Michael Holland Shepard - Great songwriter
by Michael Holland Shepard
He began to write at an early age and worked with the Limeliters, Beatles, Johnny Cash and others to teach them to write songs. His first real commercial sucess was Puff The Magic Dragon. His mom sent the music to Peter Paul and Mary and they sang his song and claimed it as their own. The Beatles came later to the studio and told him he would be the first to get his name on a Beatles tune as songwriter if it was good enough. He quickly wrote Fool On The Hill thinking they would be honest. He was only 13 years old. The Beatles claimed it as their song because the policy was they write all their songs they sing and because the lawyers told them to claim it as theirs. He was heartbroken. He had other tunes Michael Row The Boat Ashore, Jeremiah Was A Bullfrog, Bottle Of Wine Fruit Of The Vine, Green Green, Solitary Man, Little Old Lady From Pasadina, Honalulu Lulu, Pearly Shells, Tiny Bubbles, Little Boxes. Later Michael wrote I Fought The Law, I Shot The Sheriff, Bufalo Soldier, Wild Thing, Pushing To Hard, Polythene Pam, The Name Game. His songs were stolen out of the home and his life was threatened. He did not write till later at seventeen. Horse With No Name, Heart Of Gold, Old Man, For What Its Worth Paranoiance runs deep, most of the Beatles White albums. In the Getto, California Hotel, P.Y.T., Billie Jean which he thought Michael Jackson would never steal that one and Annie Are You OK an earliest write with a latter touch. He also wrote Forrrest Gumps story and some scenes in hollywood including Clint Eastwood spagetti westerns if you can call that writing. It was only a plan. How Highs The Water Ma, Ring of Fire, Crimson and Clover a Christmas is over song and Ringo as sung by Lorne Green. The fastest gun that doesnt kill. Music trivia Puff The Magic Dragon was first sung by Elvis Presley and The Limeliters. Official release is dependent on Peter Paul and Marys correction to truth. Also Michael drew the picture of the dragon in the first LP album Puff The Magic Dragon and Michaels name is secretely in the title of the song. How ironic. Sorry for the slop write. Love Michael Holland Shepard
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