Jim Halfpenny
First Things First
© 2006 Jim Halfpenny (837101165235)
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If you can imagine Bob Dylan inviting Glenn Phillips, Steve Earle, Chris Isaak, Dave Matthews and the Wallflowers over for enchiladas, imported beer and social debate then you have a good grasp on the direction Jim Halfpenny is taking with his music. Folk/Roots meets Alternate Adult/Pop/Rock. Sometimes gritty. Sometimes sweet. At times humorous. Other times stingingly close to the heart. The emphasis is always on good, solid songwriting and generating an original atmosphere around a familiar sound. The result is earthy, yet polished.
Jim Halfpenny is a multi-published BMI songwriter and a successful film composer with over 20 feature films to his credit. Jim "escaped" Los Angeles in 2002 and relocated to the Hill Country just southwest of Austin, Texas. After taking some time to check out the Austin music scene Jim teamed up with drummer, Brandon Storms and bassist, Mark Kellogg to form the Jim Halfpenny Band. Brandon and Jim got the project going in July of 2005 when they first got together to work out some arrangements for some of the songs Jim had been performing as a solo artist and in other bands around Austin and Central Texas. Mark and Jim are childhood friends who have played and recorded in various bands together since their days in high school. When performing live the trio is often joined on stage by a tasteful variety of talented musicians from the prodigious Austin area talent pool, most noteably, guitarist, Hunter Dryden.
Jim, Brandon and Mark spent the first three months of 2006 putting the final touches to their first CD. All the recording was tracked in Jim's facility, Back Forty Studios, in the Austin Hill Country. The mix was done at Wire Recording in Austin by Stuart Sullivan who has worked for such artists as Shawn Colvin, James McMurtry, Robert Earl Keen, Eric Johnson and Sublime. A number of his mixes have earned platinum records. While working with Jim and the band on their project Sullivan made this comment about their sound, “The music is like a nice warm towel…you just want to wrap yourself all up in it.”
The resulting CD, First Things First, was released in May of '06 and has already garnered excellent reviews. Maria Mesa, of Austin Daze Magazine, wrote in her column for the June '06 issue, "Halfpenny writes deep thought provoking lyrics...one of the better singer/songwriter albums to come my way."
Currently The Jim Halfpenny Band is playing locally and regionally to promote the CD which is getting substantial airplay on such prominent Texas radio stations as KGSR - Austin, KPFT - Houston, KEOS - College Station/Bryan, KTEX - Brenham and KFAN - Fredericksburg.
reviews
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Great Music
author: DaveA great debut CD. Brings together a wide range of styles very nicely.
A "MUST HAVE" CD
author: PattikayYou will love this CD. Great talent, great music. More, more, more!!!
Merging sounds make for an awesome debut
author: jhueyThere's a little something for everyone on this CD. The music cannot be broken down into one genre and that's what makes it fantastic, but there's a commonality amongst the songs with their humor, depth, and sincerity. The music keeps you on your toes with its changes and, yet, makes you feel like you're listening to an old friend. Cannot wait to see what's next for this band!
I listen to the band for the first time about a month ago in Austin.
author: LizI listen to the band for the first time about a month ago in Austin. I purchased the cd then and listened to it for about three weeks straight! I love it! The arragements are great and the lyrics are beautiful. My very two favorite songs are Walkabout and The Long Bar. I cannot wait for the next cd!
Halfpenny writes deep, thought provoking lyrics...one of the better singer/songw
author: Maria Mesa - Austin Daze MagazineThis little gem is one of the better singer/songwriter albums that have come my way. Jim Halfpenny and his band have created a well rounded package that seems to have everything well in check. Catchy songwriting, experienced musicianship, and a quality well-polished production. Instrumentation includes soprano sax, mandolin, accordion, violin, and fretless bass for added depth. Halfpenny writes deep, thought provoking lyrics. "Like the cradle and the hearse, first things first" is a great way of saying death is just another beginning. The opening song "Pentagrams" has lines like: "She goes in 5 directions like the points on a pentagram, and when I look for haven in her eyes, I just see reflections of the fool I am." The insert contains complete lyrics with landscape photography and cool graphics. With it's musically KGSR friendly feel it's a bit hard to categorize. Bluesy pop rock with a bit of Texas twang comes close. A dash of Americana? Sure, why not. Most songs are good, but my favorite is the final bonus track "The Long Bar". A great classic drinking song and an ode to friends and family no longer with us, it wraps the disc up nicely. While he is also deeply involved in soundtrack work in his backyard hill country studio, Jim Halfpenny's time would be better spent on projects like this.