Eric Heatherly

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Singer/songwriter/musician Eric Heatherly (born 21 February 1970) grew up listening to country, rockabilly, and classic rock artists like Creedence Clearwater Revival, Johnny Cash, Conway Twitty, and Roy Orbison, whose influences shaped his music while he was still a child.

Eric Heatherly has exceeded everyone's expectation, except maybe his own. As a child, he could listen to a record once and play the song back on guitar. Growing up on the Tennessee/Georgia line, he would dream of being a travelling gypsy, with just a guitar on his back. His unwavering passion for music and his dedication lead him to a music scholarship that lasted a year before he realised college was not for him. He needed to be out on the road. Heatherly began writing songs at age 8 and was performing by the time he reached his early teens. The Chattanooga native played with numerous bands through his high school and college years.

He moved to Nashville in 1991, when every record label was searching for their own Garth Brooks and Heatherly did not fit the mould. However he persisted, and spent six years playing every joint and dive that would let him. Things started turning around for him when Shania Twain heard of his talent, and offered him a chance to play on her world tour. Heatherly decided to pass and stick to his own dreams. This resulted in a signing with Mercury in 1997.

His first single, "Flowers on the wall" hit the charts and made it to #3, with Heatherly walking away with 2 awards. His debut CD "swimming in champagne" (2000) was #33 on Billboard and yielded 3 top 40 singles.

His latest release is The Lower east Side of Life, released in 2005.