| Jim Parker | |
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Jim Parker Performing at the Silver Moon Stage of the FloraBama |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | James Ervan Parker[1] |
| Born | December 21, 1942 |
| Origin | La Habra, California, USA |
| Genres | Country |
| Occupations | Singer-songwriter |
| Instruments | Vocals Acoustic guitar |
| Years active | 1961–present |
| Labels | Dot Records, LHI Records, Amos Records, Happy Tiger Records |
| Associated acts | John Anderson, Baby, Aaron Tippin, Cher |
| Website | http://www.jimparkermusic.com |
James Ervan Parker (born December 21, 1942, in La Habra, California)[2] is an American Singer-songwriter and co-founder of the Huntsville, Alabama Sub-chapter of the Nashville Songwriters Association International.[3] Parker lives in Madison, Alabama, his home since 1985.
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Parker received his first guitar from Jimmy Gilmer of The Fireballs in 1961. At the time Gilmer was dating Parker's sister.[4]
In 1961 Jim Parker joined a music group that called themselves The Illusions:
The group recorded a single with Dot Records which was produced by Tommy Allsup (Buddy Holly's lead guitar player) in Odessa, Texas. Parker wrote the A-Side, "Brenda (Don't Put Me Down)," and co-wrote the B-Side "(Secrets Of Love)". "Tommy had a very nice studio and was a real pro when it came to handling young musicians. Mark Creamer's Dad, Gordon, played some really cool flute on it."[5]
The group continued to record in Amarillo under the Ruff label, produced by Ray Ruff. The group changed their name to "The Y'Alls" in 1964 and recorded a second single in 1966. In 1965 the group had moved to Los Angeles where they later changed their name to "The Kitchen Cinq" and worked under Lee Hazlewood's label. They released their first album "Everything But... by the Kitchen Cinq"
The group had only a regional fan base and in an effort to gain a new start for a national base their name was changed two more times. A single, "Dying Daffodil Incident" b/w "Does Anybody Know" (LHI 45-1201, 1967) was released under the name "A Handful." The group changed bass players and changed their name one more time to "Armageddon" and recorded one more album and then disbanded.[6]
Parker and Johnny Stark joined the last original member of the group "Them" -- bass player Alan Henderson—for the final lineup of the band that originally had included Van Morrison. A single album, "Them - In reality," was produced in 1971 and included five tracks co-written by Parker and Stark.[7]
Parker transitioned to country music in the mid 1970s and began to focus on song writing. He still performed and toured with Dave & Sugar from 1980 to 1981.
Jim co-wrote John Anderson's first single "I've Got a Feelin' (Somebody's Been Stealin')" (co-written with John Anderson and Michael Garvin) in 1978. The song received an ASCAP country song award. In the late 1970s Parker co-wrote "Chicken Truck" which was recorded by John Anderson in 1981[8] as the last song in a recording session. The song became a "B"-side release for the song "I Love You A Thousand Ways" by Lefty Frizzell but Jerry House, a popular DJ in Nashville turned the single over and played the "B" side and the song took off.[2]
Parker co-wrote the title track of John Anderson's 12th studio album, "Bigger Hands," which was released in 2009 and peaked at number 53 on the Billboard Country Albums chart. The song was released as the second single from the album but did not chart.
Jim Parker is the creator and host of a show at the Von Braun Center Playhouse in Huntsville, Alabama called Jim Parker’s Songwriter Series where he showcases the talent of songwriters from Los Angeles, Canada, Georgia, Nashville, TN, Muscle Shoals, AL, and surrounding areas. The dinner-theater type atmosphere is a monthly event where people can listen to songs from the people who wrote them and here the stories behind their songs.[9]