Darryl Worley

Artist Image: Darryl Worley

Biography

Through five albums and seventeen chart hits, Darryl Worley has produced one of the most impressive and wide-ranging catalogs in contemporary music. He has for ten years been a mainstay of modern country, a distinctive singer and first-rate songwriter whose music has chronicled life, love and the world situation with equal facility. He has topped the charts with singles including "I Miss My Friend," "Awful, Beautiful Life" and "Have You Forgotten?" which accomplished the feat for one, two and an incredible seven weeks respectively. He hit the Top 20 with the first three singles from his impressive major-label debut, Hard Rain Don't Last - "When You Need My Love," "A Good Day to Run" and "Second Wind" and followed with smashes like "If Something Should Happen," "I Just Came Back From A War" and the iconic "Tennessee River Run." Along the way, he has sold nearly two million albums, earned nominations for five major ACM and CMA awards, including "Song of the Year" and "Single of the Year," and has written songs for other major artists, including George Jones. Now, with the release of his sixth album, Sounds Like Life, Worley reasserts himself as one of country’s true creative forces. Sounds like Life showcases Worley as a songwriter of depth and passion and a singer whose versatility and believability have grown stronger through the years. The project is a microcosm of his life and career, with the sometimes rocky, sometimes triumphant road he’s traveled infusing every track, and it bears both the sense of detail and the universality we’ve come to expect from the 6’6“ hit-maker. The album is at once a reinvention and a return to the people and approach that marked Worley's dramatic entry into the national spotlight a decade ago. Sounds Like Life is a master storyteller’s take on modern life, a project that runs the gamut from show business itself ("Honkytonk Life") to hard-won wisdom ("You Never Know," "Nothing But Money"). It is a journey through love ("Best Of Both Worlds," "Everyday Love," "Tequila On Ice") and loss ("Slow Dancin’ With A Memory"), and from sensuality ("Messed Up In Memphis") to philosophy ("Doin’ What’s Right"). Worley jumped quickly back into the Top 20 with the single "Sounds Like Life To Me," a song as accessible as it is profound. Another of the album’s real high points is "Don't Show Up (If You Can't Get Down)," a groove song that attracted an all-star cast of participants including Jamey Johnson, Bill Anderson, Mel Tillis, John Anderson, Steve Harwell of Smashmouth, John Cowan of the New Grass Revival and Ira Dean. The album is at once a reinvention and a return to the people and approach that marked Worley’s dramatic entry into the national spotlight a decade ago. "I consciously made a decision I wanted this record to have the same kind of substance as my very first record," he says. "That album was pretty straightforward country and it had some really great songwriters’ songs on there well crafted, clever, but with substance. I also wanted something uplifting and fun, something that sounded different and had great grooves." Having left behind two record deals after a corporate restructuring and a label demise, he was free to, as he says, "wipe the slate completely clean." He told his new management team he wanted to use his own money to record a project with his road band and with two long-time friends Jim "Moose" Brown and Kevin "Swine" Grantt producing. "The guys play these songs every night," he says, "so it only made sense to go in the studio and cut the record just like we play on stage. And it worked. This is a group of people who have hung together for 15 years and there are no duds in there. They’re all very real people with one thing in mind make the best possible music, whether it’s songwriting, producing, or recording as an artist. I felt like we’d capture some cool stuff and that’s what happened. It meant a lot to us as friends to be able to do this, too." Outside the industry’s parameters or politics, he and that close cohort of musicians put together an album that reflects everything Worley does well. "We didn’t set out to make the record that would define me as an artist," he adds. "I said, ’Let’s just be more concerned about the music. We don't have anybody breathing down our neck. Let’s go in there and do what we always said we wanted do and just have fun, get all the guys together and when the moment’s right, let’s cut one and keep it.’" Photo of Darryl Worley Once the album was cut, Worley began meeting with labels and was about to sign a deal when James Stroud, who had signed him to his first deal a decade earlier, called and said he was launching a new label, Stroudavarious Records, with businessman/entrepreneur Ronnie Gilley. "Ronnie and James and I had been doing business together for eight or nine years," says Worley. "James taught me a lot of what I know about the music business. He and I had a lot of success together and a lot of fun together, and we had gotten to know each other inside and out. "I wanted a real partnership," he says. "That’s what we’ve got, and that’s why it’s