ABOUT TOM

Tom Heany is a songwriter and guitarist from the Hudson River Valley in New York. His songs call to mind the traditional music of the United States, the classic songs of the '30s and '40s, and the stories we tell when families get together.
Those stories, and the characters in them, are hard to forget. There's the cantankerous old soldier trying to explain himself to his grandson; the mysterious drifter who hints at love, vengeance and murder but offers no details; the favorite uncle who walks across the country and never comes back; and the old couple who like skinny-dipping. There are songs about love, too, especially the enduring, tested, life-long kind.
One important source of inspiration for Tom has been folk and traditional music. It's easy to hear the influence of writers like Woody Guthrie, Stan Rogers and Paul Brady in his blend of traditional melodies and well-told stories. His guitar style comes from players like Doc Watson and Mississippi John Hurt, but also from the songwriters who created American popular music in the first half of the twentieth century. They remain a big influence. Before turning his hand to songwriting, Tom spent years studying the songs of Jerome Kern, Rodgers and Hart, the Gershwins, Irving Berlin, Cole Porter and their contemporaries, and arranging them for solo guitar. He says, “For my guitar teacher, Myron Weiss, the songs from the '30s and '40s were his textbook. Most of what I know about harmony comes from playing those songs.”
His approach to writing lyrics leans heavily on two unlikely sources. “An English teacher in high school introduced me to PG Wodehouse through his novels. I inhaled his Bertie Wooster and Jeeves books. The characters all had distinct voices, of course, but Bertie's was the most distinct and he was the narrator, so everything was in a character's voice. There was a formality to the language that I loved. And there were so many phrases that were just exactly right. I absorbed as much of that as I could. I didn't learn about his career as a lyricist until much later.”
His other guide? Dick Clark. “I worked for an organization whose chairman of the board was Dick Clark, and I occasionally had to write things for him. I learned three things about writing from Dick, although he never put them into words. First, nobody wants to read the second page of a letter. Second, simpler is better. Third, most written documents can be improved by cutting. I'm not sure I stick to these ideas as often as I might, but he was still right about them.”
The result is a collection of songs that will may bring a smile, and may bring a tear, but will stay with you for a long time.
Those stories, and the characters in them, are hard to forget. There's the cantankerous old soldier trying to explain himself to his grandson; the mysterious drifter who hints at love, vengeance and murder but offers no details; the favorite uncle who walks across the country and never comes back; and the old couple who like skinny-dipping. There are songs about love, too, especially the enduring, tested, life-long kind.
One important source of inspiration for Tom has been folk and traditional music. It's easy to hear the influence of writers like Woody Guthrie, Stan Rogers and Paul Brady in his blend of traditional melodies and well-told stories. His guitar style comes from players like Doc Watson and Mississippi John Hurt, but also from the songwriters who created American popular music in the first half of the twentieth century. They remain a big influence. Before turning his hand to songwriting, Tom spent years studying the songs of Jerome Kern, Rodgers and Hart, the Gershwins, Irving Berlin, Cole Porter and their contemporaries, and arranging them for solo guitar. He says, “For my guitar teacher, Myron Weiss, the songs from the '30s and '40s were his textbook. Most of what I know about harmony comes from playing those songs.”
His approach to writing lyrics leans heavily on two unlikely sources. “An English teacher in high school introduced me to PG Wodehouse through his novels. I inhaled his Bertie Wooster and Jeeves books. The characters all had distinct voices, of course, but Bertie's was the most distinct and he was the narrator, so everything was in a character's voice. There was a formality to the language that I loved. And there were so many phrases that were just exactly right. I absorbed as much of that as I could. I didn't learn about his career as a lyricist until much later.”
His other guide? Dick Clark. “I worked for an organization whose chairman of the board was Dick Clark, and I occasionally had to write things for him. I learned three things about writing from Dick, although he never put them into words. First, nobody wants to read the second page of a letter. Second, simpler is better. Third, most written documents can be improved by cutting. I'm not sure I stick to these ideas as often as I might, but he was still right about them.”
The result is a collection of songs that will may bring a smile, and may bring a tear, but will stay with you for a long time.
And, by the way...
Tom also writes about practicing. Here's where to find out more:
ABOUT PRACTICING is Tom's practice-related web site. Full of good advice and deep thoughts (well, thoughts, at least) about what most musicians do most.
FIRST, LEARN TO PRACTICE is Tom's book about practicing. "...both simple and effective... a must for anyone who is serious about learning to play." Suitable for all musicians - professional, amateur, student or beginner - FIRST, LEARN TO PRACTICE can show you how to get the most pleasure, and the most progress, out of your practice time.
PRACTICING FOR PARENTS is an inexpensive guide to practicing for parents of beginning music students.
Tom's author page on Amazon.
ABOUT PRACTICING is Tom's practice-related web site. Full of good advice and deep thoughts (well, thoughts, at least) about what most musicians do most.
FIRST, LEARN TO PRACTICE is Tom's book about practicing. "...both simple and effective... a must for anyone who is serious about learning to play." Suitable for all musicians - professional, amateur, student or beginner - FIRST, LEARN TO PRACTICE can show you how to get the most pleasure, and the most progress, out of your practice time.
PRACTICING FOR PARENTS is an inexpensive guide to practicing for parents of beginning music students.
Tom's author page on Amazon.