Jim Liddane, who in 1967 founded the International Songwriters Association which operates this site, was born in Limerick City, Ireland, first attending St Philomena's Preparatory School before transferring to Crescent College at the age of seven. While at school, he also followed the Irish Academy of Music piano syllabus at St Anthony's School Of Music, as well as studying under the renowned Limerick organist James S. Hassett.
Although classically trained, Jim was soon drawn to the world of popular music and while at Crescent, became a member of a number of groups including the Gus Molloy Quartet, the Skiffling Boatmen (led by John and Frank Ahern), the Bryan McHugh Band and The Heartbeats.
Having sat the Irish Leaving Certificate in 1962, Jim went on to University College Cork, to study History. While at college however, he continued to perform with a number of bands at various venues throughout Ireland.
Menlo International Records Publicity Card
Following graduation from UCC, Jim returned to teach in Limerick, but soon after, joined with Michael Collins (who had also been a member of the Skiffling Boatmen), to open one of Ireland's earliest professional recording studios, Menlo Music. The two friends who had meanwhile started writing songs together, had received a contract offer from Shapiro Bernstein Music in London, and so the studio was initially set up to further their own songwriting efforts.
However, it soon attracted bands and vocalists from all over Ireland, as well as songwriters from the UK and further afield, keen to have demos made at the new facility.
The studio subsequently launched Menlo International Records which went on to release a number of singles including the first recordings by Reform who had been operating as Menlo's in-house band. Reform would later go on to great success, eventually signing with Youngblood Records and CBS Records in London.
During this period, Jim also joined with drummer Ger Baggott to form The Broadways, initially a five-piece outfit which included Bill Sinden, Nicky O'Neill and Robert Collins but which - with the later arrival of guitarist and vocalist Bobby O'Driscoll - slimmed down to a trio.
The Broadways played a weekly residency in the Bohemians Club for many years and also worked ballrooms and dance halls during the height of the 60s and 70s showband craze, before becoming a four piece unit following the departure of Bobby for Bojangle and later the Dennis Allen Band, and the return of Bill Sinden, coupled with the arrival of vocalist Leo O'Connor.
The Broadways first gig in 1965, at the Jetland Ballroom.
Bill Sinden (guitar), Nicky O'Neill (guitar), Robert Collins (vocals), Ger Baggott (drums) and Jim Liddane (keyboards)
The Broadways in 1966, pictured at the Intercontinental Hotel. Jim Liddane (keyboards), Bobby O'Driscoll (guitar), Ger Baggott (drums), backing jazz saxophonist Louis McMahon
In 1967, following a meeting with a number of songwriters and music publishers who ahd been attending Ireland's Castlebar Song Contest, Jim launched the International Songwriters Association (ISA) which within weeks of its opening, was attracting its first members from the UK. Jim subsequently resigned from Menlo Music to concentrate on the ISA and its new publication Songwriter Magazine.
The initial success of Songwriter Magazine in the UK was such that in 1970, the ISA was invited to move the publication to London. Jim however turned down the offer, believing that the International Songwriters Association would achieve a wider cirulation if it remained based in Ireland.
This decision proved far-sighted, because by its 50th birthday in 2017, the International Songwriters Association could boast members in more than 70 countries.
The press release which had accompanied the launch of Songwriter Magazine said that its mission would be "to locate and interview as many of the world's legendary songwriters as possible, and in particular those non-performing writers who had penned some of world's best loved tunes but whose own lives and indeed songwriting careers, remained a total mystery to the general public."
Although Jim conducted a lot of the early interviews himself, he maintains that its success was mainly due to a coterie of professional award-winning writers recruited by the ISA, which included Harvey Rachlin, the American author of such books as The Songwriter's Handbook and The Encyclopedia Of The Music Business; the UK music publisher and journalist Gerald Mahlowe, also known for his work on Not The Nine O'Clock News and The Kenny Everett Television Show; Sheridan Morley, whose many books include the best-sellers A Talent To Amuse, Other Side Of The Moon and Odd Man Out as well as the acclaimed biography of his own father, actor and film star Robert Morley: and Larry Wayne Clark, the American songwriter, author and music publisher whose songs include such hits as Chris Young’s Drinkin’ Me Lonely, Lee Greenwood’s Between A Rock And A Heartache, The Statler Brothers’ To Make A Long Story Short and Buddy Jewell’s Addicted To The Rain.
Jim also credits the advice which he received in those early years from Norman Petty (Buddy Holly's manager and producer, and a songwriter in his own right), Terry Noon (the music publisher who had worked as a drummer for both Gene Vincent and Van Morrison's Them), and the songwriter and music publisher Hal Shaper, who had used the royalties from his first hit song (Softly As I Leave You), to open the very successul Sparta-Florida Music.
