Chip Taylor | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | James Wesley Voight |
| Born | March 21, 1940 Yonkers, New York, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | Songwriter, singer |
| Years active | 1960s–present |
| Labels |
|
Chip Taylor (born James Wesley Voight; March 21, 1940) is an American songwriter and singer noted for writing "Angel of the Morning" and "Wild Thing". [1]
Taylor was born on March 21, 1940, in Yonkers, New York. He is the brother of actor Jon Voight and geologist Barry Voight and the uncle of actress Angelina Jolie and actor James Haven. [2] Taylor and his brothers attended Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains, New York. [3] In 1961, Taylor attended the University of Hartford in Hartford, Connecticut, for one year.[ citation needed ]
After an unsuccessful attempt to become a professional golfer like his father, Elmer Voight, Taylor entered the music business. [4]
Taylor wrote many pop and rock songs, both alone and with other songwriters, including Al Gorgoni (with whom he also performed, as the duo Just Us), [2] Billy Vera, Ted Daryll, and Jerry Ragovoy,[ citation needed ] first freelancing and then as an employee of a New York City music publisher. [2]
Taylor's first big hit was "Wild Thing", which, though first recorded in 1965 by Jordan Christopher and the Wild Ones, became famous as both a hit single by the Troggs in 1966 and a live performance by Jimi Hendrix in 1967, and was later covered by the Runaways, the Muppets, and X.[ citation needed ] "Angel of the Morning" was first recorded by Evie Sands in 1967, before becoming a hit for Merrilee Rush and also P. P. Arnold in 1968, then a million-selling single in 1981 for country-pop singer Juice Newton; later a rendition from Chrissie Hynde was released.
Other notable pop and country songs written by Taylor include "He Sits at Your Table" (Willie Nelson), "I Can't Let Go" (Evie Sands, the Hollies, Linda Ronstadt), "The Baby" (the Hollies), "Worry" (Johnny Tillotson), "Make Me Belong to You" (Barbara Lewis), "I Can Make It With You" (the Pozo Seco Singers, Jackie DeShannon), "Any Way That You Want Me" (the Troggs, Evie Sands, Melanie, American Breed, Juice Newton, Mary Mason, Lita Ford, Liverpool Five) "Step Out of Your Mind" (The American Breed), "Country Girl City Man" (Billy Vera and Judy Clay), "I'll Hold Out My Hand", "Try (Just a Little Bit Harder)" (Lorraine Ellison, Janis Joplin), "Julie" (Bobby Fuller Four, Marshall Crenshaw), and "Lonely Is As Lonely Does" (the Fleetwoods).[ citation needed ]
Shaggy used "Angel of the Morning" as the basis for his hit "Angel" in 2001. [5]
In 2009, Ace Records released a compilation CD of some of Taylor's compositions as recorded by other artists (Wild Thing: The Songs of Chip Taylor).[ citation needed ]
Taylor's first releases were on the King label and their subsidiary DeLuxe. In 1958, he and the Town Three released two 45s on DeLuxe, numbers 6176 "Midnight Blues" and 6180 "I Want a Lover". In 1959, he recorded for King as Wes Voight on 5211 "I'm Movin' In", and his final recording as Wes Voight on King 5231 "I'm Ready to Go Steady" and "The Wind and the Cold Black Night". The two King 45s were released in both mono and stereo, making them some of the first stereo singles available. Taylor has released recordings on Warner Bros., Columbia, and Capitol. His first chart single was his recording (as Chip Taylor) of "Here I Am" in 1962 on Warner Bros. Records. [6] He also had a top 40 hit in Australia in 1963 with "Sandy Sandy" with the Town and Country Brothers, a later iteration of Wes Voight and the Town Three, with Ted Daryll (who wrote the song) and Greg Richards, writers of "She Cried" by Jay and the Americans. [7] [8]
Taylor restarted his performing and recording career in 1993.
