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Massachusetts native, James Nihan, began writing songs at fourteen. His first influences were Tom Rush, John Prine, Gordon Lightfoot and James Taylor. He began performing at nineteen, appearing throughout New England before spending several years entertaining in Texas, Arizona and California. In 1987 he moved to Nashville to continue a career in songwriting and, in 1990, he was voted "Songwriter Of The Year" by the Tennessee Songwriters Association. Among his many songwriter credits is "I Can See Arkansas," released by Anne Murray and becoming a Top 10 single in Canada. The song has also been recorded by Steve Wariner (Country), Larry Stephenson (Bluegrass) and Ninjaman (Reggae). James' songs have been performed on many television programs including Austin City Limits, Nashville Now and The Regis Philbin Show. He is also active as a screenwriter, poet, novelist and artist. James' new CD, "Rays Of Light," was released August, 2003. It is a collection of positive, transformational songs inspired by Toltec and Native American wisdom and incorporates several alternative instruments including djembe, cello, Native American flute and steel drum. Lyric sample from "I Can See Arkansas" IF IT PROVED HOW MUCH I LOVE YOU I'D SWIM THIS OL' RIVER TONIGHT I'D BET MY SOUL AGAINST THE UNDERTOW FOR THE CHANCE TO HOLD YOU TIGHT BUT THERE'S MORE THAN A RIVER BETWEEN US AND I CAN'T SWIM THAT FAR AND AS HARD AS I TRY I JUST CAN'T DROWN THE MEMORIES OF WHERE YOU ARE OH, I CAN SEE ARKANSAS Lyric sample from "It's Only Natural": IT'S ONLY NATURAL THE STARS WOULD FILL MY EYES THEY KNEW YOU WERE THE ONE THE MOMENT YOU WALKED BY JUST LIKE THE PETALS OF A ROSE THEY OPENED AND THEY'LL NEVER CLOSE AGAIN, IT'S ONLY NATURAL Lyric sample from "Waiting For Dawn": DAWN BROKE THROUGH THE CLOUDS AROUND ME LIKE A RAY OF LIGHT SHE FOUND ME WHEN ALL HOPE OF LOVE WAS GONE MY HEART WAS FOREVER HESITATING NOW I KNOW IT WAS WAITING FOR DAWN Two very special reviews: In Performing Songwriter magazine, Neil Fagan wrote: It's been said that rock and roll is all about Saturday night and that country music is Saturday night and Sunday morning, too. That being the case, James Nihan is the lonesome preacher caught between the two. Nihan is a Nashville transplant who found success early on in his career with the song "I Can See Arkansas." It was recorded by both Steve Wariner and Anne Murray and Nihan's version is one of the eleven songs presented here. With a voice thick as molasses, Nihan tells the tales of the lover, the loser and the lucky survivor. He shows his way with a phrase on the lead-off track, "We Were There." "Sun in the sky like a big copper ladle, pouring honey down the river bank" is how he describes a lover's paradise. The title song is the true story (according to his liner notes) of a Mississippi farmer confronting his wife and her lover in a roadside tavern. Kinda like "Lucille" with gunfire. A postcard from a friend's father's war buddy is the inspiration behind "Brothers Of The Wind." Nihan lets his sense of humor shine on the rib-tickling "Shotgun Divorce," where-in an innocent stop for gas almost finds him betrothed. The ghost of Marty Robbins haunts "The Bells Of Santa Rosa." The CD closes with the love-gone-right song, "It's Only Natural," a fitting, final sparkle to Nihan's Mirror Boxes And Diamond Rings. Jean Pumphrey, Founding Director of the Poetry Center, San Mateo, CA, wrote: In the songs of James Nihan we enter a world of artistry in which words seem painted as much as sung: "I think of that sun like a big copper ladle pouring honey down the river bank, and that old canoe, rocking like a cradle, so full of love it almost sank." Lines such as these and the more somber lyrics of "The Bells Of Santa Rosa," mirror in nature a full spectrum of human passion; the joy and anguish of love's longing: "There were chili peppers hanging in the sun outside our door, But as luck would have it the rain began to pour." Here is a poet's voice painting in sound and image a portrait of where love lives; a passionate journey into the anguish and ecstasy of the human heart. Lyric sample from "You Can Keep Your Distance": I KNOW THAT YOU CARRY SCARS FROM WHAT LOVE'S DONE TO YOU YOU NO LONGER WISH ON STARS YOU DON'T THINK DREAMS COME TRUE I THOUGHT IF I GAVE YOU TIME YOU'D LEARN TO TRUST AGAIN YOU'RE STILL NOT SHOWING ANY SIGN YOU'LL EVER LET ME IN Lyric sample from "We Were There": BY THE WATER'S EDGE I FOUND A GREAT BLUE HERON'S FEATHER AND I PUT IT IN YOUR RAVEN HAIR AND IN THE DAPPLED SUNLIGHT WE LAY DOWN TOGETHER HOLDING EACH OTHER LIKE HANDS IN PRAYER WITHOUT A CARE FOR WHAT LAY UP AROUND THE BEND WE DIDN'T HAVE TO TRY TO FIND THAT RAINBOW'S END WE WERE THERE (Don't forget to check out the new CD "Rays of Light") Check out the artist's website: http://www.jamesnihan.com/ Track List: 1. We Were There 2. You Can Keep Your Distance 3. Mirror Boxes And Diamond Rings 4. Keepers Of The Flame (Duet with Dawn Zurlinden) 5. Fields Of Blue 6. Brothers Of The Wind 7. I Can See Arkansas 8. The Shotgun Divorce 9. Waiting For Dawn 10. The Bells Of Santa Rosa 11. It's Only Natural Suggested CDs:Other Genres:
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