|
Dan's first recording session took place in Jackson, Mississippi
at the famed Malaco Studios in 1966. A band, The New Generation,
based in his hometown of McComb, Mississippi, recorded two of Dan's
original songs. He was sixteen years old and thus began a life
long fascination with all facets of popular music.
The seeds were planted even earlier. He was named for a song
(Danny Boy) and, further, when Dan was three years old, Elvis Presley
came to McComb for a concert, appearing with Johnny Cash (August,
1954). Dan's father, Bill, had promoted the concert, through his
position at a local radio station. Dan remembers standing outside
an open window, holding his baby sitter's hand, as the excitement
of Elvis's music poured over him from the packed high school auditorium.
Throughout his years in McComb and, later, at the University
of Mississippi, Dan wrote songs, led a rock band and entertained
friends and family with his compositions. After graduation from
law school and a clerkship with a federal magistrate, Dan and his
bride, Adele, moved to Nashville so he could pursue his dream of
becoming a professional songwriter.
Success came quickly. In 1978, Eddie Rabbitt took Dan's song, "Hearts
on Fire" (Rabbitt, Stevens, Tyler) to number 2 on the country Billboard
charts.
However, with the responsibilities that came with a new son (William),
Dan was reluctant to give up the practice of law for the vagaries
of the music business. He struggled to balance the demands of practicing
law with his love for music. In 1982, the Oak Ridge Boys enjoyed
a major hit with Dan's song "Bobbie Sue" (Tyler, Tyler, Newton).
Dan left the law profession and established, with Adele as his
creative and business partner, Intuit Music Group, a music publishing
venture the couple has operated ever since.
Besides publishing Dan's songs, Intuit discovered and developed
songwriter/producer R.S.Field and the recording artist, Webb Wilder,
releasing Webb's underground classic, "It Came From Nashville," which
is still in print. During the decade of the 1980's, a tune Dan
co-wrote with Kix Brooks, "Modern Day Romance," became a number
1 record for The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. Other Tyler hits from
that era include "Twenty Years Ago" (Kenny Rogers) and "Baby's
Got a New Baby" (SKO). R.S. Field and Intuit also enjoyed a major
success with his song "Powerful Stuff" as recorded by the Fabulous
Thunderbirds and released on the multi-platinum soundtrack album, "Cocktail."
In 1989, needing a break from the demands of the music business,
Dan and his family, which now included a daughter, Elise, moved
to McComb. During his sabbatical, Dan rediscovered his ability
and desire to write songs by himself. While in McComb, he formed
his first band since high school and entertained locally. The family
returned to Nashville in 1991 with Dan committed to writing songs
closer to his heart.
In 1996, LeAnn Rimes recorded a song Dan had written for his
son while the family was in Mississippi. "The Light In Your Eyes" was
an early radio hit for LeAnn and was included on her classic album "Blue." The
great success of that song, which the Tylers also published, enabled
Dan to continue to work on his own terms.
Also in 1996, Eggman Publishing (Nashville) released Dan's novel,
Music City Confidential, an insider's fictional take on the colorful
country music industry. Despite limited promotion and distribution,
the book has sold over 2,000 hardback copies and remains an active
title in libraries around the country.
In the late nineties, Dan was deeply involved with his son's
band, Lifeboy, helping them secure a recording contract with Sire
Records. Although the album Lifeboy recorded for Sire was never
released and the band is inactive, William has continued in the
music business, establishing himself as an important young musician
and songwriter. William plays with the seminal Nashville group,
Lambchop, and also with David Berman and the Silver Jews.
Since 2003, Dan has recorded and released two albums produced
by Joe Pisapia (Guster). Dan's song and recording, "I Am The River," was
chosen as the theme song for tennesseewaterworks, a clean water
campaign. In 2006, soul legend Candi Staton recorded and released
Dan's song "When Will I?" - initially released on Dan's "I Hope" disc.
Also in 2006, Intuit will release two new albums by Dan, one
produced by R.S. Field (Billy Joe Shaver, Sonny Landreth, Webb
Wilder, Allison Moorer, Hayes Carll and many others) and another
produced by Mark Nevers (Lambchop, Calexico, Bobby Bare, Charlie
Louvin, Candi Staton and many others).
Dan's forty year love affair with music continues.
|