At the 2001 South by Southwest Music Conference in Austin, Texas, Taylor met singer and violinist Carrie Rodriguez, with whom he performed and recorded Americana music for several years. The duo recorded Let's Leave This Town in 2002. They released The Trouble With Humans the following year and the critically acclaimed Red Dog Tracks in 2005. Each has since released successful solo albums. Taylor's double-CD Unglorious Hallelujah/Red Red Rose, his first solo album in five years, was quickly hailed as "a future classic" by Sonic Magazine, whose reviewer declared: "This is the best we've heard from Chip Taylor so far." Rodriguez's solo album, Seven Angels on a Bicycle, was released in August 2006. In late 2006 and early 2007, Rodriguez toured on her own but continued to perform with Taylor from time to time. [9] Taylor has done a series of shows[ when? ] with guitarist John Platania and the young singer/fiddler Kendel Carson, and he produced both their 2007 albums.
During the 21st century through 2020, Taylor has continued to perform with his band The New Ukrainians (John Platania on electric guitar, Björn Petterson on bass, and a revolving cast of other musicians). Each concert almost always includes both "Wild Thing" and "Angel in the Morning". [10] [11] [12]
Taylor's album Yonkers, NY was a 2011 nominee for a Grammy Award for best recording package, but lost to Brothers by the Black Keys. [13]
In 2007, Taylor launched his own independent label, Train Wreck Records. [14]
By Taylor's own accounts, from 1980 through 1995 he was very successful at, but unhappily addicted to, gambling professionally on blackjack in New Jersey casinos and on horse races. He then returned to music, starting by singing to his dying mother, Barbara Voight. [15] [16] Taylor has said that the gambling addiction was hard on both himself and his family. He has written that, after having an epiphany, he changed his attitude and created the "Church of the Train Wreck" self-help program for himself and others. [17]
As of 2019, Taylor continues to live in New York City. He has been married to Joan Carole Frey since 1964, and they have children and grandchildren. (Joan and Chip were temporarily divorced for several years, starting in the 1990s.) [18] [19]
| Year | Album | US Country | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | Gotta Get Back to Cisco [as Gorgoni, Martin & Taylor] | — | Buddah |
| 1972 | Gorgoni, Martin & Taylor [as Gorgoni, Martin & Taylor] | — | Buddah |
| 1972 | Gasoline | — | Buddah |
| 1973 | Chip Taylor's Last Chance | — | Warner Bros. |
| 1974 | Some of Us | — | |
| 1975 | This Side of the Big River | 36 | |
| 1976 | Somebody Shoot Out the Jukebox [with Ghost Train] | — | CBS |
| 1979 | Saint Sebastian | — | Capitol |
| 1996 | Hit Man | — | Gadfly |
| 1997 | Living Room Tapes | — | Gadfly |
| 1999 | Seven Days in May... A Love Story | — | |
| 2000 | London Sessions Bootleg | — | |
| 2001 | Black & Blue America | — | |
| 2002 | Let's Leave This Town | — | Lone Star |
| 2003 | The Trouble with Humans | — | Lone Star |
| 2005 | Red Dog Tracks | — | Back Porch Records |
| 2006 | Unglorious Hallelujah | — | Back Porch Records |
| 2007 | Live from the Ruhr Triennale | — | MRI |
| 2008 | New Songs of Freedom | — | Megaforce |
| 2008 | Songs from a Dutch Tour | — | Train Wreck |
| 2009 | Yonkers NY | — | Train Wreck |
| 2012 | Fuck All the Perfect People | — | Train Wreck |
| 2013 | Block Out the Sirens of This Lonely World | — | Train Wreck |
| 2014 | The Little Prayers Trilogy | — | Train Wreck |
| 2016 | Little Brothers | — | Train Wreck |
| 2017 | Rock and Roll Joe | — | Train Wreck |
| 2018 | Fix Your Words | — | Train Wreck |
| 2018 | Time Waits for No Little Girls Uncovered | — | Train Wreck |
| 2019 | Whiskey Salesman | — | Train Wreck |
| 2020 | In Sympathy of a Heartbreak | — | Train Wreck |
| 2023 | The Cradle of All Living Things | — | Train Wreck |
| Year | Album | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Angels & Gamblers: Best of 1971–1979 | Raven Records |
| 2010 | James Wesley Days Best of 99–10 | Rootsy / Train Wreck |
