TERRY SMITH
The Second Time Around
Another Southern Son (Kitty Wells) – Going
Under, Getting Over You (Maysha) – All That I Know ’bout Rodeo (Tony
Glenn) – Anybody’s Fool (Candler Tomlinson) – I Can’t Find A Train (Roy
Acuff) – The Next Month of Sundays (Robin Deeter) – Faded Flower and
Misty Cloud (Liz Howard) – It Doesn’t Say (Tony Glenn) – Ten Seconds in
the Saddle (Chris LeDoux) – I Don’t Want To Look If I Can’t Buy (Ike
Mercer) – Out of All the One-Night Stands (Liz Howard) – A Few Good
Funerals (Eddie Noack) – Jeans and Good Leather (Chris LeDoux) – Texas
On My Mind (Bob McClure) – Far-Side Banks of Jordan (Johnny & June
Carter Cash)
Under, Getting Over You (Maysha) – All That I Know ’bout Rodeo (Tony
Glenn) – Anybody’s Fool (Candler Tomlinson) – I Can’t Find A Train (Roy
Acuff) – The Next Month of Sundays (Robin Deeter) – Faded Flower and
Misty Cloud (Liz Howard) – It Doesn’t Say (Tony Glenn) – Ten Seconds in
the Saddle (Chris LeDoux) – I Don’t Want To Look If I Can’t Buy (Ike
Mercer) – Out of All the One-Night Stands (Liz Howard) – A Few Good
Funerals (Eddie Noack) – Jeans and Good Leather (Chris LeDoux) – Texas
On My Mind (Bob McClure) – Far-Side Banks of Jordan (Johnny & June
Carter Cash)
At long last I get to review a Terry Smith album. Terry is
without a doubt one of the best songwriters that still writes ‘real’
country music in Nashville. His songs have been traveling the long long
road around the world for many years now. His huge popularity all
started when Johnny & June Carter Cash recorded his “Far Side Banks
of Jordan.” That in itself was a remarkable experience for Terry, the
song became their cherished signature song. This Terry Smith album “The
Second Time Around” is a wonderful thesis of music he wrote. And, he
used some amazing musicians. The opening song that Kitty Wells recorded
“Another Southern Son” uses one of the most ebullient piano player on
planet earth, Pig Robbins. It’s the same with all the rest, our good
friend Charlie McCoy plays some fantastic harmonica on this session.
There’s a ton of great musicians participating, just as there are a ton
of other artists who have recorded these songs, some well known, others
not so much. The point isTerry Smith’s ability to write story-songs,
the very essence and fabric of good country music, this album is
terrific. I’m sure Terry had to re-arrange every song to fit the mood
of the day, but the bottom line is, if you’ve never heard Terry Smith’s
work, you’ve never heard the best ‘real’ country music available on CD
these days. My wife Sheila and I befriended Terry a whole bunch of
years ago when he came to our old-time country music festival in Avoca,
Iowa. That event, now in it’s 41st year is held in LeMars, Iowa (Aug
29-Sept 4, 2016), and guess who the most popular performer at it is?
You’re right, Terry Smith who will be there again this year. It was the
wonderful song “Far Side Banks of Jordan” that attracted Sheila and
myself to Terry. It has also attracted thousands and thousands of fans
who have become his friends. The Chicago Tribune made a nice statement
about this song….”When Johnny Cash died September 12, 2003, at the age
of 71, one of Terry’s songs “Far Side Banks of Jordan” a contemporary
traditional classic if there is such a thing, was played at the funeral
of Johnny Cash. The Cash’s recorded it as a duet in the mid 70’s and it
appears on Johnny Cash’s 1971 album “The Last Gunfighter Ballad.” The
story the couple always told was that Johnny learned the song from its
composer, Terry Smith, then a schoolteacher and aspiring country artist
in Nashville, and played it for June when they were at their vacation
home in Jamaica. They wept at the lyrics and agreed it would be their
signature song. “The lyrics speak to our profoundest hope, that love is
stronger than death.” Understanding the ‘greatness’ of this
songwriters abilities, it’s no wonder that Terry Smith has no less than
13 incredibly beautiful albums of his great story-telling musical
abilities. This one is his latest, and is already a top seller. Terry
still makes the rounds, entertaining, visiting, singing, sharing, his
life full of the still unexpected on the road, as well as his busy life
in Nashville, still writing, still composing, still making the ‘real’
country music that brought so very many folks from all walks of life to
the front door of this beautiful composer, Terry Smith. It is my most
pleasant experience to forward this incredible album to the Rural Roots
Music Commission for their CD of the Year awards for this year.
without a doubt one of the best songwriters that still writes ‘real’
country music in Nashville. His songs have been traveling the long long
road around the world for many years now. His huge popularity all
started when Johnny & June Carter Cash recorded his “Far Side Banks
of Jordan.” That in itself was a remarkable experience for Terry, the
song became their cherished signature song. This Terry Smith album “The
Second Time Around” is a wonderful thesis of music he wrote. And, he
used some amazing musicians. The opening song that Kitty Wells recorded
“Another Southern Son” uses one of the most ebullient piano player on
planet earth, Pig Robbins. It’s the same with all the rest, our good
friend Charlie McCoy plays some fantastic harmonica on this session.
There’s a ton of great musicians participating, just as there are a ton
of other artists who have recorded these songs, some well known, others
not so much. The point isTerry Smith’s ability to write story-songs,
the very essence and fabric of good country music, this album is
terrific. I’m sure Terry had to re-arrange every song to fit the mood
of the day, but the bottom line is, if you’ve never heard Terry Smith’s
work, you’ve never heard the best ‘real’ country music available on CD
these days. My wife Sheila and I befriended Terry a whole bunch of
years ago when he came to our old-time country music festival in Avoca,
Iowa. That event, now in it’s 41st year is held in LeMars, Iowa (Aug
29-Sept 4, 2016), and guess who the most popular performer at it is?
You’re right, Terry Smith who will be there again this year. It was the
wonderful song “Far Side Banks of Jordan” that attracted Sheila and
myself to Terry. It has also attracted thousands and thousands of fans
who have become his friends. The Chicago Tribune made a nice statement
about this song….”When Johnny Cash died September 12, 2003, at the age
of 71, one of Terry’s songs “Far Side Banks of Jordan” a contemporary
traditional classic if there is such a thing, was played at the funeral
of Johnny Cash. The Cash’s recorded it as a duet in the mid 70’s and it
appears on Johnny Cash’s 1971 album “The Last Gunfighter Ballad.” The
story the couple always told was that Johnny learned the song from its
composer, Terry Smith, then a schoolteacher and aspiring country artist
in Nashville, and played it for June when they were at their vacation
home in Jamaica. They wept at the lyrics and agreed it would be their
signature song. “The lyrics speak to our profoundest hope, that love is
stronger than death.” Understanding the ‘greatness’ of this
songwriters abilities, it’s no wonder that Terry Smith has no less than
13 incredibly beautiful albums of his great story-telling musical
abilities. This one is his latest, and is already a top seller. Terry
still makes the rounds, entertaining, visiting, singing, sharing, his
life full of the still unexpected on the road, as well as his busy life
in Nashville, still writing, still composing, still making the ‘real’
country music that brought so very many folks from all walks of life to
the front door of this beautiful composer, Terry Smith. It is my most
pleasant experience to forward this incredible album to the Rural Roots
Music Commission for their CD of the Year awards for this year.
RECORD REVIEW BY BOB EVERHART – www.ntcma.net
for Country Music News International