Jim Bowers is a genre blurring singer/songwriter in the tradition of the story telling balladeers, a little bit country, a little bit folk, and a little bit rockabilly.

13 MP3 Songs
COUNTRY: Country Folk, FOLK: Political



Details:
âAll of these songs are true, whether fact or fiction.â In that opening sentence from the liner notes of Tequila Lips, Jim Bowers captures the heart of his debut CD. Tequila Lips is acoustic music with attitude. Recorded live in studio, using two acoustic guitars, bass, and vocals, Tequila Lips is a unique and well arranged assortment of original story songs reflecting a variety of influences including country, folk, western swing, and rockabilly and touching on such themes as personal freedom, loss, regret, lust, and love. Lyrically, the songs on Tequila Lips are reminiscent of vintage Kris Kristofferson and Gordon Lightfoot. All of the songs pay homage to the simple and unavoidable fact that a good song is about three chords and the truth (regardless of how many chords actually are in the song).

A Short Biography:
Jim Bowers grew up in rural small town Illinois in the 1960s and 1970s as the son of union welder and the grandson of a union coal miner who believed in just three things: Jesus Christ, John L. Lewis, and his secret recipe for homemade hooch. Jim learned the guitar from an alcoholic guitar player who was a bona fide local legend and both Jimâs hero and friend. Jim has never forgotten his working class and blue collar roots and still identifies with them. Their influence can be heard in the songs he writes and the themes his songs explore.

For years as a solo performer and in small groups, Jim performed and interpreted the songs of other songwriters such as Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Gordon Lightfoot, John Prine, Harry Chapin, Jimmy Buffet, and Mike Nesmith. He dabbled in songwriting as a teen and in his early 20s, producing what he now calls âpoor, poor, pitiful me songs.â Jim seriously returned to songwriting in 2000, bringing a unique background and skill set to the craft including being a college professor, a published author or editor of five books, a political analyst and commentator for western New York media outlets, and a now former city-wide elected official in his adopted hometown of Rochester, NY. It is not surprising then that with these tools in his musical toolbox that Jimâs songs appeal to both emotions and intellect. Give his songs a listen and like those who have heard his live performances, you will find that Jim Bowers is a songwriter with attitude who has something to say and give to almost everyone.