As life would have the early 1970's found me in the Army at Ft.Riley Ks, this is when I found out about Jimmie and had the good fortune to see him in concert at a small theatre in Kansas City Kansas. An awesome and unforgettable show.
I saw him In the late 70's or early 80's in the old Broadway theater in Kansas City, My old and Dear Friend and Radio Jock From KBEY, Art Hadley in Kansas City Turned me onto Him While I was Still in High School. I wore out a couple of copies of "Isle Of View" (or as It sounds phonetically "I'll Love You") If I ever Run Across a CD you can bet I'll Scarf it up. Rest in Peace Jimmie.
Almost wore my album out sharing it with others; when it was available I bought the CD to replace it, which is still in my car for frequent listening. I look for music this wonderful currently & cannot find it. We were, and are, blessed to have Jimi;s music in our lives.
Many years ago, in the 1970's I saw him at Stephen's College in Columbia, MO. The cost of the concert was $3 or $4 dollars. The Dragon is Dancing album had been released and he did songs from it and Isle of View. He danced during much of the concert. The music and dancing was truly beautiful, such a wonderful experience. I don't believe I've ever been the same since.
Hey guys...I have seen Jimmie 9 times and as I have gotten older I really appreciate his impact on music even more...I think Jimmie would have loved that he has picked up new listener long after his passing....I have been playing his music for years and still battle to reach his subtlety....he had such a beautiful way of expressing his music..and I believe that't why we're still here listening...always makes my heart feel good to listen.....best wishes to all of you....
I got to see Jimmie in concert twice in Oklahoma. Just him and his D35. The man was amazing, powerful, gentle,...unique. If only he had stayed true to his talent and vision and not been influenced by commercial phonies. Still,, treasure what we had in the beginning.
Happy 61st birthday, Jimmie (November 5 1949 - July 4 1984). Miss ya, love ya, see you again some day. xo - am (online at The Jimmie Spheeris Memorial Gallery).
Amazing song and artist. I heard it late at night inTulsa the first time in the 70's. I'm a musician, and it brought tears to my eyes. One of the few perfect songs.
This cat was way ahead of his time. I had this LP in 1975; beautiful music. There was finally a remaster / re-release of this cd in 2010. His sister is Penelope Spheeris, the movie director.
I was VERY fortunate to have seen Jimmie from the front row in a magnificent solo concert at Central Missouri Statue University (Now UCM) at Warrensburg Missouri in either 1981 or 1982. I remember the opening act was a solo piano player who imitated Elton John to a "t". I want to say his first name was Alan. Jimmie was in rare form -- laughing uncontrollably at times (uh-huh!) and the show was BEAUTIFUL. Thanks buddy -- we still love you!
Yes, lottakarma, the CD restoration project could not have happened without Johnny. YT won't allow me to post a link here... but if you Google "Jimmie Spheeris Memorial Gallery" you can visit the site... click "Johnny Pierce Memorial Wing" for some good stories and pics, including a great story by Johnny about how he and Jimmie first met.
I bought Isle of View when it first came out in the 70s. I kept it for a really long time but lost it many years ago when my home was broken into and trashed. The Nest is my all time favorite song of his. His voice carried so much emotion and the words in his music were magic. Thank you so much for making all this available to his die hard fans.
It used to hurt me to hear idiots at Moody Blues concerts, when Jimmie was warming up for them, who would yell in the middle of his songs, "rock and roll!" Obviously not Moodies' fans. These two songs are his best in my opinion. I love this album. This and Dragon is Dancing are masterpieces.
Just by chance did I look on youtube to find a vague memory from 37 years years ago. Some music has a way to magically secure a permanent home in the brain even if you can't bring it forward until you hear it again. This artist left his work in my head for all these years and the feelings poured out upon hearing his masterpieces.
do you hear joni mitchell and laura nyro in jimmie's music, perhaps even todd rundgren? it's not that i'm denying the unique beauty of his work and his earliest lyrics and themes were particularly individual, but i know as a composer, that particularly within the popular song idiom, we don't exist in a vacuum.
i probably never thought that jimmie minded that i did play his songs, art101tv, as i always did my best ... ;)
Joni and Laura and Todd... and Jackson Browne, too... and so many more... they knew and loved Jimmie's work as much as he did theirs. On Jimmie's final album he said, "you must be laughing somewhere."
All I know is that J.B loved Jimmies music and thats how he got his start, kinda, Listen to the words of Jackson Browne in his song :Baracades of Heaven" "Jimmie found his own sweet voice and won that free guitar"
Jimmie and Joni were friends... I have photos of Joni stopping by the studio when Jimmie was making "Ports of the Heart" -- my all-time favorite Jimmie album. Jimmie and Laura were also friends. They shared an apartment in NY in the early days. I don't know if Jimmie ever met Todd, but I bet they'd have had lots of music to share. Jimmie and Jackson Browne were also childhood friends. Jackson contributed backing vocals on "Ports of the Heart."
And did you know joey larsen by chance? I went to school with him and was a good friend of mine. We partied, He plyaed music, I listened and loved it. He was with Jimmie after Isle Of view, Oh And i do Have a cd from rain records,, Isle of View!
