Chip Taylor
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Chip Taylor (born January 1, 1940 in New York City) is the stage name of American songwriter James Wesley Voight noted for writing the song, Wild Thing. Taylor's brothers are the actor, Jon Voight, and the geologist, Barry Voight. He is the uncle of actors Angelina Jolie and James Haven.
[edit] Early career
Taylor attended Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains, New York. After an unsuccessful attempt to become a professional golfer, Taylor entered the music business. He wrote and composed pop and rock songs, both alone and with other songwriters including Al Gorgoni (as the duo Just Us), Billy Vera, Ted Daryll, and Jerry Ragovoy.
Taylor's best known songs are Wild Thing, which was originally recorded in 1965 by The Wild Ones but became best known as a 1966 hit single for The Troggs and a 1967 live performance by Jimi Hendrix), and Angel of the Morning, a hit first for Merrilee Rush in 1968, and then becoming an even bigger hit in 1981 for country-pop singer Juice Newton (whose single sold more than a million copies in the United States). Other Taylor compositions that made entries onto the pop and country charts include "He Sits at Your Table" (Willie Nelson), I Can't Let Go (The Hollies), Make Me Belong to You, I Can Make It With You (Jackie DeShannon), Any Way That You Want Me (The Troggs, Evie Sands and later by Juice Newton), Step Out of Your Mind, Country Girl City Man, I'll Hold Out My Hand, and Try (Just a Little Bit Harder) (Janis Joplin). Country hits written and composed by Taylor include Sweet Dream Woman (Waylon Jennings), and Son of a Rotten Gambler (Emmylou Harris, the Hollies and Anne Murray).
Taylor released recordings on Warner Brothers, Columbia, and Capitol records, and his most popular recording is his, Last Chance released through Warner Brothers. In the mid-1970s, Taylor gave up the music business for a career as a professional gambler specializing in blackjack and horseracing handicapping. But the year 1980 saw Taylor making a screen acting appearance in the film Melvin and Howard.
[edit] Taylor today
Taylor restarted his performing and recording career in 1993. At a South by Southwest Music Conference in Austin, Texas in 2001, Chip 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 5 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' solo album Seven Angels on a Bicycle was released in August 2006. In late 2006 and early 2007, Rodriguez has been touring on her own but she continues to perform with Taylor from time to time.
Taylor has also performed with alt country singer-songwriter Robbie Fulks, playing bass for Fulks's January 2004 date at Double Door in Chicago. More recently, Taylor has been doing a series of shows with guitarist John Platania and the young singer/fiddler Kendel Carson (both of whom released solo albums in April 2007). Taylor produced both albums.
In addition, the reggae rap star Shaggy utilized Angel in the Morning as the basis for his massive selling hit Angel in 2001. The song also used the bass line of the Steve Miller classic the Joker. Both Taylor and Miller received co-writing credit for the song, which became Taylor's second #1 hit on the Billboard pop charts, some 35 years after Wild Thing. Angel has sold over 13 million copies worldwide.
