Comedic Songwriter Jim Stafford and Time Life Digitally Release Nine of the Singer's Albums
Some of his greatest hits include "My Girl Bill," "Wildwood Weed," and "Spiders & Snakes."
By: Marissa Tomeo Apr. 01, 2022
Comedic songwriter Jim Stafford and Time Life have teamed up to digitally release nine of his albums on the funniest day of the year, April 1. Known for Top 10 hits such as "Spiders & Snakes," "Wildwood Weed," "My Girl Bill" and the fan-favorite, "Swamp Witch," Stafford is the rare writer whose talent transcends boundaries: the wordsmith (and multi-instrumentalist) has found success on both the pop charts and the small screen, where he was a regular and a script supervisor for The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour and hosted his own self-titled variety show in 1975.
"I didn't know I had that many albums. I guess I'm not as much of a fan of myself as I should be," laughs Stafford. "One thing I can tell you is that over the years I have discovered that my work is fun. Or maybe I should say fun is my work. Either one seems to be okay. But then again, I'm not sure it's ever really, honestly felt like work. I'll never understand how you can make a living having fun but it is possible."
"Jim Stafford's ability to transform words into pure entertainment - both in music and comedy - is second to none, as this collection of albums can attest to," adds Mike Jason, Time Life Senior Vice President, Live Entertainment. "The range of his talent is astounding, from his musicianship in 'Somewhere in Time' to his incomparable poetic wit in 'Spiders & Snakes' and beyond."
It's easy for his witty lyrics to take center stage in his songs, but it's Stafford's musicianship that shines through on the collection of albums. He's possibly the only musician to release a series of guitar albums and a harmonica album and a comedy album. "I don't think in my early days I was sitting around thinking I need a harmonica album. But every now and then I find something that seems to work for me pretty good and I'm grateful for that."
Stafford began his musical career in high school, performing in a band called the Legends alongside Gram Parsons, Kent "Lobo" Lavoie and Bobby Braddock, who would go on to become one on Nashville's top songwriters. Lobo produced Stafford's first Top 40 hit single, "Swamp Witch," in 1973, which was followed by three more Top 10 hits, "Spiders & Snakes," "Wildwood Weed" and "My Girl Bill." Shortly after, Stafford began working in television, hosting the summer series "The Jim Stafford Show" and later co-hosted "Those Amazing Animals" and hosted "Nashville on the Road" before working on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. He also ran and performed at The Jim Stafford Theatre in Branson, MO for 30 years.
About Time Life:
Time Life is one of the world's pre-eminent creators and direct marketers of unique CD and DVD collections and streaming audio and video content specializing in distinctive multi-media collections that evoke memories of yesterday, capture the spirit of today, and can be enjoyed for a lifetime. TIME LIFE and the TIME LIFE logo are registered trademarks of Time Warner Inc. and affiliated companies used under license by Direct Holdings Americas Inc., which is not affiliated with Time Warner Inc. or Time Inc.
Stream "Jim Stafford" HERE
Stream "Jim Stafford: Greatest Hits" (re-recorded versions of his hit songs) HERE
Stream "Don't Tell Mama I'm a Guitar Picker (She Things I'm Just in Jail)" HERE
Stream "New Deal" HERE
Stream "Double the Fun...Double the Jim (Live...in Branson)" HERE
Stream "Somewhere in Time" HERE
Stream "Plays Harmonica" HERE
Stream "Gospel Guitar" HERE
Stream "Guitar Gold" HERE
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