working." Sounds Like Life launches the latest chapter in one of modern country music’s most amazing odysseys. It began in Hardin County, Tennessee, part of a three-state region where the elements of life included hard work, economic hardship, deep religious conviction and bootleg liquor. It paid to be tough and smart, and Worley was both. He was also musical his grandfather played old country and bluegrass on the banjo and his mother sang in church. Worley was drawn in both directions, balancing the hellion and the seeker as he grew up. Tall and athletic, Worley might have earned an athletic scholarship to college, but he broke his back playing basketball and lost that opportunity. Still, he earned a degree in biology with a minor in organic chemistry, playing music in honky-tonks and raising hell all the while. He continued playing as he worked in the chemical business and taught school for a year, torn between the pressure he felt to establish a secure career and his deep-seated need to pursue music. Finally, his preacher father helped him sort it out. "One day he said, ’If you’re still thinking about that music thing you better do it now’," says Worley, "’because if you don’t, you’ll be trapped by the obligation of the debt and the responsibilities that come with life.’ That was all I needed to hear." A gifted and hard-working songwriter, he signed a deal with Fame Publishing in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, to write songs for $150 a week. Years of playing bars and hard living made their way into his music, and artists like George Jones cut his early work. He was signed to Nashville’s EMI Publishing and in 1994 he made his way to Nashville. After half a decade of sometimes frustrating development deals, in 1999 he earned the label deal that moved his career into high gear. Worley has not wavered in his support for those who put their lives on the line for democracy It is telling that Worley was quick to turn his celebrity to good purpose. In 2002, he traveled to Afghanistan, Kuwait and Uzbekistan to entertain troops, and the experience was transforming. He wrote "Have You Forgotten?" and began a series of visits here and overseas, including to Iraq, to support those who wear their country’s uniform. He calls those trips "the best work I’ve done since I’ve been in this business. I’ve never done it for accolades or for publicity. I do it because I want to do it." Still, accolades have come. He has received the VFW’s Americanism Award and the USO’s Merit Award, and the Tennessee House of Representatives cited him for his contributions to country music. His experiences overseas helped spur him to launch major charitable efforts back home. "Coming off some of those trips really made me want to dig in and do more for my home area Savannah, Hardin County, that whole Tri-state area," he says. "My parents said, ’You need to remember where you come from,’ and the Darryl Worley Foundation became the way to do that." What began as a way to provide assistance to people who might not be able to afford insurance who faced catastrophic losses has expanded over time. His Tennessee River Run, a weeklong festival capped by several major concerts, has raised money for all kinds of projects, including medical facilities. "I’ve seen friends and family affected by cancer, and at one point I said, ’Can we do something here in the county to help some of them?’ We built this small outpatient chemotherapy wing on the Hardin County Medical Center and we were immediately overwhelmed by the people who just poured in there. They were literally in the hallways getting chemotherapy. Now we’re in the process of planning a cancer treatment center." Photo of Darryl Worley on a motorcycle For a man whose career single-mindedness and whose wild and restless streak once wrought havoc in his personal life, he has found more peace than ever since his marriage to his wife Kimberly and the birth of his daughter Savannah. "My wife and my child have put everything in perspective," he says. "I didn’t think it would ever happen to me. For once in my life I feel like I've got my priorities in order." That sense of perspective has only strengthened his music. His happiness has found its way onto Sounds Like Life, an album whose title is a summation of the reason for his popularity. "The songs I’d had really big success with are songs that are just a big chunk of reality or a day in the life of somebody," he says. "That's what people expect from Darryl Worley. ’Have You Forgotten?’ ’Awful, Beautiful Life,’ ’If Something Should Happen’ those songs are something somebody went through. It’s real. It’s not contrived, not made up, and there’s a difference. You hear songs every day where you say, ’I love that, but it's a little bit out there. It’s probably not a real thing.’ But this album is about reality. There’s some stuff about the family. There’s some stuff about the new baby. It’s got both really cool grooves and real life." Such songs have made Darryl Worley a vital part of the fabric of the modern musical landscape for a decade, and Sounds Like Life is convincing proof he will carry that position forward. .

