Jerry Merrick

Jerry Merrick is an American singer-songwriter. His songs have been recorded by Richie Havens, B.J. Thomas, Jerry Jeff Walker, and Susan Tedeschi.

Merrick is best known for writing "Follow," which appeared on the 1967 Richie Havens release Mixed Bag (MCA Verve/Folkways), which Rolling Stone called a "Sixties folk epic."[1] Havens also performed the song in concert appearances at the Newport Folk Festival and Carnegie Hall. The piece has since appeared within the soundtrack of several films.[2]

Subsequently, Merrick went on to record an album of original compositions for Mercury Records, released in 1969. Following this he moved his family away from New York City and teamed up briefly with fellow Mercury artist Kenny Rankin to appear on The Tonight Show, and open for Flip Wilson in various venues throughout the US. However, a decision to focus on his growing family eventually led him to withdraw from the music industry. Meanwhile, his song "Guess I'll Pack My Things," had been recorded by Tom Ghent on his self-titled debut for Bill Cosby's Tetragrammaton Records. Apparently, this led to the song (and arrangement) being included by B.J. Thomas on his 1970 Scepter album, Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head.

Jerry Jeff Walker later recorded Merrick's "The Stranger (He Was The Kind)" on his double album "A Man Must Carry On." It served as an introduction and conclusion in his tribute to beloved Texas poet Hondo Crouch. Walker also included "Follow" on his Electra release, "Jerry Jeff."

In 1999 Merrick located temporarily in Nashville, Tennessee. During this time he recorded "Suddenly I'll Know You," produced by Tom Ghent on his Sutherland Records label.

Discography

  • Follow (1969, Mercury Records)
  • Suddenly I'll Know You (2002, Sutherland Records)

Filmography

  • Coming Home (1978) with Jane Fonda and Jon Voight (3 Oscars)
  • Flying Blind (1992 TV movie) with Corey Parker, Téa Leoni, Robert Bauer
  • The War (1994) with Elijah Wood, Kevin Costner, Mare Winningham
  • The Pallbearer (1996) with David Schwimmer, Gwyneth Paltrow, Michael Rapaport
  • Hideous Kinky (1998) with Kate Winslet, Saïd Taghmaoui, Bella Riza
  • A Walk on the Moon (1999) with Diane Lane, Viggo Mortensen, Liev Schreiber
  • Steal This Movie (2000) with Vincent D'Onofrio, Janeane Garofalo, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Kevin Pollak

References

  1. ↑ Barry Walters, "Hope and Desire:Review", Rolling Stone, November 17, 2005 (link)
  2. ↑ Jerry Merrick page at Sutherlandrecords.com



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