Keith Sykes (musician)

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Keith Sykes
Keith Sykes profile shot.jpg
Background information
Born (1948-10-24) October 24, 1948 (age 72)
Murray, Kentucky, U.S.
GenresFolk, Americana
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter
Years active1968–present
LabelsVanguard, Midland, Backstreet, Memphis, Oh Boy, Syren, Aimless
Websitekeithsykes.com

Keith Sykes (born October 24, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter, musician and record producer. More than 100 of Sykes' songs have been recorded by John Prine, Rosanne Cash, The Judds, Jerry Jeff Walker, and George Thorogood, though he may be best known for co-writing "Volcano", the title track of Jimmy Buffett's 1979 album.[1]

Sykes has released at least fifteen albums, including I'm Not Strange, I'm Just Like You and It Don't Hurt to Flirt, and made his television debut performing "B.I.G.T.I.M.E" as a musical guest on Saturday Night Live in 1980. Sykes owns and operates his recording studio, The Woodshed, as well as a production company and several publishing companies. The RIAA has certified recordings of his songs have sold more than 25 million copies worldwide.[2]

Career[]

1960s–1970s and Jimmy Buffett[]

After hitchhiking to the Newport Folk Festival in 1967, Sykes saw Arlo Guthrie perform "Alice's Restaurant Massacree" and was inspired to pursue music as a full-time career.[3] He got his first job performing at a Holiday Inn in downtown Charleston, South Carolina after auditioning with "Alice's Restaurant Massacre".[4] Sykes continued to perform at Holiday Inns until August 1968, when he learned of the College Coffee House Circuit in New York City. He auditioned for it, was accepted, and moved to New York. He toured colleges and coffeehouses across the U.S., playing about 75 dates a year. In New York Sykes met and befriended songwriters Jerry Jeff Walker, Emmylou Harris, John Prine, Kris Kristofferson, Gary White, and Loudon Wainwright III. Sykes signed with Vanguard Records, which would release his first two albums, his debut self-titled album in 1970, and his second album1-2-3 in 1972.

Occasionally visiting his management's office in Coconut Grove, Florida, Sykes traveled from Coconut Grove to Key West in 1972 where he met and developed a friendship and career with singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. Buffett would record two songs from Sykes' third album The Way That I Feel for his 1978 certified-platinum album Son of a Son of a Sailor.[5] In January 1979, Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge asked Sykes to attend an event for UNICEF in NYC. It was there that Jimmy Buffett asked Sykes to join his touring and recording band, The Coral Reefers. Sykes became the utility guitar player in The Coral Reefer Band for Buffett's 1979 tours, which included the Volcano Tour.[6]

1980s and Saturday Night Live[]

After recording the Volcano album in Montserrat, Sykes recorded I'm Not Strange, I'm Just Like You, his third studio album, which was released by the independent label Memphis Records. After the album became a hit locally in 1980, Tom Petty's Backstreet Records released it and it spent 11 weeks on the Billboard charts.[7] Recorded at Ardent Studios[6] in Memphis, I'm Not Strange includes "B.I.G.T.I.M.E.," which Sykes performed as the musical guest on Saturday Night Live[7] and was recorded by George Thorogood.

In 1982 Backstreet Records released It Don't Hurt To Flirt, which featured the single "In Between Lies". The single did not hit and Sykes left the label.[8] Sykes went on to record two more albums on his own independent label , Play X Play (1983) and Fun Rockin' (1984).

Sykes stopped touring in 1986 in order to focus on writing, publishing and producing. During this time, Sykes signed Memphis songwriter John Kilzer to his publishing company Keith Sykes Music, and was the driving force behind Kilzer's deal with Geffen Records. Sykes is also credited with the discovery of renowned singer-songwriter Todd Snider. After receiving a cassette tape from the young, then-unknown Snider in the mail, Sykes invited him to Memphis and became solely responsible for landing Snider his first recording contract on .[9]

1990s and Beale Street Songwriters Series[]

With the release of It's About Time, 1992 saw Sykes' first solo album in close to a decade and what would become known as a "songwriter's record." The album was released on John Prine's independent record label Oh Boy Records and led to another year on the road, during which Sykes played Mountain Stage, Nashville Now and many shows with John Prine.

In the fall of 1993, Sykes made a deal with the renowned publisher Carlin International and built The Woodshed Recording Studio. He recorded all his publishing company's demos there, plus numerous indy albums and tracks.

From 1993 to 2003, Sykes hosted a popular songwriting series on Memphis' iconic Beale Street. This series showcased numerous acclaimed songwriters including folk icons Steve Earle and Guy Clark, Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame writers Richard Leigh and Roger Cook, and then-newcomers Rivers Rutherford and Jimmy Davis.[10]

Teaming up with Dallas businessman and investor Kelcy Warren in 1997, Sykes began to expand the abilities of his Woodshed recording studio as well as open new publishing companies. With Warren, the two formed a new label called , which released Sykes' next two albums, rocker Advanced Medication for the Blues in 1998 and Americana-friendly Don't Count Us Out in 2001 which features duets with friends like Iris DeMent, John Prine, Rodney Crowell, and Susan Marshall.

