Tom Russell

TOM RUSSELL was born in Los Angeles in 1947. A naturalized Texan, he lives and works between Texas, Florida and Switzerland.

A cult figure in the alternative music world, he is the greatest living folk-country songwriter according to critic John Swenson.

Since 1976 in parallel with his songs he has developed a passion for painting and literature: he has written a book of quotations with Sylvia Tyson, a mystery novel and a volume of letters with Charles Bukowski.

Described as a modern-day Hemingway, he authored memorable songs, often set in the borderlands of Texas, such as Gallo del Cielo, the story of a one-eyed fighting rooster who meets a disgraced farmer, or Blue Wing, the tale of a tattoo and the convict who wears it on his skin. Desperados, outcasts, losers, and adventurers are the protagonists of its diverse and defeated humanity.

According to Monte Hellmann, director of the legendary anti-western The Shooting, primitive tension is found in both Russell’s music and art, while writer Annie Proulx spoke of his restless curiosity and violent imagination. Beat poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti says of him that his style represents the meeting of Johnny Cash, Jim Harrison, and Bukowski.

During his long career as a musician, he has worked with Lucinda Williams and Calexico, among others.