Details

Item Name Item Details
Year Formed 1964
Number of Albums 27
Record Label
Website
Wikipedia Darryl Worley on Wikipedia
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Genres

Trivia

Darryl Worley Singer has released how many albums?

three

...Darryl Worley Singer Although Darryl Worley has only released three albums, he has already been nominated for three Country Music Awards. With a style...
What classic country artists does Worley's style harken back to?

Merle Haggard and George Jones

... a style that hearkens back to classic country artists like Merle Haggard and George Jones , he appeals to both traditional country audiences and young...
Worley's grandfather sang songs written by whom?

his brothers, uncles, and cousins

... piano and sang, and his grandfather sang songs written by his brothers, uncles, and cousins . His mother's father made moonshine and ran a nightclub c...
What instrument did Worley play when he was five?

harmonica

...r made moonshine and ran a nightclub called Oakdale. I started playing harmonica when I was five because of him, Worley wrote in his website biography...
What did his mother's father make moonshine and run a nightclub called?

Oakdale

... cousins. His mother's father made moonshine and ran a nightclub called Oakdale . I started playing harmonica when I was five because of him, Worley wr...
When did Worley begin to play the guitar?

nine

...his grandfather's encouragement, he began to play the guitar when he was nine . His brothers also played and sang, and the three boys sang in church, w...
Who encouraged Worley to play?

his grandfather

...as five because of him, Worley wrote in his website biography. With his grandfather 's encouragement, he began to play the guitar when he was nine. His...
What is Worley's latest release?

Second Wind: Latest and Greatest

...pt under wraps. The alternate sides are both on display in Second Wind: Latest and Greatest , a project that mixes the traditionalcountry history he es...
What Alabama hotbed did Worley get his start in?

Muscle Shoals

...blished in Nashville with the ragged soul thats deep in the bones of Muscle Shoals , a musical Alabama hotbed where Worley got his start. The area host...
Who produced Second Wind?

Billy Lawson

...st kind of feeling our way around in the dark. Produced by guitarist Billy Lawson (Sammy Kershaw, Mo Pitney), Second Wind was built with a relaxed atm...
Worleys wife, Kimberly, gave birth to a girl in what year?

2008

...he years, Worley allows. Worleys wife, Kimberly, gave birth to a girl in 2008 , and the weight of the fatherdaughter relationship was greater than anyt...
What did Worley pump into the new stuff?

ultrahuman attitude

...ped bring the hits forward to their 2017 sound while pumping some ultrahuman attitude into the new stuff as well. So many of those tracks and grooves ...
What is Darryl Worley's birth sign?

Scorpio

.... He celebrates his birthday on 31 Oct every year and his birth sign is Scorpio . Darryl Worley Height Worley stands at a height of 6 feet 6 inches (1....
On what date does Worley celebrate his birthday?

31 Oct

...orn and brought up in Memphis, Tennessee. He celebrates his birthday on 31 Oct every year and his birth sign is Scorpio. Darryl Worley Height Worley s...
How tall is Worley?

6 feet 6 inches

... sign is Scorpio. Darryl Worley Height Worley stands at a height of 6 feet 6 inches (1.98 meters). However, details regarding his actual height and ot...
Where was Worley born?

Memphis, Tennessee

... American country singersongwriter who was born and brought up in Memphis, Tennessee . He celebrates his birthday on 31 Oct every year and his birth si...
What religion did his father belong to?

Methodist

...re currently not publicly available. It is known that his father was a Methodist preacher while his mother sang in the church choir. He experienced hi...
Where did his mother sing?

in the church choir

...wn that his father was a Methodist preacher while his mother sang in the church choir . He experienced his childhood along with his sibling brothers; T...
Who were Darryls sibling brothers?

