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Tom
Kimmel is one of those unique singer-songwriters whose heartfelt artistry with
words and music is both genre-crossing and timeless. Since 1980, when his songs
were recorded by Roger McGuinn & Chris Hillman (of Byrds fame) and Levon
Helm (of The Band), dozens of his compositions have been covered by a host of
major artists including Linda Ronstadt, Johnny Cash, Joe Cocker, Shawn Colvin,
Waylon Jennings, the Stray Cats, Randy Travis and the Spinners. Tom’s unique
ability to write songs that connect stems from his lifelong career as a touring
performer. Once an eclectic rock and roller, Tom
found his voice as a singer-songwriter while opening Nanci Griffith’s 1991-92
world tour. A New Folk winner at the Kerrville Folk Festival in ’93, he began
performing as a solo act, stressing a lean, acoustic-centered approach to his
music and bringing a poignant and humorous spirit to his poetry and
storytelling.
Tom’s peers have joined critics in commending the Alabama
native's unadorned stylings as uniquely soulful. Irish songstress Maura
O’Connell, who has recorded haunting versions of Tom’s The Blue Train and
Poetic Justice, says, "Tom is an incredible songwriter... And he seems to
be getting better as the years go on." Crow Johnson, former ZMN publisher,
calls Tom a "singer’s singer, writer’s writer." And according to The
Nashville Scene, "Tom Kimmel's moody textured songwriting reaches into
soulful realms that few Music Row pros enter."
After releasing two
critically praised major label albums (in ’87 and ’90), Tom made his first
independent album in 1994. Bones, a collection of live recordings, was followed
by Short Stories, which featured guest performances by Emmylou Harris, The Fairfield
Four, Gillian Welch, Jerry Douglas and other friends. Shallow Water, released
in 2002, is a collection of spirit-infused songs and hymns, and Tom's latest
album, Light of Day, features vibrant, spare voice-and-guitar recordings
written and produced by Tom in his home studio. A volume of poetry, The
Sweetest & the Meanest, will be published in the fall of 2005.
Featured
in motion pictures such as Runaway Bride, Serendipity, and Twins, and in
television shows as varied as Captain Kangaroo, Miami Vice and Touched By An
Angel, recordings of Tom’s compositions have sold millions of copies around the
world, achieving gold and platinum sales in many countries.
An
avid whitewater enthusiast, Tom has kayaked through the Grand Canyon,
in the remote Himalayan kingdoms of Bhutan
and Nepal, and in the mountains of Mexico and France. A graduate of the University of Alabama,
he was born in Memphis and raised in rural south Alabama. Along with
his artistic endeavors he is a long time student of Siddha Yoga Meditation
and is a Practitioner of, a spirit-centered
therapy.
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