Never met Joey in person, but did a radio interview with him and the late Johnny Pierce (Jimmie's longtime bass player who helped found the Jimmie CD restoration project) way back in 2000. Cheers.
@art101tv I remember Johnny and Joey doing a radio interview here in OKC... I actually got to talk to Joey. MAN, Been a LONG time but was good to talk to him. I had to ask about his and I's good friend Lenny Walker who was also a gifted musician. He is around, all I know. Would love to hear from him too.
I don't think Jimmie would mind. He'd probably be glad to know that his life and work made an impact. Jimmie's work will eventually find the place in history it so richly deserves.
I hope everyone who watches this YouTube page visits the Jimmie memorial site. Google the words "Jimmie Spheeris" to get there... or point your browser at jimmiespheeris (dot) com
Thanks, rbassmanw. Since you use the cover art for "Isle of View" at the beginning of your video, your visitors may find the restoration of that artwork (pixel by pixel) interesting. Visit the "more photos and art" link from Jimmie's home page to learn more about the process.
Thanks to all of Jimmie's fans who participated in the effort to have this wonderful album re-released on CD a couple of years ago. Thanks to Ron for posting it here! Mercury is still one of my favorites.
I was lucky enough to see Jimmy Spheeris in Oklahoma City in 1972 or 1973, ... and was absolutely blown away by this performing talent. A short career and tragic end, but a legacy of great composition and performance. A definite 'must' for those who want to know the music of the 70's. "... Mercury" still draws me almost forty years later. Thanks, Jimmy.
I had never heard of Jimmy Spheeris until I happened to get the chance to see him in concert back in the 70's. He was the lead in act at a Kansas concert. The venue was small and he was absolutely terrific...immedately bought Isle of View and have always loved his music. This artist in my mind is very underated . Altho Isle of View is hard to find now, I will always recommend it to my fellow music lovers.
I also listened to Jimmie back when he was making records, never saw him in concert, but sure liked what he did. He sort of falls in the same category as Nick Drake; a guy who got no respect...until well after his death. Maybe this will happen for Jimmie. This is timeless stuff and deserves to be heard.
There is a funny song by Richard Thompson with a line that says " Now that he's dead he's finally making a living". Nick had a little more commercial success after his demise. Jimmie certainly deserves it.
Honestly, I have fairly decent copes of both Isle of view and The original Tapdancing Kid on CD and LP, and to my ears, the LP beats the crap out of the CD.....there's just an edge on the CD that is not there on the CD. The CD also sounds and looks compressed when I look at the waveform.
i put it on cd too! love to listen to it when I go to sleep. i keep my LP forever! Here in the Netherlands Jimmie was not known at all. There were only a few LP's sold overhere, so my sister ordered one from California..
My first LP came from my cousin's collection in Mexico. I really don't know how he got the album in the early 70's.
I exchanged a priceless set of recordings from the Beatles for Isle of View. My second LP, Dragon is Dancing, was added in California 15 years later. The rest were aquired in the small record shops of the East and West Village in New York City in the past 10 years. I hope I'm able to get my first CD recording soon.
I AM THE MERCURY I cannot go anymore to the marshes where the gatekeeper smiles at the poisons that he's made for my heart belongs to the one on the mountain where the doves build their nests in the sun-ripened glade for I am the mercury - light of the morning looking for shelter in this thunder and this rain and you like some windmill weave light where its storming your love like a potion for the hunger and the pain Let it rain ....
THE NEST come to me now - dove on your shoulder white flame of love burns on your breath I am ready for flight oh my wings are so ripe come wake me take me from the nest the scarlet ships sail sacred oceans where tides of love have laid to rest quiet water by night oh my sails are so ripe come wake me take me from the nest ...
I vividly remember those words, it was the early 70's coming out of my cousin's record player...in a remote place in Mexico. My early fascination with those beautiful words and the soulful sounds of his voice made a big impact on my life at the age of 10. Almost 20 years later and still in search of the origin of those words I heard an eco at a beach in California....
I found Isle of View in the used cd section of my local music store for $8!!!! I about had a heart attack! Needless to say I grabbed that puppy and brought it home. Sometimes life is really good :)
As a confused young youth in Syracuse N.Y. in the early 70's, I remember this song ( Mercury..)pulling me out of a near suicidal funk and giving me hope for the future...Almost 40 years later and it still does..a great memory ( now, at least...) and a great post; He was truly visionary.
I love him too and he was a definitly a source of great solace then.I was surprised that when I first listened to this song after about 35 years,I knew all of the lyrics-they came back to me like a warm blanket.
I happened to have a great pristine LP copy of this from the 70's when I was in school, which I digitized, but I was trying out the depth of Amazon's MP3 library, and of all things they actually had the entire album!!!! Actually has less surface noise than my LP, so it must be from the Master tapes... It's so great to hear Jimmie again!
I just did the same thing about a month ago. I have two copied of the LP, but it's quite crackly and a pain to only 20 minutes before flipping the album. I bought the MP3 (whole album) from Amazon. It's a perfect album (in a class with just a handful).
