Terri Sharp (March 24, 1948 – December 17, 2015) was an American songwriter and singer. While writing on

Music Row Music Row is a historic district located southwest of downtown Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Widely considered the heart of Nashville's entertainment industry, Music Row has also become a metonymous nickname for the music industry as a w ...

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

, Sharp's songs were recorded by many artists including

Don Mclean Donald McLean III (born October 2, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is best known for his 1971 hit song " American Pie", an eight-and-a-half-minute folk rock "cultural touchstone" about the loss of innocence of the early ...

and

Hank Williams Jr. Randall Hank Williams (born May 26, 1949), known professionally as Hank Williams Jr. or Bocephus, is an American singer-songwriter and musician. His musical style is often considered a blend of southern rock, blues, and country. He is the son of ...

She lived in Texas, composing and performing the majority of her work in Spanish.

Early career

Sharp's 1966 recording of her song "A Love That Will Last" stayed on the charts for three months in her hometown of

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

. She then moved to

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

in 1967 to record for White Cliff Records. There she met her arranger

Allen Toussaint Allen Richard Toussaint (; January 14, 1938 – November 10, 2015) was an American musician, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was an influential figure in New Orleans rhythm and blues from the 1950s to the end of the century, descri ...

, who became a lifelong friend.

The Nashville scene

Sharp did three tours of duty as a songwriter on

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

. During that time, she wrote for Bocephus Music and had the distinction of being the only writer that Hank Williams Jr. ever signed to his Bocephus publishing company. She then wrote for

Merle Kilgore Wyatt Merle Kilgore (August 9, 1934 – February 6, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and manager. Born in Chickasha, Oklahoma, he was raised in Shreveport, Louisiana. At the time of his death, he was the personal manager of Hank Wil ...

's Paradise Cove Music for two years, before signing on with

Acuff-Rose Acuff-Rose Music, Inc. was an American music publishing firm formed in 1942 by Roy Acuff and Fred Rose in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Acuff-Rose's honest behavior towards their writers set them apart from other music publishing firms ...

. Sharp was awarded a gold record for the song "

Wild Streak ''Wild Streak'' is the forty-first studio album by American musician Hank Williams Jr. It was released by Warner Bros. Records on June 21, 1988. "If the South Woulda Won" and "Early in the Morning and Late at Night" were released as singles. The a ...

", which she co-wrote with Hank Williams Jr. The song was also used as the title of Williams' 1987 album and tour. Around the same time, two of Terri's songs ("Eventually" and " You Can't Blame the Train") were recorded by Don Mclean for his 1987 album '' Love Tracks''. The latter reached No. 49 on the U.S. country charts in 1987 and is also featured on Mclean's 1993 compilation album '' Favorites and Rarities''. Sharp co-wrote the song "Old-Fashioned Broken Heart" with Donny Kees, which was recorded by

Lisa Stewart Lisa Stewart (born August 6, 1968) is an American country music and jazz artist, actress, and television host. In 1991, she signed to BNA Records (then known as BNA Entertainment), releasing her self-titled debut album that year. This album ...

on her self-titled 1993 album. In

's 2007 biography, Terri Sharp is referred to as "one of the most talented songwriters on the Nashville scene".

Recent activity

Sharp has hundreds of songs to her credit. She wrote and performed in the

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

area of Texas. The majority of her later work was composed and performed in Spanish, adding ever more depth to her intelligent, melodic songwriting and vocal style.

Discography

Albums featuring

* 1987: ''Wild Streak'' -

* 1987: ''Love Tracks'' -

* 1993: ''Favorites and Rarities'' - Don Mclean

Compositions

* 1966: "A Love That Will Last" * 1985: "Are You Looking for Me?" * 1986: "Sea of Cortez" * 1986: "Out of the Blue" * 1986: "Smokin' Gun" * 1987: "Stark Ravin' Crazy" * 1987: "The Piper's Song" * 1987: "Wild Streak" - co-written with Hank Williams Jr. (''

'') * 1987: " You Can't Blame the Train" - Don Mclean ('' Love Tracks'', '' Favorites and Rarities'') * 1987: "Eventually" - Don Mclean ('' Love Tracks'') * 1992: "Perfect Common Stone" * 1993: "Old-Fashioned Broken Heart" - co-written with Donny Kees * 1997: "Taken with You" - written about her friend Don Mclean and his wife

Compositions in Spanish

* 2000: "A la larga" * 2001: "Me andas buscando a mi?"

References

External links

Terri Sharp
on Myspace {{DEFAULTSORT:Sharp, Terri 1950 births Living people People from Houston American women country singers American women pop singers American country singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from Texas Country musicians from Texas 21st-century American women