Meet Tommy Taylor

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tommy Taylor a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Tommy , we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?

I think it’s a matter of somehow, through it all, believing in myself. That’s a sliding scale. It can be different at any given moment. I try to look at the successes and weigh them against what might be considered failures. I have a pretty strong determinism.
I always take example from Van Gogh. The critics hated him. His brother Theo, was only able to sell literally a handful of his paintings in his lifetime. He was doing something completely against the grain of what was considered “hip.” The much more venerated Paul Gaugin, championed his work. He was in awe of Gaugin. I have people like that in my court. So even if I’m not front page news and the talk of the airwaves, when a Michael Omartian or a Vince Gill gives my writing and singing an unsolicited nod….I just wait for everyone else to catch up! I’m making my music because I have to make it for myself.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

My name is Tommy Taylor. I’m a professional touring and recording musician, producer, vocalist, songwriter with 56 years tenure in the industry. I began playing professionally in Austin, Texas at age 11. I believe I am the youngest person to have ever joined the Austin Federation of Musicians at age 13 or 14.

After 55 years as a supportive player, I released my first solo project in September of 2023.
It is an album of 9 songs that took a lifetime of experience to write. The work is called Across the Stars.
My focus now is on getting those songs heard by more people worldwide.
It is both bold and bodacious for someone to “debut” at 66 years of age. I didn’t write and record an original song until I was 45 years old. It took me nearly another 20 to get 8 more completed.

My perspective is different than most young writers. Generally, people write the bulk of their material in their late 20s early 30s, when life for them is really just beginning. I am writing my freshest material as a retrospective of what has happened in my life and what a more mature person has to look forward to.
In that I also have 50+ years of experience, watching and learning from the greats that came before me.
I feel like my music and the way it is produced is somewhat unique in this day and time. I don’t feel most artists are going quite as deep as I have on my album in any area. Lyrics are likely my strongest suit, but it’s all wrapped in a very sophisticated package. Having been a key component in the albums I had helped create with other artists, I had no choice but to match or better their efforts.

I have 7 new tracks started and I hope to be releasing new material as well in 2025. Some of these tracks will be a bit of a departure, leaning on more rhythm and blues and country elements. One song features Jimmie Vaughan on guitar, as well as The Texas Horns.
Recently, I’ve been playing some solo shows and songwriter showcases in the Austin area and even as far away as New Mexico. It’s an exciting new chapter. I have basically stepped out from behind a drum set in support mode after 56 years to the front of the stage with a guitar and my own songs and voice.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

For me in music, I think it was the love of the song. I grew up with an 11 year old older sister. I had a huge library to peruse as a child and I learned those records inside and out by ear. I learned to love and appreciate a great song. I try and get younger musicians and writers to study older music so that they aren’t starting in the middle. You really need to go back to the beginnings of what I would term the Gilded Age of Popular Music, from the mid 1950s to the early 1980s, in order to know how the idiom works. So really, for me, it’s a great memory, a great ear, and great desire. Those are what I work from.

What was the most impactful thing your parents did for you?

My parents were wonderful in the fact that they weren’t helicopter parents or parents like so many kids have today that are possibly trying to live their unrealized desires vicariously through their offspring. My mom aspired to music and did sing and play semi-professionally, but she never spoke of it really, and never tried to be HER through me. They were supportive but not invasive. They let me have my try at it without hesitation, but they weren’t trying to micro manage my affairs. I have better “sea legs” for them having approached it that way, I think.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://TommyTaylor.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tommytaylorofficial/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TommyTaylorOfficial
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TommyTaylorOfficial
• Other: https://linktr.ee/thetommytaylorofficial

Image Credits

1 Greer James
4. Wade Johnson
5. Doug Brons
6 Steve Chadie
7 David Lanford