One of the best albums of all time that no one has ever heard...I'm glad I discovered Jimmie's music 34 years ago..rbassmanw, you are the best man, everytime I search for my favorite music I seem to find you...THANKS, wish we had some video of Jimmie back in the day!
I am not sure, but there was a law suit between sony and rain records. I never was clear on how the ruling went. I, like you, would asume sony has got their greedy hands on it in someway.
I wish Derek Shulman record company or Cuneiform records or any record company with any money could buy back the rights to release his music again. I have heard that some down load sites has some tunes avail. I do not know if they are technically legal.
I still have Isle of View on vinyl. I worked at a little backwater radio station in Delta, Colorado and found "I am the Mercury" on a promotional record tossed in the back room. Played it, liked it, bought the album & played that on the air, too. I hope our listener liked it enough to buy it. Thanks for putting this on. Gonna listen to the other parts now.
Little secret. These albums were magical. Had an uncanny ability to make pretty girls drop trou and jump my (never really attractive) bones. Don't know why, don't know how. I was just barely smart enough to pile Jimmie's albums on the turntable and open a bottle of wine. The music did the rest of it.
Omigod I haven't heard this music in 20 years. I got turned on to Jimmie as a student at the University of Kansas and spent many bleary nights of paralysis listening to this amazing music. This is the exact album I remember having -- singing along while wandering through the snow. Wow ... thank you!
I first heard his music in California (on record) in 1971...has been my favorite since then..have 2 vinyl Dagon Is Dancing LPs. I am so thankful for this posting and recognition of Jimmie...validates a lot for me, that others see who he was also.
all i can say is THANK YOU - i have everyCD now and love this man with my heart and soul as so many of us do ! This cd and the Dragon is dancing , TREASURE !
It's a good thing the 1970s have learned to keep their secrets. O the fine times we had listening to Jimmie's music! "...looking for shelter in this thunder and rain..."
You can download much of Jimmie's music from Musicmatch, MusicNow, etc. I got Isle of View for $9.99. Also, check out the website which is his name, for more info about Jimmie (not allowed to post URLs here).
was driving along Big Bend Blvd when I Am The Mercury played, and I had to pull the car over to listen, I was so moved. Got to see him an a KC concert; he was the opening act for someone (I think it was Hall & Oates). So many of his fans came; we had him do encore after encore until they gave up and we got him until midnight. Greatest concert ever!
Hello huston3. I saw JS in KC in '72 or '73. Memorial Hall. I recall the headliner being ShaNaNa, although that seems like a concert from an alternate universe. A incoherent pairing. Cars were covered in snow after the show, perfect for a high schooler that wanted to make out with his sweetie in igloo-like privacy. Jimmie's voice was truly amazing.
I also saw him in kansas city a couple of times. once at the uptown. how awesome his voice and music are. makes my heart go pitter patter. I'm an old lady now, up past my bed time but can't go till i hear all of these!
I thought I'd made comment on this one, but see I didn't. I think you were right about ShaNaNa.I just remembered it was someone I could care less about seeing and was planning to drive back as soon as Jimmie's opening set was over. Not leaving until midnight and driving back for 7 hours to Columbia was a real trip.
I started at Oakville and ended up at Mehlville Sr. High. When Napster was around and free, I connected with so many St. Louisans because of K-SHE classics...I was living in Phoenix at the time and was so nostalgic for St. Louis music that it was so much fun finding people, some of whom I actually went to school with.
i'm sitting here with tears streaming down my face. this music was such an integral part of my life when i was a teenager that it feels like coming home, just hearing this. thank you so much for posting it. i'm moved beyond words to be able to have it in my life again. jewel
My wife and I caught Jimmie a couple times at The Shaboo Inn in Mansfield, CT, in 1976 and '77. Shortly after acquiring the InterNet in 1996, she 'searched' for Jimmie, and ended learning of his passing and, then contacting his former bass player, who told her of Sony holding the rights to Jimmie's music, as well as telling her that Jimmie felt that the Shaboo gigs were some of his best, and enlisting her support in convincing Sony to release the "One Night" cd(?).
Lemme correct myself: The Shaboo Inn concert was released as "An Evening With Jimmie Spheeris" by Rain Records in 2000, and is no longer available. The Shaboo Inn is/was located in Mansfield, CT....within a few hundred yards of Willimantic, CT.
I spent a year in the Bay Area asking for it, and no one could find it in their catalog because they thought I was asking for I Love You. Finally we figured out what was going on (for some reason, for a quarter of a century I failed to recognize the homophone), and I was able to get two of the Rain Records CDs before the morons from Sony screwed up everything for everybody.
As life would have the early 1970's found me in the Army at Ft.Riley Ks, this is when I found out about Jimmie and had the good fortune to see him in concert at a small theatre in Kansas City Kansas. An awesome and unforgettable show.
fireandiron 3 months ago
I saw him In the late 70's or early 80's in the old Broadway theater in Kansas City, My old and Dear Friend and Radio Jock From KBEY, Art Hadley in Kansas City Turned me onto Him While I was Still in High School. I wore out a couple of copies of "Isle Of View" (or as It sounds phonetically "I'll Love You") If I ever Run Across a CD you can bet I'll Scarf it up. Rest in Peace Jimmie.
sliderbox 6 months ago
He is on my list of favorites and I know you have to admit some of you forgot how good he was.
