Born and raised in South Texas Jim Wyly has spent the last 40 years living and playing in the Austin area. While the obvious label for his music is “Texas Songwriter”, Wyly’s sound and songs are influenced from a multitude of directions, ranging from folk to R&B and rock and roll. Having spent time as a member of several bands, Jim has been widely regarded by his peers as a master of the songwriting craft. At the young age of 72, Wyly is stepping away from the sound and life of being in a band and releasing his solo debut, The Artisan (available now). Here, Wyly answers his Essential 8 where he talks about writing and the road, offers insight into drinking at gigs, and more. Did you have a musical mentor? If so, who was it and how did they influence you? My Dad was a piano player and singer. He was a crooner back in the 30's. He would play piano and sing in the living room, where the piano was and I became interested in music as I used to sit and listen to him. He taught me simple chords on the piano and I took it from there. Where do you draw inspiration from when writing? I don't know if inspiration is the right word. I think it's more what interests me. If I have an idea about some subject that interests me, I'll make an effort to right about it. When/where do you do your best writing? At home late at night. Do you write about personal experience, the experience of others, observations, made-up stories, something else or a combination? I think I would fit into the combination category, a little bit of all those subjects. What do you love most about being on the road? It’s all according to whether I’m in a hurry or not. I like to start ahead of time. That way I can relax and not get all frustrated, especially when it’s cool and the window is down. What has been your biggest struggle so far? Money of course. I’ve had to drop out a few times through the years because I ran out of money. So I had to go get a more mainstream job to catch up on my debts. Then jump back in again. Which song of yours gets the best crowd response? That’s probably “Mr Snowman”. Is drinking at gigs a positive or a negative? I typically have a policy of one beer before I play and one at break. So, typically 3 beers is what I drink. If it’s a big stage/venue I might drink one before, but don’t bring any alcohol on stage. Usually a more serious gig. Website/Facebook/Twitter
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February 2019
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