First Issue Of "Songwriter Magazine" October 1967
From 1967 onwards, Songwriter Magazine published hundreds of interviews with numerous multi-million selling songwriters and composers, many of whom had never been previously approached for an interview, including Andrew Lloyd Webber, Marty Wilde, George Michael, P J Proby, Larry Weiss, Gordon Lightfoot, Leonard Cohen, Norman Petty, Kate Bush, Lionel Bart, Bill Martin, Barry Mason, Barry Mann, Cynthia Weill, Carole Bayer Sager, Billy Joel, Don McLean, Dallas Frazier, George Harrison, Hal David, Johnny Marks, Julie Gold, Gene Pitney, Kris Kristofferson, Mike Read, Mike Batt, Neil Diamond, Tom T Hall, Roger Hodgson, Mitch Murray, Graham Lyle, Simon May, Herbert Kretzmer, Jona Lewie, John D Loudermilk, Chris Rea, Mike Chapman, Eric Woolfson, Guy Clark, Ron Miller, Nik Kershaw and Peter Sarstedt.
Jim Liddane and Anna Sinden waiting to interview The Searchers at a Back To The Sixties Revival concert in the 1990's
Other million-selling songwriters interviewed over the years since 1967, include Les Reed, Tony Hatch, Dickey Lee, Don Wayne, Don Black, Dan Hill, Steve Harley, Bill Anderson, Larry Henley, Roger Cook, Mel Tillis. Buck Ram, Nik Kershaw, Sonny Curtis, Allan Rich, Beth Nielsen Chapman, Stephen Schwartz, Gary Osborne, Marijohn Wilkin, Guy Chambers, Bobby Braddock, Guy Clark, Chas Hodges, Merle Kilgore, Roger Murrah, Norro Wilson, Janis Ian, Red Lane, Hank Cochran, Gerard Kenny, Sandy Linzer, Susan Gold, Shawn Camp, Ralph Murphy, Andrew Gold, Wayland Holyfield, Bruce Welch, Richard Addrisi, Charlie Strouse, Keith Stegall, Julie Gold, Rufus Yhomas, Chip Taylor, Tommy Boyce, Dan Hill, Allen Reynolds, Dennis Locorriere, Larry Uttal, Tony Macaulay, Chris DeBurgh, Mick Hanley, Irving Caesar, Boudleaux Bryant, Paul Williams, Kris Kristofferson, Jimmy Davis, and many many more.
In addition to the hundreds of songwriters profiled, Songwriter Magazine also interviewed many major industry figures such as the impressario Cameron Mackintosh, George Martin of EMI Records, Terry Noon of Noon Music, Fred Foster of Monument Records, John Spalding of Bocu Music, Hal Shaper of Sparta Florida Music, Peter Cornish of ATV Music, Mike Roberts of ATV Music, Jack Clement of Sun Records, Stephen James of Dick James Music, Tony Peters of Acuff Rose Music, Ralph Peer of Peer Music, Eddie Levy of Heath-Levy Music, Roy Tempest of Peer-Southern Music, Tom Vickers of Capitol Records, Mike Fletcher of Shapiro Bernstein Music, Don Kirshner of Aldon Music, Ellis Rich of Supreme Music, Stuart Ongley of Peer Music, Billy Sherrill of Columbia Records, Rick Cardinali of Campbell Connelly Music, David Knight of Southern Music, Mark Rowles of Chappell Music (London), Irwin Schuster of Chappell Music (Nashville), Fraser Mackintosh of Music Deals, John Beecher of Rollercoaster Records, Jonathan Simon of the Really Useful Group, Peter Reichardt of Warner Brothers Music, Peter Dadswell of the Music Publishers Association, Paddy Grafton-Green of the Music Business Lawyers Association, Robert Montgomery of the Mechanical Copyright Protection Society, Howard Balsam of the Harry Fox Agency, and quite literally hundreds more.
In 1972, the International Songwriters Association launched the ISA Recording Studios and also set up its own record label ISA Records whose first release Around The Kerry Hills by Eileen O'Grady was followed by The Beautiful Lakes Of Killarney by the Mike Sexton Band (later re-issued on Kerry Records) - a song which has also been covered by several country acts.
To avoid competing with Menlo Music, the new ISA Studios were available only to International Songwriters Association members, but the operation boasted a state of the art multi-track facility, along with the only Mellotron 400 known to have been imported into Ieland.
In 1975, Songwriter Magazine launched Songwriter Update (a monthly tip sheet for songwriters) along with Songwriter Newsflash which was issued to cover breaking news and Songwriter Yearbook, (an annual directory of music publishers, record labels and recording stars worldwide).
The following year, the International Songwriters Association published Jim's Twenty Songwriting Questions Answered, which was revised yearly until 2004 when it was re-published in an expanded format under the title Selling Your Songs.
Apart from music, Jim's interests range from football to writing to radio.
A keen soccer fan, he acted as co-manager (with his friend and colleague Eric Lynch), of the CBS team which won two Irish Cup trophies in its first three seasons and which went on to represent Ireland in the 1975 ISF Football World Cup held in Turkey.