DAVWAVE 7 months ago
Almost wore my album out sharing it with others; when it was available I bought the CD to replace it, which is still in my car for frequent listening. I look for music this wonderful currently & cannot find it. We were, and are, blessed to have Jimi;s music in our lives.
avoiceforpeace 8 months ago
Many years ago, in the 1970's I saw him at Stephen's College in Columbia, MO. The cost of the concert was $3 or $4 dollars. The Dragon is Dancing album had been released and he did songs from it and Isle of View. He danced during much of the concert. The music and dancing was truly beautiful, such a wonderful experience. I don't believe I've ever been the same since.
rebeccasuehale 8 months ago
A love album heads & shoulders above the rest ~ beautiful.
Thanks.
steelyman08 10 months ago
My favorite Jimmy song is " I'm so lonesome I could cry." It's amazing.
mochaman15 11 months ago
Hey guys...I have seen Jimmie 9 times and as I have gotten older I really appreciate his impact on music even more...I think Jimmie would have loved that he has picked up new listener long after his passing....I have been playing his music for years and still battle to reach his subtlety....he had such a beautiful way of expressing his music..and I believe that't why we're still here listening...always makes my heart feel good to listen.....best wishes to all of you....
pistolp01 1 year ago 2
I got to see Jimmie in concert twice in Oklahoma. Just him and his D35. The man was amazing, powerful, gentle,...unique. If only he had stayed true to his talent and vision and not been influenced by commercial phonies. Still,, treasure what we had in the beginning.
wlftone 1 year ago
Happy 61st birthday, Jimmie (November 5 1949 - July 4 1984). Miss ya, love ya, see you again some day. xo - am (online at The Jimmie Spheeris Memorial Gallery).
art101tv 1 year ago
I saw him many times in Gainesville, FL....he was so great.....
soulofme1954 1 year ago
Simply amazing, so peaceful, relaxing & so enthralling. Jimmie was often so touching of the heart,creative & yet so appealing. Fondly remembered. :)
1856gazoo 1 year ago
The song I am the Mercury is perfect. It touched my heart and soul. Jimmie was gone WAY too soon.
lesstrat01 1 year ago 2
Amazing song and artist. I heard it late at night inTulsa the first time in the 70's. I'm a musician, and it brought tears to my eyes. One of the few perfect songs.
lesstrat01 1 year ago 2
Sooo pretty.....very nice!
DejaVuSu 1 year ago
SOMEWHERE Out there is some video of Jimmie! Wish it would show up.
inatizzy2 1 year ago 4
My ex-husband and I sang "I Am The Mercury" on our first date! He had a Martin 12 string, and well - the rest is history....... Jimmy, we miss you!
saninpanama 1 year ago
This cat was way ahead of his time. I had this LP in 1975; beautiful music. There was finally a remaster / re-release of this cd in 2010. His sister is Penelope Spheeris, the movie director.
Guiseppe2548 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
This is the greatest unknown album of all time.
1pt21jigawatt 1 year ago
This is the greatest unknown album ever.
1pt21jigawatt 1 year ago
I was VERY fortunate to have seen Jimmie from the front row in a magnificent solo concert at Central Missouri Statue University (Now UCM) at Warrensburg Missouri in either 1981 or 1982. I remember the opening act was a solo piano player who imitated Elton John to a "t". I want to say his first name was Alan. Jimmie was in rare form -- laughing uncontrollably at times (uh-huh!) and the show was BEAUTIFUL. Thanks buddy -- we still love you!
Tropico2009 2 years ago
this guy was so great we lose so many too soon
will any one post Long Way Down ? its one of his best god give you peace Jimmie
unkleabe55 2 years ago
Yes, lottakarma, the CD restoration project could not have happened without Johnny. YT won't allow me to post a link here... but if you Google "Jimmie Spheeris Memorial Gallery" you can visit the site... click "Johnny Pierce Memorial Wing" for some good stories and pics, including a great story by Johnny about how he and Jimmie first met.
art101tv 2 years ago
What year was this? I found Jimmie in about 1974-75.
DAVWAVE 2 years ago
1971
Beadbud5000 2 years ago
I bought Isle of View when it first came out in the 70s. I kept it for a really long time but lost it many years ago when my home was broken into and trashed. The Nest is my all time favorite song of his. His voice carried so much emotion and the words in his music were magic. Thank you so much for making all this available to his die hard fans.
darkenwalddragon 2 years ago 2
This has been flagged as spam show
Interested fans can watch a new Jimmie video on my YouTube channel... from Jimmie's final album. Jimmie Spheeris: Coming Back for More.
art101tv 2 years ago
I was lucky enough to buy Isle Of view cd from Rain records. Its one of my MOST cherished cd's. Have the record too!
