Looks Like Rain: The Songwriting Legacy of Mickey Newbury
Mickey Newbury (1940–2002) grew up in Houston and moved to Nashville in the early 1960s, following his muse. He wrote top hits for many well-known artists, including Don Gibson, Andy Williams, Kenny Rogers, Tom Jones, and others. He is probably best known, however, for being name-checked in the song “Luckenbach, Texas (Back to the Basics of Love)” by Waylon Jennings. Newbury has been cited by Jennings, Kris Kristofferson, Townes Van Zandt, and many other eminent singer-songwriters as a primary influence.

In his own independent fashion, Newbury helped to loosen the grip maintained for decades by the Nashville studio system, thus paving the way for later innovators like Willie Nelson, David Allan Coe, and others. He is still the only songwriter to produce hits on four different charts in the same year in 1968: “Just Dropped In (to See What Condition My Condition was In)” on the pop/rock charts, “Sweet Memories” on easy listening, “Time Is a Thief” on the R & B charts, and “Here Comes the Rain, Baby” in country.

Following the successful pattern established in his previous works on Townes Van Zandt and Ray Wylie Hubbard, veteran music journalist Brian T. Atkinson has interviewed artists such as Kris Kristofferson, Bobby Bare, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Steve Earle, Rodney Crowell, and many others to learn how Newbury’s influence continues to shape the musical and artistic approach of both seasoned and newer performers. Forewords by Larry Gatlin and Don McLean set the stage for a fascinating look back at one of the most revered songwriters and musicians of recent decades.

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Looks Like Rain: The Songwriting Legacy of Mickey Newbury
Mickey Newbury (1940–2002) grew up in Houston and moved to Nashville in the early 1960s, following his muse. He wrote top hits for many well-known artists, including Don Gibson, Andy Williams, Kenny Rogers, Tom Jones, and others. He is probably best known, however, for being name-checked in the song “Luckenbach, Texas (Back to the Basics of Love)” by Waylon Jennings. Newbury has been cited by Jennings, Kris Kristofferson, Townes Van Zandt, and many other eminent singer-songwriters as a primary influence.

In his own independent fashion, Newbury helped to loosen the grip maintained for decades by the Nashville studio system, thus paving the way for later innovators like Willie Nelson, David Allan Coe, and others. He is still the only songwriter to produce hits on four different charts in the same year in 1968: “Just Dropped In (to See What Condition My Condition was In)” on the pop/rock charts, “Sweet Memories” on easy listening, “Time Is a Thief” on the R & B charts, and “Here Comes the Rain, Baby” in country.

Following the successful pattern established in his previous works on Townes Van Zandt and Ray Wylie Hubbard, veteran music journalist Brian T. Atkinson has interviewed artists such as Kris Kristofferson, Bobby Bare, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Steve Earle, Rodney Crowell, and many others to learn how Newbury’s influence continues to shape the musical and artistic approach of both seasoned and newer performers. Forewords by Larry Gatlin and Don McLean set the stage for a fascinating look back at one of the most revered songwriters and musicians of recent decades.

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Looks Like Rain: The Songwriting Legacy of Mickey Newbury

Looks Like Rain: The Songwriting Legacy of Mickey Newbury

Looks Like Rain: The Songwriting Legacy of Mickey Newbury

Looks Like Rain: The Songwriting Legacy of Mickey Newbury

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Overview

Mickey Newbury (1940–2002) grew up in Houston and moved to Nashville in the early 1960s, following his muse. He wrote top hits for many well-known artists, including Don Gibson, Andy Williams, Kenny Rogers, Tom Jones, and others. He is probably best known, however, for being name-checked in the song “Luckenbach, Texas (Back to the Basics of Love)” by Waylon Jennings. Newbury has been cited by Jennings, Kris Kristofferson, Townes Van Zandt, and many other eminent singer-songwriters as a primary influence.

