Alan Jackson’s career began with a long line of hit singles. “Chasin’ That Neon Rainbow,” “Someday,” and “Chattahoochee” helped make him a dominant force in country music throughout the 1990s. Jim McBride had writing credits on those songs and many others. Earlier this week, McBride passed away.
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Today (January 8), Jackson took to social media to pay tribute to his longtime friend and songwriting partner. “Jim was a good man and a great and genuine songwriter,” Jackson wrote in the post. “He understood country music and touched many with his songs. Jim and I wrote some of my favorite songs together, and I don’t know if my career would have ended up quite the same without his help, inspiration, and encouragement in my early years,” he added. “Thank you, Jim, rest in peace,” he concluded, addressing the late legend.
Jim McBride Co-Wrote Alan Jackson’s Signature Song
Alan Jackson released a long line of hits in the 1990s, but none had the staying power of “Chattahoochee.” It became his signature song and has been held up as a prime example of what made country songs from the decade special. Jackson wouldn’t have had the hit without Jim McBride.
While they finished the song together, McBride had the idea for the hit and took it to Jackson. “I knew about the Chattahoochee River, because I was raised in Alabama. Sydney Lanier was this poet who had written a poem called ‘Song of the Chattahoochee’ that was in high school literature books,” McBride recalled in an interview.
“I was sitting in my home office one day, and I had just read a book about the Chattahoochee. I started playing a little melody, then I got the first two lines of the song. By that time, Alan was a big star, so there was no more writing on 16th Avenue anymore–we wrote on the road,” he recalled.
Not long after coming up with the idea, McBride joined Jackson on tour. While on the bus, he showed him what he had. “I showed the song idea to him. I sang the first couple of lines, and he was all over it. We started working on it in Tallahassee, and we finished it the next afternoon in Thibodeaux, Louisiana,” he recalled. “We finished it before sound check, and he showed it to the band. They actually worked it up in sound check and performed it that night.” The rest, as they say, is history.
Featured Image by Terry Wyatt/WireImage
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