As a writer, Jim penned many of the early Songwriter Magazine articles. He has also contributed to several international music publications including Songwriter's Review, Songs & Songwriting and Cashbox, and for a period was editor of The Limerick People On Sunday newspaper. owned by former pupil Joe Taylor.
ISA member Peter Sarstedt tells Jim how he
wrote his international multi-million seller Where Do You Go To My Lovely
Radio has always been another of Jim's interests, and in 1980 - assisted by local friend and DJ Paddy Brennan - he joined the broadcasting roster at Big L Radio Limerick (owned and managed by Mike Richardson). On the closure of Big L, Jim moved in 1986 to Sound Channel 102FM (founded by Joe Taylor and managed by Darren O'Brien), becoming Controller of Progammes there in 1988.
Jim Liddane broadcasting on Sound Channel July 1986
Jim Liddane on Radio Limerick One 95fm in June 1991
In 1989, university lecturer James Wallace invited Jim to join him in seeking the first commercial radio licence to be awarded by the Irish government's Independent Radio & Television Commission. Althoúgh Jim was averse to state regulation of local broadcasting, arguing that licensing requirements for spectrum use were unconstitutional as they restricted the fundamental right to free expression, he accepted that there was no longer any alternative to the government's proposals, and so with James Wallace formed RLO95 (Radio Limerick One 95fm) to compete for the franchise.
The initial thirteen applicants were eventually whittled down to six, and after public hearings held in Limerick and Dublin before Justice Seamus Henchy of the Supreme Court, the RLO95 application was successful and the company was awarded a seven year licence.
Michael Walsh (Head of News), Jim Liddane (Controller of
Programmes), Tom Nolan (Head of Sales) and James Wallace
(Chairman of RLO), at the 1989 IRTC hearings held in Limerick
RLO95 went on air for the first time in October with James Wallace as Chairman and CEO, and Jim Liddane combining the roles of Controller of Programmes and Company Secretary.
In addition, Jim also presented a number of shows on the new station, including Solid Gold Sunday and Nashville Country with the outlet itself being managed by Darren O'Brien, who had previously managed Sound Channel.
Jim Liddane (RLO95), Judge Seamus Henchy (IRTC), James Wallace (RLO95), and Paul Appleby (IRTC), at the awarding of the first commercial radio licence
In November 1995, Jim departed RLO to launch Musical Records Limited, a company which over the next 17 years, would produce master recordings for songwriters who wanted to release or license their own material.
In 1998, ISA started its own website - songwriter.co.uk - which soon estabished itself as one of the top international sites for musicians and songwriters. Nowadays, many broadcasting organisations, publications and websites use the site as their primary source of information on the world of songwriting.
In 2017, the International Songwriters Association marked its 50th birthday by re-publishing the fifty of its most famous Songwriter Magazine interviews online, and since then, has been adding new interviews on an alternating basis, providing a rich (and much-quoted) research facility for both historians and music fans.
Jim Liddane: Festival di Sanremo
Nowadays, Jim lives in Limerick with his wife Anna Sinden. His current project - The Kings Of Denmark Street - will profile the leading music publishing moguls of London's Tin Pan Alley between 1911 and 1992.
ISA • International Songwriters Association (1967) internationalsongwriters@gmail.com
The Small PrintThis International Songwriters Association 1967 site is a non-profit non-commercial re-creation of portions of the full site originally published by the International Songwriters Association Limited, and will introduce you to the world of songwriting. It will explain music business terms and help you understand the business concepts that you should be familiar with, thus enabling you to ask more pertinent questions when you meet with your accountant/CPA or solicitor/lawyer.
However, although this website includes general information about legal issues and legal developments as well as accounting issues and accounting developments, it is not meant to be a replacement for professional advice. Such materials are for informational purposes only and may not reflect the most current legal/accounting developments.
Every effort has been made to make this site as complete and as accurate as possible, but no warranty or fitness is implied. The information provided is on an "as is" basis and the author(s) and the publisher shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damages arising from the information contained on this site. No steps should be taken without first seeking competent legal and/or accounting advice
Some pictures on this site are library images supplied by (amongst others) the ISA International Songwriters Association (1967), International Songwriters Association Limited, Dreamstime Library Inc, BMI (Broadcast Music Inc), ASCAP (American Society Of Songwriters, Authors and Publishers), PRS (Performing Rights Society), PPS (Professional Photographic Services), RTE (Radio Telefis Eireann) TV3, and various Public Relations organisations. Other pictures have been supplied by the songwriters, performers, or music business executives interviewed or mentioned throughout this website, while certain pictures are commercial stock footage of businesses and office environments generally, rather than specific images of the ISA, its personnel, facilities or members.
In any event, all images are and remain the property of the individual owners unless indicated to the contrary.