inatizzy2 2 years ago
It used to hurt me to hear idiots at Moody Blues concerts, when Jimmie was warming up for them, who would yell in the middle of his songs, "rock and roll!" Obviously not Moodies' fans. These two songs are his best in my opinion. I love this album. This and Dragon is Dancing are masterpieces.
wretchedhyena 2 years ago 2
Just by chance did I look on youtube to find a vague memory from 37 years years ago. Some music has a way to magically secure a permanent home in the brain even if you can't bring it forward until you hear it again. This artist left his work in my head for all these years and the feelings poured out upon hearing his masterpieces.
chubaca1029 2 years ago 3
do you hear joni mitchell and laura nyro in jimmie's music, perhaps even todd rundgren? it's not that i'm denying the unique beauty of his work and his earliest lyrics and themes were particularly individual, but i know as a composer, that particularly within the popular song idiom, we don't exist in a vacuum.
i probably never thought that jimmie minded that i did play his songs, art101tv, as i always did my best ... ;)
stkmce 2 years ago 3
Joni and Laura and Todd... and Jackson Browne, too... and so many more... they knew and loved Jimmie's work as much as he did theirs. On Jimmie's final album he said, "you must be laughing somewhere."
art101tv 2 years ago
All I know is that J.B loved Jimmies music and thats how he got his start, kinda, Listen to the words of Jackson Browne in his song :Baracades of Heaven" "Jimmie found his own sweet voice and won that free guitar"
inatizzy2 2 years ago
Jimmie and Joni were friends... I have photos of Joni stopping by the studio when Jimmie was making "Ports of the Heart" -- my all-time favorite Jimmie album. Jimmie and Laura were also friends. They shared an apartment in NY in the early days. I don't know if Jimmie ever met Todd, but I bet they'd have had lots of music to share. Jimmie and Jackson Browne were also childhood friends. Jackson contributed backing vocals on "Ports of the Heart."
art101tv 2 years ago 2
And did you know joey larsen by chance? I went to school with him and was a good friend of mine. We partied, He plyaed music, I listened and loved it. He was with Jimmie after Isle Of view, Oh And i do Have a cd from rain records,, Isle of View!
inatizzy2 2 years ago
I akso have the the record too. Record? whats that? LOL
inatizzy2 2 years ago
Never met Joey in person, but did a radio interview with him and the late Johnny Pierce (Jimmie's longtime bass player who helped found the Jimmie CD restoration project) way back in 2000. Cheers.
art101tv 2 years ago
@art101tv I remember Johnny and Joey doing a radio interview here in OKC... I actually got to talk to Joey. MAN, Been a LONG time but was good to talk to him. I had to ask about his and I's good friend Lenny Walker who was also a gifted musician. He is around, all I know. Would love to hear from him too.
inatizzy2 2 years ago
don't tell jimmie, ; ) , but i used to play at least one, or two of his songs wherever i did my very early solo gigs ...
thanks a whole lot, rbassmanw !
stkmce 2 years ago
I don't think Jimmie would mind. He'd probably be glad to know that his life and work made an impact. Jimmie's work will eventually find the place in history it so richly deserves.
art101tv 2 years ago
I hope everyone who watches this YouTube page visits the Jimmie memorial site. Google the words "Jimmie Spheeris" to get there... or point your browser at jimmiespheeris (dot) com
art101tv 2 years ago 3
Please Everyone! Visit Jimmie's memorial web page! It is truly an excellent site, The most definitive page on Jimmie's music and life.
rbassmanw 2 years ago 2
Thanks, rbassmanw. Since you use the cover art for "Isle of View" at the beginning of your video, your visitors may find the restoration of that artwork (pixel by pixel) interesting. Visit the "more photos and art" link from Jimmie's home page to learn more about the process.
art101tv 2 years ago
U got that right my friend... One of the underdogs who never got recognized as a great. STILL great to me .Thanx for posting
inatizzy2 2 years ago 6
this is wonderful , thank you for this, his music is timeless
Yofikitty 2 years ago 2
Still love him 30 years later.
jhr459 2 years ago
Thanks to all of Jimmie's fans who participated in the effort to have this wonderful album re-released on CD a couple of years ago. Thanks to Ron for posting it here! Mercury is still one of my favorites.
chaliceguard 2 years ago
I was lucky enough to see Jimmy Spheeris in Oklahoma City in 1972 or 1973, ... and was absolutely blown away by this performing talent. A short career and tragic end, but a legacy of great composition and performance. A definite 'must' for those who want to know the music of the 70's. "... Mercury" still draws me almost forty years later. Thanks, Jimmy.
Terramarque 2 years ago 2
I had never heard of Jimmy Spheeris until I happened to get the chance to see him in concert back in the 70's. He was the lead in act at a Kansas concert. The venue was small and he was absolutely terrific...immedately bought Isle of View and have always loved his music. This artist in my mind is very underated . Altho Isle of View is hard to find now, I will always recommend it to my fellow music lovers.
cwbydon 2 years ago 3
I also listened to Jimmie back when he was making records, never saw him in concert, but sure liked what he did. He sort of falls in the same category as Nick Drake; a guy who got no respect...until well after his death. Maybe this will happen for Jimmie. This is timeless stuff and deserves to be heard.
fadguru 2 years ago 2
There is a funny song by Richard Thompson with a line that says " Now that he's dead he's finally making a living". Nick had a little more commercial success after his demise. Jimmie certainly deserves it.
rbassmanw 2 years ago
very underrated artist.