2000s – present[]

After opening a tour for Todd Snider in late 2000, Sykes was inspired to return to performing full-time, a move he has described as "the right move at the right time." Sykes continued to write and record, releasing All I Know' for MadJack Records' in 2004 and Let It Roll for Fat Pete Records in 2006. In 2008 Sykes released the album Country Morning Music, produced by Todd Snider and . 2011 saw the release of Sykes' blues album, Bucksnort Blues, released on . KSME also released a "best-of" album in 2012 called 20 Most Requested featuring songs like Prine co-write "You Got Gold," heartfelt autobiographical ballad "Broken Home," and Jimmy Buffett hit "Volcano."

Known as a "troubadour of Trop Rock,"[3] Sykes latest release is a six-song EP called Songs From A Little Beach Town, inspired by Sykes' time spent in Port Aransas, TX. The album was recorded in Nashville by engineer and producer Brent Maher (The Judds, Kenny Rogers, Willie Nelson) and released in 2016. The single "Come As You Are Beach Bar" hit No. 1 on 's TropRock Top 40 for seven weeks,[11] and "The Best Day" charted at No. 3 and has remained on the charts since August 2016. "Coast of Marseilles" hit No. 1 on the Trop Rock Chart in February 2018.[12]

Two of Sykes' co-writes, "Volcano" and "Coast of Marseilles," are featured in the 2018 Broadway musical "Escape to Margaritaville."[13]

The Tree of Forgiveness, John Prine's first album in 13 years, was released in 2018. The album contained "No Ordinary Blue", a song by Prine and Sykes written in the mold of "You Got Gold" and "Long Monday".[14]

Personal life[]

Born in Murray, Kentucky, Sykes grew up in Memphis, Tennessee, where he would eventually leave a mark on the musically rich city. At 17 years old, Sykes purchased his first guitar for $20 at a pawn shop on Memphis' famed Beale Street. After years of traveling, Sykes would eventually return to Memphis and reconnect with his childhood crush, Jerene Rowe. The two married in 1976 and currently reside in Fayette County, TN outside of Memphis.

Filmography[]

Sykes made his acting debut as the lead character in the 1972 cult film ,[15] directed by Japanese avant-garde filmmaker Hiroshi Teshigahara (Woman in the Dunes). Set during the Vietnam War, the film depicts a Vietnam veteran (Sykes) who deserts from the US Army and is living on the fringe of Japanese society.[16] Sykes spent nine weeks filming in Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima, and other surrounding cities. The original Japanese title of the film is Samâ sorujâ.

Sykes receiving a Brass Note on Beale Street's Walk of Fame

In 2017, Sykes announced he was writing a screenplay titled Horses & Me.[3]

Awards[]

Sykes was honored with a Brass Note on the in 2016.

Discography[]

Studio albums[]

Year Album Chart Peak Label
Billboard 200 Trop Rock 40
1969 Keith Sykes Vanguard Records
1970 1-2-3
1977 The Way That I Feel Midland International Records
1980 I’m Not Strange, I’m Just Like You 147 Backstreet Records
1982 It Don't Hurt to Flirt
1983 Play X Play
1984 Fun Rockin’
1992 It's About Time Oh Boy Records
1998 Advanced Medication for the Blues
2001 Don't Count Us Out
2004 All I Know
2006 Let It Roll
2008 Country Morning Music
2011 Bucksnort Blues
2016 Songs From A Little Beach Town 1

Compilation albums[]

Year Album Chart Peak Label
2004 Retrospective Vol. 1 Syren Records
2012 20 Most Requested KSM Entertainment

Songwriting credits[]

