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JD Souther

If you ask John David where he's from, he may say without hesitation, "I'm from Amarillo." But depending on who's asking, he may shrug and say, "I'm from everywhere, I guess." He would be mostly right either way. He was born in Detroit when his father, John Souther, was crooning in front of the big bands of his day, under a stage name, Johnny Warren. His mother hated the fact that "Johnny Warren" wasn't home, and so the singing father stepped halfway out of road life by going to work for MCA as an agent—fascinating for a curious five-year-old John David, who met The Three Sounds, The Mills Brothers, other jazz greats, and the legendary Victor Borge, who once acted as babysitter for the lucky son. Eventually, the family relocated first to Wellington, Dallas, and then to Amarillo, Texas. John David would stay until he left Amarillo College and headed west to Los Angeles.

After an off-and-on couple of years spent between carpentry (during suspended semesters at school) and music theory, Souther hit the road with a rival band from Texas and immediately felt at home in LA. Cut to 1969 and The Troubadour. "Hanging out in the bar at the Troubadour with Glenn Frey and Jackson Browne and playing open mic Mondays, then opening for Poco and The Flying Burrito Brothers—it was the best study in songwriting I can imagine. So many great songwriters came through: Laura Nyro, Kris Kristofferson, Randy Newman, Elton John, James Taylor, Tim Hardin, Carole King, Rick Nelson, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Waylon Jennings, Tim Buckley, Gordon Lightfoot, Taj Mahal, and more. It seems impossible now to imagine that much music in a year and a half or so, but that was my life and the Troubadour was our university. It's also where I met Linda Ronstadt and where Don Henley and Glenn Frey met to form this little country rock band called Eagles that would go on to make musical history."

It was during that time that Glen and John David made Longbranch/Pennywhistle, with Jimmy Bowen's new label, Amos Records. The band included Ry Cooder, Jim Gordon, Cajun fiddler Doug Kershaw, and James Burton. "We had an amazing band but the label was small, the record didn't sell, and our managers felt we should try recording better-known songs of other people. No way; we were committed to songwriting." By 1971, Souther had, in his words, "stepped into himself," with a solo deal that gave him the venue he had been seeking.

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8
Album Review

JD Souther: You're Only Lonely

Read "You're Only Lonely" reviewed by Doug Collette


JD Souther might well be considered the unsung hero of country rock as we know it. Forget for the moment the ill-conceived and woefully mis-executed David Geffen vanity project that was Souther, Hillman and Furay: his early alliance in Longbranch Pennywhistle, with the late Glenn Frey, co-founder of the Eagles, led to Souther's collaborations with that group, including but not limited to what is arguably the pinnacle of their discography Desperado (Asylum, 1973) (he is one of the captured outlaws ...

2
Multiple Reviews

John David Souther: Black Rose and Home By Dawn

Read "John David Souther: Black Rose and Home By Dawn" reviewed by Doug Collette


John David Souther was an outlaw among outlaws in the Seventies clique of self-styled desperadoes of Los Angeles-based country rock. A frequent collaborator with, but never actually a member of, the Eagles, he readily admits, in one set of liner notes author Scott Schinder wisely devotes to the artist's own verbiage, that his iconoclastic nature didn't lend itself to ongoing group projects such as the admittedly contrived group David Geffen(founder of the Asylum Records label on which these solo titles ...

3
Album Review

JD Souther: John David Souther

Read "John David Souther" reviewed by Doug Collette


JD Souther may be regarded as the unsung hero of the Los Angeles country rock axis including Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne and the Eagles. He collaborated to no small degree with the latter, on the ambitious Desperado (Asylum, 1973) album as well as other numbers through their entire their career, including their first number one hit “Best of My Love." And it's even arguable his eponymous solo debut is superior to that iconic group's first record, especially as heard in ...

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1

Event

JD Souther Celebrates New Album With One Night Engagement At Café Carlyle

JD Souther Celebrates New Album With One Night Engagement At Café Carlyle

Source: Matt Gross

SINGER-SONGWRITER/ACTOR JD SOUTHER CELEBRATES NEW ALBUM, TENDERNESS, WITH ONE NIGHT ENGAGEMENT AT CAFÉ CARLYLE ON MAY 9 An architect of the Southern California sound and a huge influence on modern songwriting, JD Souther has written and co-written hits by the Eagles, Linda Ronstadt, Bonnie Raitt and the Dixie Chicks among many others. On the heels of his highly anticipated new album, Tenderness, JD Souther will perform at Café Carlyle in a one night engagement, May 9. The performance will take ...

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Recording

J.D. Souther - Natural History (2011)

J.D. Souther - Natural History (2011)

Source: Something Else!

Natural History, out now on eOne Music, is just the the second J.D. Souther solo effort in 25 years—following 2008's If The World Was You. That curious quietude from such a talented creative voice has only deepened Souther's essential anonymity. It also makes the choice to revisit his most notable compositions all the more important for those unfamiliar with his work. Well, it turns out you know the work—even if you don't know the name. By the end of Natural ...

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

You're Only Lonely

Omnivore Recordings
2024

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John David Souther

Omnivore Recordings
2016

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