Blaze936 3 years ago 2
Honestly, I have fairly decent copes of both Isle of view and The original Tapdancing Kid on CD and LP, and to my ears, the LP beats the crap out of the CD.....there's just an edge on the CD that is not there on the CD. The CD also sounds and looks compressed when I look at the waveform.
turntablesrock 3 years ago
i put it on cd too! love to listen to it when I go to sleep. i keep my LP forever! Here in the Netherlands Jimmie was not known at all. There were only a few LP's sold overhere, so my sister ordered one from California..
treintjefop 2 years ago
I just got a 2 CD set.......Isle of View and the Original Tap Dancing Kid for less than $20 on Amazon. Just great.
tdonnbeendehr 3 years ago 2
Love Jimmy Spheeris, one of far too many who've left us too soon......
StevenCharlesJazz 3 years ago 2
My first LP came from my cousin's collection in Mexico. I really don't know how he got the album in the early 70's.
I exchanged a priceless set of recordings from the Beatles for Isle of View. My second LP, Dragon is Dancing, was added in California 15 years later. The rest were aquired in the small record shops of the East and West Village in New York City in the past 10 years. I hope I'm able to get my first CD recording soon.
Thanks for the tips.
coaragdlm 3 years ago
To all Fans Listeners and Readers,
Is there any place I could get the 'new' CD's from Jimmie?
My LP's are totally worn out. Imagine, I've been playing them since the 70's and moved them with me around the world.
I'm afraid to play them anymore. I can't afford more scratches on them.
I had transfered them onto tapes but it's just not the same.
Please advise....
With all my gratitude,
THANK YOU FOR SHARING BEAUTY!
coaragdlm 3 years ago
Coaragdlm,
On Amazon the album runs 140.00 but I just picked up another lp on ebay for 8.00 and a cd there for 19.00 that includes a second cd.
Lu
LuMcInturff 3 years ago
Hey LuMcInturff,
Thanks for the tip. I'll check Amazon and Ebay to see what I can get.
I rarely go into those sites. I like to support the local businesses. But, I guess there's no choice. Got to go corporate for this time.
C'est la Vie!
Thanks so much.
coaragdlm 3 years ago
coaragdlm 3 years ago
...
I have been bought, I have been sold in the city
I've dined with the demons and I drank of their fear
but you, you have known and waited in silence
come cradle my heart in a homecoming tear
and we are the mercury - light of the morning
looking for shelter in this thunder and this rain
and he like some windmill weaves light where its storming
his love like a potion for the hunger and the pain
....
coaragdlm 3 years ago
OH YEAH
inatizzy2 3 years ago
....
let it rain - let it rain
let it rain on the mountain
let it rain
Jimmie Spheeris, 1971
coaragdlm 3 years ago
coaragdlm 3 years ago
...
and weave your beauty
fire lacing thru me
trip the light and know
that I am waiting for you
unlock the treasure of stolen pleasure
breathe in the light that blinds the pain that we once knew
wake me
take me
...
coaragdlm 3 years ago
come to me now - dove on your shoulder
white flame of love burns on your breath
...
I am ready for flight
oh my wings are so ripe
come wake me
take me from the nest
from the nest
Jimmie Spheeris, 1971
coaragdlm 3 years ago
....
here he was, singing for me once again ...come craddle my heart...
years had past and the sounds of those magical words are embeded forever in my mind, my heart, my soul.
I think I'm ready, take me from the nest....
and I promise we'll be the mercury, the light of the morning....
coaragdlm 3 years ago
oopps, once again! :
cradle
embedded
coaragdlm 3 years ago
come craddle my heart....
take me from the nest....
let it rain out the mountain...
I vividly remember those words, it was the early 70's coming out of my cousin's record player...in a remote place in Mexico. My early fascination with those beautiful words and the soulful sounds of his voice made a big impact on my life at the age of 10. Almost 20 years later and still in search of the origin of those words I heard an eco at a beach in California....
coaragdlm 3 years ago
Errata:
cradle
echo
Sorry. I was so exited to hear Jimmie again,
Mea Culpa Domines
coaragdlm 3 years ago
Wow,
I'm in blissful heaven!!!!
coaragdlm 3 years ago
A god sent. Saw him at the boomer in Norman OK in the 70's. Was my first concert. One of a kind...thanks for posting him
iamthemercury 3 years ago
I found Isle of View in the used cd section of my local music store for $8!!!! I about had a heart attack! Needless to say I grabbed that puppy and brought it home. Sometimes life is really good :)
CaffieneMan 3 years ago 5
I miss browsing the old record bins! Jimmie was and is a gem to be found!
rbassmanw 3 years ago
As a confused young youth in Syracuse N.Y. in the early 70's, I remember this song ( Mercury..)pulling me out of a near suicidal funk and giving me hope for the future...Almost 40 years later and it still does..a great memory ( now, at least...) and a great post; He was truly visionary.