| Year | Single | Chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Country | CAN Country | |||
| 1958 | "Midnight Blues/Another Guy's Line" | DeLuxe 6176 | ||
| 1958 | "I Want a Lover/Little Joan" | DeLuxe 6180 | ||
| 1959 | "I'm Movin' In/Everything's the Same" | King 5211 | ||
| 1959 | "I'm Ready to Go Steady/The Wind and the Cold Black Night" | King 5231 | ||
| 1962 | "Here I Am/I Love You but I Know" | |||
| 1967 | "You Should Be from Monterey/I'll Never Be Alone" | Rainy Day 45-8002 | ||
| 1973 | "101 in Cashbox" | Chip Taylor's Last Chance | ||
| 1975 | "Me As I Am" | 80 | — | Some of Us |
| "Early Sunday Morning" | 28 | 41 | ||
| "Big River" | 61 | — | This Side of the Big River | |
| 1976 | "Circle of Tears" | 92 | — | |
| 1977 | "Hello Atlanta" (with Ghost Train) | 93 | — | Somebody Shoot Out the Jukebox |
| Year | Video |
|---|---|
| 2008 | "New Song Of Freedom" |
| 2009 | "Charcoal Sky" |
| 2011 | "Fuck All The Perfect People" |
| 2014 | "Little Prayers" |
| "Queen of the World" | |
| 2015 | "Refugee Children" |
| 2016 | "Who's Gonna Build That Wall" |
| 2017 | "Whisper Amen" |
| "Senorita Falling Down" |
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"Angel of the Morning" is a popular song written by Chip Taylor, originally recorded by Evie Sands but which first charted with a version by Merrilee Rush. The song has been covered by many artists including Chrissie Hynde, Dusty Springfield, P. P. Arnold, Connie Eaton, Mary Mason, Guys 'n' Dolls, Melba Montgomery, Olivia Newton-John and most recognizably by Juice Newton.
John Platania is a session musician, guitar player, and record producer. He was born in 1948 in New York’s Mid-Hudson Valley, in Ulster County, near Woodstock.
Merrilee Rush is an American singer, best known for her recording of the song "Angel of the Morning", a top-10 hit which earned her a Grammy nomination for female vocalist of the year in 1968.
"Jackson" is a song written in 1963 by Billy Edd Wheeler and Jerry Leiber. It was recorded in 1963 by the Kingston Trio, Wheeler, and Flatt and Scruggs. It achieved its most notable popularity with two 1967 releases: a country hit single by Johnny Cash and June Carter, which reached No. 2 on the Billboard Country Singles chart, and a pop hit single by Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood, which reached No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 39 on Easy Listening.
"Wild Thing" is a song written by American songwriter Chip Taylor and popularized by the English rock band the Troggs. It was originally recorded and released by the American rock band the Wild Ones in 1965, but it did not chart. The Troggs' single reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the UK Singles Chart in 1966. Their version of "Wild Thing" was ranked at number 257 on the Rolling Stone magazine's 2004 list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. It has also been performed by many other musicians.
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Evie Sands is an American singer, songwriter and musician.
Archbishop Stepinac High School is an American all-boys' Roman Catholic high school in White Plains, New York.
"I Can't Let Go" is a song co-written by Al Gorgoni and Chip Taylor, who also wrote "Wild Thing". "I Can't Let Go" was originally recorded by blue-eyed soul singer Evie Sands' on George Goldner's Blue Cat label, which was popular in New York City in 1965. The song became popular in 1966 for the group the Hollies, who charted at number two in the UK Singles Chart with their version. Linda Ronstadt covered the song in 1980 and had a number 31 hit on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.
The Wild Ones were an American rock band from New York City, initially led by singer Jordan Christopher. They are perhaps best known for recording the first version of Chip Taylor's song "Wild Thing", which later was a smash hit for The Troggs.
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Theodore Henry Meister, known professionally as Ted Daryll, was an American songwriter and record producer.
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