Year Artist Title Chart Peak Album hideCo-writer(s)
Hot 100 Adult

Contemporary

1969 Jerry Jeff Walker "About Her Eyes" Five Years Gone
1971 The Wilburn Brothers "I Wish I Could See You"
1972 McKendree Spring "Hobo Lady"
"Train To Dixie"
"Shoot Me"
1976 "Clown"
"Oh, What A Feeling"
Jerry Jeff Walker "Some Day I'll Get Out of These Bars Richard Gardner
"Very Short Time"
1978 "I'm Not Strange"
Jimmy Buffett "Coast of Marseilles" Son of a Son of a Sailor
"The Last Line"
1979 "Volcano" 66 43 Volcano Jimmy Buffett, Harry Daily
1980 Rodney Crowell "Oh, What A Feeling" But What Will the Neighbors Think
Rosanne Cash "Right Or Wrong" Right Or Wrong
"Take Me, Take Me"
1981 "Rainin'" Seven Year Ache
"Only Human"
Guy Clark "Country Morning Music" Heartworn Highways soundtrack
Rodney Crowell "Just Wanna Dance" Rodney Crowell
1983 Mitch Ryder "B.I.G.T.I.M.E."
1984 Sissy Spacek "If You Could Only See Me Now" Hangin' Up My Heart
1986 Rodney Crowell "Let Freedom Ring" Street Language Rodney Crowell
"Stay (Don't Be Cruel)"
John Prine "Love, Love, Love" German Afternoons John Prine
1990 Rosanne Cash "Portrait" Interiors, The Full Sessions Rosanne Cash
The Judds "This Country's Rockin'" Love Can Build a Bridge Naomi Judd, Robert Johnson
1991 John Prine "You Got Gold" The Missing Years John Prine
"Everybody Wants to Feel Like You"
1992 Chris Bell "Stay With Me" I Am the Cosmos
1993 Rodney Crowell "Talking to A Stranger" Greatest Hits Rodney Crowell
1995 "Just Say Yes" Jewel of the South
Guy Clark "Shut Up and Talk to Me" Dublin Blues Guy Clark, Susanna Clark
1998 Jerry Jeff Walker "Those Were The Days"
1999 George Thorogood "B.I.G.T.I.M.E." Half a Boy/Half a Man
Guy Clark "Be Gone Forever" Cold Dog Soup Anna McGarrigle
2001 Jerry Jeff Walker "It Don't Matter" Jerry Jeff Walker, John Inmon
2002 Guy Clark "She Loves to Ride Horses" The Dark Guy Clark
2005 John Prine "Long Monday" Fair & Square John Prine
"Lavender Blue"
2007 Eric Gales "Honey in the Comb Eric Gales
Sunny Sweeney "Lavender Blue" Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame
2013 "Back Home Down in Memphis" Jed Zimmerman
2017 Max Gomez "Make It Me" Max Gomez
2018 John Prine "No Ordinary Blue" The Tree of Forgiveness John Prine

Producer credits[]

Year Artist hideAlbum
1988 John Kilzer Memory in the Making
  • Label: Geffen Records
  • "Memory in the Making" No. 110 on Billboard Top 200[17]
  • "Red Blue Jeans" #10 on Billboard Top Rock[18]
  • "Green, Yellow, Red" #36 on Billboard Top Rock[19]
1996 Tommy Tutone Nervous Love
  • Label:
1999 Mason Ruffner You Can't Win
  • Label:
2001 Nancy Apple Outside The Lines
  • Label: Ringo Records
2003 Nancy Apple Shoulda Lied About That
  • Label: Ringo Records
2005 Lose To Win
  • Label: self-released
2009 Nancy Apple Shine
  • Label: Ringo Records
2014 Workaholic in Recovery
  • Label: self-released
2016 Double Dee Adjust The Sails
  • Label: self-released

References[]

  1. ^ "Keith Sykes Interview – A Songwriting Icon". ourkindofmusic.com. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  2. ^ "Keith Sykes " MADJACK Records". madjackrecords.com. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c Davis, Jesse. "Tramp-Rock Troubador". Memphis Flyer. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  4. ^ "RSVP Magazine July 2015". Issuu. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  5. ^ Eng, Steve (October 15, 1997). Jimmy Buffett: The Man from Margaritaville Revealed. St. Martin's Press. pp. 300–. ISBN 978-0-312-16875-9. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
  6. ^ Inc, Nielsen Business Media (December 26, 1981). Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc.
  7. ^ "SNL Season 06 Episode 03 - Ellen Burstyn, Aretha Franklin, Keith Sykes". NBC. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  8. ^ Audio. Radio Magazine. 1982.
  9. ^ Snider, Todd (April 22, 2014). I Never Met a Story I Didn't Like: Mostly True Tall Tales. Hachette Books. pp. 85–. ISBN 978-0-306-82260-5. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
  10. ^ "Music". memphisflyer.com. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  11. ^ "Radio A1A 'Trop Rock Music for the Road To Paradise'". Radio A1A "Trop Rock Music for the Road To Paradise". Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  12. ^ "Radio A1A 'Trop Rock Music for the Road To Paradise'". Radio A1A "Trop Rock Music for the Road To Paradise". Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  13. ^ Green, Jesse (March 15, 2018). "Review: 'Escape to Margaritaville,' Where Work Is a Dirty Word". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
  14. ^ "Listen to John Prine's New Song, "Summer's End," From Upcoming Album, "The Tree of Forgiveness"". Nash Country Daily. February 8, 2018. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
  15. ^ Teshigahara, Hiroshi (March 25, 1972), Summer Soldiers, Keith Sykes, Reisen Ri, Kazuo Kitamura, retrieved March 26, 2018
  16. ^ "Summer Soldiers". Time Out London. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
  17. ^ "John Kilzer Memory in the Making Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
  18. ^ "John Kilzer Red Blue Jeans Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
  19. ^ "John Kilzer Green, Yellow, Red Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved January 28, 2018.

External links[]

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