Tommy and Barry Worley

.... He experienced his childhood along with his sibling brothers; Tommy and Barry Worley . However, our efforts to find out more about Darryls family cam...
What two subjects did he receive his degree in?

biology and chemistry

...s information is available. As a result, he received a degree in biology and chemistry . Further information regarding his education in detail is curre...
What is the name of the single that Darryl had on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart?

Awful, Beautiful Life

... on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart including the 1 single Awful, Beautiful Life . According to Astrologers, Darryl Worley's zodiac sign is Scorp...
What was his father's profession?

Methodist preacher

...ologers, Darryl Worley's zodiac sign is Scorpio. His father was a Methodist preacher and his mother sang in the church choir. Worley attended the Univ...
What did Darryl work in before pursuing country music?

chemical industry

...ama and earned a degree in biology and chemistry. He worked in the chemical industry prior to pursuing country music, and wrote for FAME Studios in Mu...
Where was Darryl Worley born?

October 31, 1964

... Savanna with his wife Kimberley Perkins. Darryl Wade Worley (born October 31, 1964 ) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Signed to Dre...
What is the name of his daughter?

Savanna

...ote for FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. He has a daughter named Savanna with his wife Kimberley Perkins. Darryl Wade Worley (born October 31, ...
Who is an American country music singer and songwriter?

Darryl Wade Worley

... He has a daughter named Savanna with his wife Kimberley Perkins. Darryl Wade Worley (born October 31, 1964) is an American country music singer and s...
When was Worley signed to DreamWorks Records Nashville?

1999

...y music singer and songwriter. Signed to DreamWorks Records Nashville in 1999 , Worley released four albums for the label: Hard Rain Dont Last (2000), ...
How many albums did Worley release for the label?

four

...gwriter. Signed to DreamWorks Records Nashville in 1999, Worley released four albums for the label: Hard Rain Dont Last (2000), I Miss My Friend (2002...
What year was Hard Rain Dont Last released?

2000

...amWorks Records Nashville in 1999, Worley released four albums for the label: Hard Rain Dont Last ( 2000 ), I Miss My Friend (2002), Have You Forgotten?...
How long has he been a mainstay of modern country?

ten years

...He has for ten years been a mainstay of modern country, a distinctive singer and firstrate songwriter whose music has chronicled life, love and the wo...
How many major ACM and CMA awards has he earned?

five

...g the way, he has sold nearly two million albums, earned nominations for five major ACM and CMA awards, including Song of the Year and Single of the Y...
Who has written songs for other major artists?

George Jones

...f the Year, and has written songs for other major artists, including George Jones . Sounds like Life showcases Worley as a songwriter of depth and pass...
How many hits did he have?

66

...oth the sense of detail and the universality weve come to expect from the 66 hitmaker. The album is at once a reinvention and a return to the people a...
Sounds Like Life is a master storytellers take on what?

modern life

...light a decade ago. Sounds Like Life is a master storytellers take on modern life , a project that runs the gamut from show business itself (Honkytonk ...
What song did Worley release that jumped quickly back into the Top 20?

Sounds Like Life To Me

...ht). Worley jumped quickly back into the Top 20 with the single Sounds Like Life To Me , a song as accessible as it is profound. The album is at once a...
How is the song Sounds Like Life To Me?

a song as accessible as it is profound

...into the Top 20 with the single Sounds Like Life To Me, a song as accessible as it is profound . The album is at once a reinvention and a return to the...
Who influenced Worley's music?

George Jones and Merle Haggard

...nly to return to the stage in the late 2010s. Influenced by George Jones and Merle Haggard , Worley's music put a touch of modern sheen on songs rooted...
What was Worley's 2003 hit song?

Have You Forgotten

...che, and he enjoyed a major hit in 2003 with the patriotic anthem Have You Forgotten . Worley put his career on the back burner at the end of the 2000s...
In what year did Worley have a major hit?

2003

...ives, such as love, family, and heartache, and he enjoyed a major hit in 2003 with the patriotic anthem Have You Forgotten. Worley put his career on t...
In what city was he raised?