In his own independent fashion, Newbury helped to loosen the grip maintained for decades by the Nashville studio system, thus paving the way for later innovators like Willie Nelson, David Allan Coe, and others. He is still the only songwriter to produce hits on four different charts in the same year in 1968: “Just Dropped In (to See What Condition My Condition was In)” on the pop/rock charts, “Sweet Memories” on easy listening, “Time Is a Thief” on the R & B charts, and “Here Comes the Rain, Baby” in country.

Following the successful pattern established in his previous works on Townes Van Zandt and Ray Wylie Hubbard, veteran music journalist Brian T. Atkinson has interviewed artists such as Kris Kristofferson, Bobby Bare, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Steve Earle, Rodney Crowell, and many others to learn how Newbury’s influence continues to shape the musical and artistic approach of both seasoned and newer performers. Forewords by Larry Gatlin and Don McLean set the stage for a fascinating look back at one of the most revered songwriters and musicians of recent decades.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781623499266
Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
Publication date: 05/11/2021
Series: Texas Music Series, Sponsored by the Center for Texas Music History, Texas State University
Pages: 264
Product dimensions: 6.30(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

BRIAN T. ATKINSON is the author of I’ll Be Here in the Morning: The Songwriting Legacy of Townes Van Zandt and The Messenger: The Songwriting Legacy of Ray Wiley Hubbard, and coauthor of Kent Finlay, Dreamer: The Musical Legacy behind Cheatham Street Warehouse.

Table of Contents

A gallery of photographs appears after page 105.

Foreword Larry Gatlin Don McLean xi

Acknowledgments xiii

Selected Timeline for Mickey Newbury xv

Introduction 1

Prelude: Kris Kristofferson 5

Verse: Just Dropped In

Eric Taylor 9

Jerry Newbury 9

George Ensle 12

John Carrick 13

John Nova Lomax 14

Ray Wylie Hubbard 15

Sam Baker 16

Harold F. Eggers Jr. 17

Guy Clark 19

Verse: Looks Like Rain

Bobby Bare 23

Wayne Moss 24

Charlie McCoy 26

Norbert Putnam 28

Donnie Fritts 31

Billy Edd Wheeler 33

Chris Gantry 35

Billy Swan 37

Bucky Wilkin 39

Buffy Sainte-Marie 41

Ramblin' Jack Elliott 44

Chorus: Heaven Help the Child

Larry Gatlin 49

Allen Frizzell 51

Ed Bruce 53

Dallas Frazier 55

Pat Alger 57

Johnny Lee 62

Mickey Gilley 63

Joe Henry 65

Mark Germino 68

Richard Leigh 72

Jay Bolotin 74

David Shepherd Grossman 76

Fred Roller 78

Interlude: A Song for Susan

Susan Newbury Oakley 83

Chris Newbury 93

Jack Williams 98

Verse: I Came to Hear the Music

Juan Contreras 109

Troy Tomlinson 110

John Lomax III 114

Owsley Manier 115

Larry Murray 119

Randy Dodds 122

Marty Hall 126

Jonmark Stone 131

Bob Rosemurgy 134

Chris Campion 138

Joe Gilchrist 141

Verse: Sweet Memories

Chris Smither 147

Rodney Crowell 148

Steve Earle 151

Buddy Miller 154

Matraca Berg 156

Leslie Satcher 158

Jennifer Warnes 162

Gretchen Peters 164

Will Kimbrough 168

Bob DiPiero 171

Darrell Scott 173

Walt Wilkins 176

Fred Eaglesmith 178

Tom Russell 181

Chorus: A Long Road Home

Chuck Prophet 187

Charlie Worsham 189

Andrew Combs 191

Jonny Fritz 192

Joshua Hedley 195

Will Oldham 197

Bill Callahan 201

Robert Ellis 202

Joe Pug 204

Coda: Matt Harlan 209

Notes 211

A Selected Discography for Mickey Newbury 215

Index 217

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