want to hear it. I went through about an eight year self imposed writer's block shortly after that. I picked the writing back up and started getting serious with it at the suggestion of my brother ,Roy when I was 19. The writing was sort of a therapy for me while I was regaining my motor skills from the affects that the Wilson's Disease ,a rare genetic medical condition, was having on my central nervous system.
Long story short ... We lost Roy when his liver failed ,due to Wilson's Disease MAY 8, 1986. It was at that point in time I made the decision to get off my hind quarters and do something with and about my songwriting .
By that time I had established some contacts with Billy Henderson (Ten Thousand Angels and She Wants To Be Wanted) ,John Rainey Adkins( Roy Orbison's Former band leader, and Bobby Tomberlin(One More Day and A Good Day To Run).Billy and Bobby T were working at a radio staion in Andalusia AL and J.R. was working at Art's Music in Dothan selling guitars. J.R. had a college catalog on Unversity Of North Alabama on the counter when I dropped by to see him about a week or so after Roy died. He told me about a Music Business degree program that they offered .
"You oughtta look into going back to school and finishing your degree at UNA" he said .J. R. Had a low growling drawl . He talked slower that Dean Dillon and Paul Davis put together.
So I went back ,convinced my folks this was what I needed to do,lined up my ducks with the financial aid folks . and here I went.
Got to the Shoals area where I got to meet and hang out with Walt Aldridge, Gary Baker, Mac MacAnally, Steven Dale Jones (back when he wuz just Steve),
Bud Mcguire ,all the guys in Shenendoah,Terry Skinner and Jerry Wallace(Even The Nights Are Better and Touch Me When We're Dancing) Mark Narmore (Moon Over Georgia)and the great Robert Byrne. Billy had moved back up there by then too. Bobby T. was added to the gang when He moved up there from Luverne about a year after I did.
It was a great opportunity for myself to form lifelong friendships ,write songs,and get an education -all at one clip.
I worked at Walmart right across the street from FAME Studios to help pay my way through college.
I didn't sleep much during those two and a half years , but, I was able to get my degree, write some pretty good efforts for that phase of my career, and learn a lot about the craft of songwriting from some of the greatest guys that have ever written a song.
I owe Gary Baker for "my big break" in the business for taking me under his wing(he was standing on a chair at the time), becoming my first publisher, and co-writing my first cut with me. The Gary Rossington Band cut a song we wrote called "Stay With Me" on the LOVE YOUR MAN album. Skynryd was doing the Reunion Tour in 88 and Rossington took His band out and opened the show and came back out and of course play with Skynryd .
That was one of the coolest moments of my life getting to meet those guys backstage at Van Braun Civic Center in Huntsville AL.
I was in the music business....
Moved to Nashville upon graduation ,went to work at the Opryland Hotel,(where I'm still employed 18 years later) went to work for Mel Tillis at Sweet Tater Tunes first as an intern and later as a writer. Had a cut on Dude Mowery and had a cut on The Statlers.
After the Tillis gig, I started writing a lot with Tony Toliver. We got a cut on Clinton Gregory's Polydor album that we wrote about a true story my brothers,Roy and David(the David in My Top 8) and Me growing up and then losing Roy, called "Three Shorts And A Long".
Tony and I also have a cut on Michael English's "The Prodigal Comes Home" album called "The Prodigal Son".All of You need a copy of that one in Your homes right now....
I had a liver transplant on 1-6-02 . That shut me down for a little while . I didn't feel like doing much for a couple of years there while I was dealing with a bad liver and the effects thereof. BUT,
I 'm back ! I'm healthy! Thanks to God , Vanderbilt Liver Transplant Unit, Medical Center Enterprise, a lot of prayers from a lot of people,and my donor whoever He or She was(I still don't know) I'm back among the living- writing ,and having a ball doing it.
Thanks to My new liver I no longer have The Wilson's Disease,because it is a liver based disease . That's one of the coolest things , besides being alive , that has come out of the ordeal.
Had labs done 7-6-08. They came back perfect once again.
Out of every thing bad that happens, something good can be taken from it.
To my Family and Friends-Thanks for being in my life , supporting Me when I was going through the ordeal with the transplant,being there ,understanding, and just being the good people I've been blessed to be surrounded by.
Now It's time to have a hit....