ed4music 3 years ago
I love him too and he was a definitly a source of great solace then.I was surprised that when I first listened to this song after about 35 years,I knew all of the lyrics-they came back to me like a warm blanket.
jhr459 3 years ago 2
Nov 5th....Happy Birthday Jimmie
scarypowers 3 years ago
I happened to have a great pristine LP copy of this from the 70's when I was in school, which I digitized, but I was trying out the depth of Amazon's MP3 library, and of all things they actually had the entire album!!!! Actually has less surface noise than my LP, so it must be from the Master tapes... It's so great to hear Jimmie again!
jgcampbell59 3 years ago
I just did the same thing about a month ago. I have two copied of the LP, but it's quite crackly and a pain to only 20 minutes before flipping the album. I bought the MP3 (whole album) from Amazon. It's a perfect album (in a class with just a handful).
jd080657 3 years ago
wake me....take me....nobody ever took this album from me, easily overlooked thank god!
spotbelly 3 years ago
Thanks so much. I have an original LP from 30+ years ago when I was in college... So scratched up. Thanks much for this clean version.
darkbarguitar 3 years ago
THIS IS THE BEST OF THE BEST.
Levoy1 3 years ago 2
He was magic in the 70's. I love it. What a great song for a romatic evening.. YOU YOUNGer PEOPLE SHOULD TRY THIS. SATISFACTION GUARANTEED.
Levoy1 3 years ago 2
Thank you man, this is truly a great gift....... His music is so sublime, and it's been so long since I've heard him.
Souleros 4 years ago 2
Too bad he died, he would have been rediscovered. The music is too lovely.
DAVWAVE 4 years ago 2
For lost love everywhere. Too much rush. Bobby phillips for Lou E.
Levoy1 4 years ago
My faVORITE ALL TIME SONG. AND i'VE PLAYED/OWNED COPIES OF MANY!
Levoy1 4 years ago
Glad to find "I am the Mercury"....this song and the album came across all the turntables in my life back in the day......
rtsryder 4 years ago
Just takes hearing Jimmies music once to fall in love with it. So wonderful!
rbassmanw 4 years ago
One of the best albums of all time that no one has ever heard...I'm glad I discovered Jimmie's music 34 years ago..rbassmanw, you are the best man, everytime I search for my favorite music I seem to find you...THANKS, wish we had some video of Jimmie back in the day!
JungleRon 4 years ago
Thanks JungleRon, If there is its probably locked away in Sony vaults? Really glad you like. I never get tired of listening to his music.
rbassmanw 4 years ago
I am not sure, but there was a law suit between sony and rain records. I never was clear on how the ruling went. I, like you, would asume sony has got their greedy hands on it in someway.
I wish Derek Shulman record company or Cuneiform records or any record company with any money could buy back the rights to release his music again. I have heard that some down load sites has some tunes avail. I do not know if they are technically legal.
Beadbud5000 4 years ago
who is on piano? drums ect. This song is magical.
DAVWAVE 4 years ago
That's Jimmie on piano; he plays it exactly like you hear it on the studio album.
huston3 2 years ago
Thanks for posting Jimmie Spheeris's The Nest and I am the Mercury. I love this album
MoodiesFan 4 years ago 2
Glad you like for sure!
rbassmanw 4 years ago
I still have Isle of View on vinyl. I worked at a little backwater radio station in Delta, Colorado and found "I am the Mercury" on a promotional record tossed in the back room. Played it, liked it, bought the album & played that on the air, too. I hope our listener liked it enough to buy it. Thanks for putting this on. Gonna listen to the other parts now.
olytanis 4 years ago 2
Got to see him play a time or two.
Little secret. These albums were magical. Had an uncanny ability to make pretty girls drop trou and jump my (never really attractive) bones. Don't know why, don't know how. I was just barely smart enough to pile Jimmie's albums on the turntable and open a bottle of wine. The music did the rest of it.
Thanks, Jimmie. I owe you dude.
texascarl 4 years ago 2
Omigod I haven't heard this music in 20 years. I got turned on to Jimmie as a student at the University of Kansas and spent many bleary nights of paralysis listening to this amazing music. This is the exact album I remember having -- singing along while wandering through the snow. Wow ... thank you!
bebopbetty 4 years ago 3
I first heard his music in California (on record) in 1971...has been my favorite since then..have 2 vinyl Dagon Is Dancing LPs. I am so thankful for this posting and recognition of Jimmie...validates a lot for me, that others see who he was also.
DoowahDiatribe 4 years ago
all i can say is THANK YOU - i have everyCD now and love this man with my heart and soul as so many of us do ! This cd and the Dragon is dancing , TREASURE !
proudprogressiveTG 4 years ago 3
Who produced this and I wonder how big it got on FM. I know there was tremendous competition at that time.
DAVWAVE 4 years ago
It is interesting how what you are doing at the time affects how a song or certain music makes you feel.
Music and association of thought. It just locks in some memories, and what a lovely singer Jimmie was, getting this on you tube was past due. Thanks,
DAVWAVE 4 years ago
Very True! I'm past due for pt.5
rbassmanw 4 years ago
This music should touch anyone, who is human and reasonalby civilized. Lovely.