Pyburn, Tennessee

...ed his trademark sound with more soulful grooves. He was raised in Pyburn, Tennessee ; his father was a Methodist minister, his mother sang in the choi...
Worley's father was a Methodist minister, his mother sang in the choir at church, and his grandfather was what?

a banjo player

...er, his mother sang in the choir at church, and his grandfather was a banjo player wellschooled in country and bluegrass. Worley had a keen interest i...
Worley attended what university in Alabama?

University of North Alabama

...a back injury ended his career in sports. Worley attended the University of North Alabama , where he studied biology and chemistry, while playing offca...
Who advised Worley to take a chance on a career in music?

his father

...education with occasional gigs in his off hours, but on the advice of his father , Worley decided to take a chance on a career in music. He landed a jo...
Worley landed a job as a contract songwriter with what company?

Fame Publishing

...on a career in music. He landed a job as a contract songwriter with Fame Publishing in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, and fared well enough that in 1994 he m...
Where did Worley land a job as a contract songwriter?

Muscle Shoals, Alabama

...e landed a job as a contract songwriter with Fame Publishing in Muscle Shoals, Alabama , and fared well enough that in 1994 he moved up to a deal with ...
What was Worley's job title at Fame Publishing?

contract songwriter

...cided to take a chance on a career in music. He landed a job as a contract songwriter with Fame Publishing in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, and fared well e...
In what state was Fame Publishing located?

Alabama

...d a job as a contract songwriter with Fame Publishing in Muscle Shoals, Alabama , and fared well enough that in 1994 he moved up to a deal with EMI Pub...
Worley moved up to a deal with EMI Publishing in what city?

Nashville

...t in 1994 he moved up to a deal with EMI Publishing, which took him to Nashville . Between his strong songwriting and his growing talent as a performer...
What was Worleys first No.1 single on the Hot Country Songs charts?

I Miss My Friend

...Top 1 Tracks I Miss My Friend was Worleys very first No.1 single on the Hot Country Songs charts. A song that depicts a story of losing a significant ...
The song I Miss My Friend was made to commemorate the victims of what attacks?

September 11 attacks

...r. The song was, in fact, made to commemorate the victims of the September 11 attacks or mostly known as 911. Then came Awful, Beautiful Life, his thi...
What was Darryl Wade Worley's birth year?

1964

... native of Memphis Tennessee, Darryl Wade Worley was born on October 31, 1964 . At a young age, his family moved to Pyburn, Tennessee where he was rais...
What did Worley earn his degree in?

Biology and Chemistry

...ee where he was raised. In addition, Worley earned his degree in Biology and Chemistry at the University of North Alabama. Prior to his country music ...
Worley was a member of what country duo in 1994?

ArcherPark

...l industry. One of Worleys cuts as a songwriter was a track entitled The Man That I Am of the country duo singer ArcherPark on their 1994 debut album....
When did ArcherPark release their debut?

1994

...l industry. One of Worleys cuts as a songwriter was a track entitled The Man That I Am of the country duo singer ArcherPark on their 1994 debut album....
Where did Worley move to after the label closed?

903 Music

...2002), Have You Forgotten? After the label closed in 2005, he moved to 903 Music , an independent label owned by Neal McCoy, releasing Here and Now in ...
What was Worley's most recent studio release?

Sounds Like Life

...ore that label's closure. His most recent studio release is 2009's Sounds Like Life via Stroudavarious Records, owned by James Stroud. Worley's six al...
Who owns Stroudavarious Records?

James Stroud

...ease is 2009's Sounds Like Life via Stroudavarious Records, owned by James Stroud . Worley's six albums have produced 18 singles on the Billboard Hot C...
How many singles has Worley produced on his six albums?

18

...various Records, owned by James Stroud. Worley's six albums have produced 18 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, including three number...
How many of Worley's albums have produced 18 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts?

six

...nds Like Life via Stroudavarious Records, owned by James Stroud. Worley's six albums have produced 18 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart...
How many other singles have reached the top 40?

Nine

...arts, including three number ones: I Miss My Friend, Have You Forgotten? Nine other singles have reached the top 40. Contents 1 Biography 2 Musical ca...