On the first day of summer my post included a poem by Shel Silverstein. Victor S E Moubarak of Time For Reflections and The Christian Lounge left a comment on that post that in addition to prose and poetry, Shel Silverstein was also was a song writer, including the song "A Boy Named Sue", made famous by Johnny Cash.
I had no idea, but Victor's comment sent me down a rabbit hole of research on Shel Silverstein.
- I learned that some of his other well-known songs were Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show's "The Cover of "Rolling Stone" and "Sylvia's Mother, and "The Unicorn" by the Irish Rovers. His songs have been performed by Johnny Cash, Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show, the Irish Rovers, Bobby Bare, Emmylou Harris, Brenda Lee, Loretta Lynn, Marianne Faithfull, Waylon Jennings, and Kris Kristofferson.
- He was one of the leading cartoonists for Playboy magazine, and his work also appeared in many other magazines and newspapers.
- His comedy songs were often played on the Doctor Dimento show.
- And if being an author/poet/songwriter wasn't enough, he composed music for several films.
- He also wrote more than 100 one-act plays.
If Shel Silverstein hadn't died in 1999 I wonder what else could have been added to his list of accomplishments?
Five years ago today: Fun With The Families
Thanx for the mention, Kathy.
ReplyDeleteYes, Shell Silverstein was very talented. I forgot to mention his songs by Waylon Jennings, Bobby Bare and others.
God bless you.
You're right. Multi talented!
ReplyDeleteSo glad he shared his stories with the world. While in Ireland in a used book store, I bought one of his titles I'd never heard of: Uncle Shelby's ABZ. Hilarious.
ReplyDeleteI haven't heard of that one either.
DeleteI've never heard of this person before. Interesting.
ReplyDeleteDo you know the book "The Giving Tree", where an apple tree gives all of itself to a boy over many decades? That's Shel Silverstein.
DeleteWhen I was in grade school, my teacher would read Shel Silverstein’s poems to our class as a treat for getting our work done. We would howl with laughter at his funny poems and stories! I later learned of his other vast array of works, but Where the Sidewalk Ends and A Light in the Attic will always be my favorites! Thanks for shining a light on the brilliant Shel Silverstein!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome! What a cool grade school teacher you had.
DeleteWhat a talented man. Thank you for all this information. I've only known of his poems, which are so clever.
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome.
DeleteI love ALL those songs!
ReplyDeleteAfter Victor's original comment I had "A Boy Named Sue" stuck in my head. Then I learned about the Dr. Hook connection and "Sylvia's Mother" became my earworm.
DeleteI did not know all of that about Shel Silverstein! My kids loved his books when they were young. Funny you mentioned that song The Unicorn by the Irish Rovers. My husband loves to look up old songs, and he played that exact one this morning!
ReplyDeleteWhat a coincidence!
DeleteDefinitely multi-talented. Great songs!
ReplyDelete