DAVWAVE 4 years ago
Did anyone ever respond to youe request? I have it on CD from Rain records
inatizzy2 4 years ago
all i can say is "thank you".
ilikethecoldair 4 years ago
It's a good thing the 1970s have learned to keep their secrets. O the fine times we had listening to Jimmie's music! "...looking for shelter in this thunder and rain..."
GothamGayGuy 4 years ago 2
You can download much of Jimmie's music from Musicmatch, MusicNow, etc. I got Isle of View for $9.99. Also, check out the website which is his name, for more info about Jimmie (not allowed to post URLs here).
pamelapy 4 years ago 3
Also check rainrecords dot com
The web site by his fans. It is archive.
Beadbud5000 4 years ago 2
jimmiespheeris dot com
pamelapy 4 years ago 2
Glad you like! Jimmie Fans Unite!
rbassmanw 4 years ago
by the way, did any of you fans grow up in st. louis? these songs were kshe classics, the greatest station EVA...
dexi39 4 years ago
was driving along Big Bend Blvd when I Am The Mercury played, and I had to pull the car over to listen, I was so moved. Got to see him an a KC concert; he was the opening act for someone (I think it was Hall & Oates). So many of his fans came; we had him do encore after encore until they gave up and we got him until midnight. Greatest concert ever!
huston3 3 years ago 2
Hello huston3. I saw JS in KC in '72 or '73. Memorial Hall. I recall the headliner being ShaNaNa, although that seems like a concert from an alternate universe. A incoherent pairing. Cars were covered in snow after the show, perfect for a high schooler that wanted to make out with his sweetie in igloo-like privacy. Jimmie's voice was truly amazing.
imartemus 3 years ago
I also saw him in kansas city a couple of times. once at the uptown. how awesome his voice and music are. makes my heart go pitter patter. I'm an old lady now, up past my bed time but can't go till i hear all of these!
jrobbieo 3 years ago
I thought I'd made comment on this one, but see I didn't. I think you were right about ShaNaNa.I just remembered it was someone I could care less about seeing and was planning to drive back as soon as Jimmie's opening set was over. Not leaving until midnight and driving back for 7 hours to Columbia was a real trip.
huston3 2 years ago
iNDEED I did. Where'd U go to high school? (Southwest).
huston3 2 years ago
I started at Oakville and ended up at Mehlville Sr. High. When Napster was around and free, I connected with so many St. Louisans because of K-SHE classics...I was living in Phoenix at the time and was so nostalgic for St. Louis music that it was so much fun finding people, some of whom I actually went to school with.
dexi39 2 years ago
Francis Howell, '73.
KSHE and KDNA were treasures that made me sorry for less hip cities.
Ever see Jake Jones? Billy Peek?
I moved to KC, and was in folk rock land after. the major rock station became the all Free Bird venue.
I stopped listening to radio.
RanjObscure 2 years ago
yeah, dexi--southwest high, class of '70.
huston3 2 years ago
i'm sitting here with tears streaming down my face. this music was such an integral part of my life when i was a teenager that it feels like coming home, just hearing this. thank you so much for posting it. i'm moved beyond words to be able to have it in my life again. jewel
dexi39 4 years ago 2
Long story but a friend in college turned me on to JImmie! You stick with me I'll be posting more!Jimmie fans unite!
rbassmanw 4 years ago
My wife and I caught Jimmie a couple times at The Shaboo Inn in Mansfield, CT, in 1976 and '77. Shortly after acquiring the InterNet in 1996, she 'searched' for Jimmie, and ended learning of his passing and, then contacting his former bass player, who told her of Sony holding the rights to Jimmie's music, as well as telling her that Jimmie felt that the Shaboo gigs were some of his best, and enlisting her support in convincing Sony to release the "One Night" cd(?).
TyteFystedFolkie 4 years ago 2
Lemme correct myself: The Shaboo Inn concert was released as "An Evening With Jimmie Spheeris" by Rain Records in 2000, and is no longer available. The Shaboo Inn is/was located in Mansfield, CT....within a few hundred yards of Willimantic, CT.
TyteFystedFolkie 4 years ago 2
Thanks so much!
rbassmanw 4 years ago
cool story.
DAVWAVE 4 years ago
It is so nice to hear that I am not alone! Thanks for your passions
Beadbud5000 4 years ago
Esmaria, The Nest, Let It Flow (The albums single)...
This music was a life gift from an incredible man. An a drunk took him away.
Beadbud5000 4 years ago 2
Isle of View translates to "I Love You", and Jimmie had a lot to give (rest his soul).
leasingpro 4 years ago
So True! I wish he wasn't a Shooting Star and was here a little longer! Thanks for your comment.
rbassmanw 4 years ago
I spent a year in the Bay Area asking for it, and no one could find it in their catalog because they thought I was asking for I Love You. Finally we figured out what was going on (for some reason, for a quarter of a century I failed to recognize the homophone), and I was able to get two of the Rain Records CDs before the morons from Sony screwed up everything for everybody.
huston3 3 years ago