Tim Hardin

James Timothy "Tim" Hardin (December 23, 1941 – December 29, 1980) was an American folk musician and composer. He wrote the Top 40 hit "If I Were a Carpenter", covered by, among others, Bobby Darin, Joan Baez, Johnny Cash, The Four Tops, Robert Plant, and Johnny Rivers; his song "Reason to Believe" has also been covered by many artists, notably Rod Stewart (who had a chart hit with the song) and The Carpenters. Hardin is also known for his own recording career (read more at Wikipedia).
==Links to Peel==
For a time in the late 1960s, Tim Hardin was considered one of the best songwriters of the era. This was largely due to the albums Tim Hardin 1 and Tim Hardin 2, released in 1966 and 1967 respectively and containing the songs for which he is still best known. Tracks from these appeared in the playlists of KMEN, when Peel was working at the station under the name John Ravencroft; they were also played on Radio London and Peel played tracks from Hardin's albums on the Perfumed Garden. As the Wikipedia article on Hardin shows, there were numerous cover versions of his songs. Probably the best-known one is Bobby Darin's hit version of "If I Were A Carpenter", but some are by artists who were featured on Peel's shows, including The Nice, Chicken Shack, Rod Stewart and Billy Bragg.
Unfortunately, Tim Hardin was also addicted to heroin and gained a reputation for erratic and unreliable behaviour. When he visited the UK in 1968 he was suffering from pleurisy and reportedly fell asleep on stage at the Royal Albert Hall. He did manage to record a session for Top Gear, however, but when it was broadcast, Peel (who may have attended the session recording or the Albert Hall concert) remarked that Hardin was clearly "a very sick man". Nevertheless, after playing Rod Stewart' s cover version of "Reason To Believe" on the show of 24 July 1971, Peel urges his listeners to see Hardin - " a remarkable performer, on his day" - at the upcoming Lincoln Festival.
After Tim Hardin's death, Peel played 'Reason To Believe' on his programme on 12 January 1981 in tribute.
== Festive Fifty Entries ==
*None
== Sessions ==
One session. No known commercial release.
1. Recorded 1978-07-15. First broadcast 28 July 1968, repeated 01 September 1968.
*Reason To Believe / Don't Make Promises / Danville Dan / Hang On To A Dream
== Other Shows Played ==
*07 August 1967: Part of the Wind (LP: Tim Hardin 1) Verve Folkways
*14 August 1967: Hang On To A Dream (LP - Tim Hardin 1) Verve Folkways
*unknown date: Hang On To A Dream on Paul Bryant's playlist for 24 July 1968 but not on audio.
*unknown date: Hang On To A Dream At the end of the file for 08 December 1975. May be from the original session broadcast on Top Gear as the version on the 28 July 1968 page sounds very similar, but is minus Peel's outro. A recording with just voice and piano, and it definitely isn't the commercially-issued version from 1966. Peel's outro in AM is in his 1968 voice - he says the song may be autobiographical
*Early 1969 / 20 October 1968: Black Sheep Boy (album - Tim Hardin 3 Live In Concert) Verve Forecast VLP 6010
*06 April 1969: First Love Song (LP - Suite For Susan Moore And Damion - We Are - One, One, All In One) Columbia
*25 May 1969: Magician (album - Suite For Susan Moore And Damion - We Are - One, One, All In One) 
*27 July 1969: Simple Song of Freedom (single) CBS
*06 November 1973: Black Sheep Boy (album - Tim Hardin 3 Live In Concert) Verve
*25 December 1973: Shiloh Town (LP - Nine) GM
*12 January 1981: Reason To Believe
== External Links ==
*Wikipedia
* Official site
*Rough Guide to Rock biography
Category:Artists