Jim White

Michael Davis Pratt (born March 10, 1957), known professionally as Jim White, is a southern American singer-songwriter and guitarist.

White was born in California but moved to Pensacola, Florida at the age of 5. He was influenced in his childhood by gospel music. According to various sources, he has been a comedian, a fashion model, a boxer, a preacher, a professional surfer, and a New York City cab driver. Before embarking on a music career, White attended film school at New York University. Soon after finishing his lengthy thesis at the university, White entered a self-described "deep hole of sickness and depression and poverty." However, during a party organized by film school friends, White began to perform, and began writing material for an album soon afterward.

White's live shows, particularly when touring solo, can be characterized as off-beat, blending his playlist with open discussion with the audience, anecdotal storytelling derived from his own life experiences, all of which is typically humorous and insightful, with a deep sense of his feeling for the broken beauty of humanity. He has stated during shows that ultimately he wishes to return to the academic field, particularly as a professor, rather than continue as a professional, touring musician. Much of this is due to his family life, which he has stated takes priority in his life and is the reason he does not like touring very much. His sister, Katherine Pratt, teaches at Loyola Law School.

White's band has no fixed lineup, but regularly includes musicians such as Dan Nettles (Electric Guitar); Peter Alvanos, Robby Handley, Steve Bishop Maples (Bass); Rob McMaken (Dulcimer, Acoustic Guitar, Mandolin), Marlon Patton (Drums) and Mark Tulk (Keys).

White's albums often feature collaborations. On Wrong-Eyed Jesus, folk singer Victoria Williams sings on the track "Angel-Land"; British electronica trio Morcheeba produced and played on three tracks on No Such Place. Aimee Mann, Barenaked Ladies, and jazz guitarist Bill Frisell appear on Drill a Hole in That Substrate and Tell Me What You See, which was produced by Joe Henry, Tucker Martine, and Jim White himself. In an interview with David Byrne, White describes the making of the album. In 2006, Jim White collaborated with Johnny Dowd and Willie B and formed a group called Hellwood; in 2006, the band toured throughout Europe to promote the album Chainsaw of Life. More recently, Jim White served as producer and songwriter on a collaboration alongside Tucker Martine and blues singer Linda Delgado, on a project titled Mama Lucky. Mama Lucky's first release 'Permanent Stranger' was released February 2009.

Albums

• 1997: Wrong-Eyed Jesus (The Mysterious Tale of How I Shouted)
• 2001: No Such Place
• 2004: Drill a Hole in That Substrate and Tell Me What You See
• 2005: Jim White Presents Music from Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus
• 2007: Transnormal Skiperoo
• 2012: Where It Hits You
• 2017: Waffles, Triangles & Jesus
• 2020: Misfit's Jubilee

EPs

• 1997: Gimme 5
• 2008: A Funny Little Cross to Bear

Collaborations

• 2006: Hellwood (Jim White, Johnny Dowd, Willie B) Chainsaw of Life
• 2009: Mama Lucky (Jim White, Tucker Martine, Linda Delgado) Permanent Stranger
• 2004: Tanakh (Jesse Poe) "Villa Claustrophobia"
• 2006: Tanakh "Ardent Fevers"
• 2010: Sounds of the Americans (Jim White, Dan Nettles)
• 2011: Dare Dukes, Thugs and China Dolls (produced the song "Simon Says")
• 2011: Producer, Belgian Alt Country band (Stanton)
• 2011; Sounds of the Americans
• 2012: Producer, Skipperdees
• 2012: Producer Alex Wright
• 2014: Jim White v.s The Packway Handle Band (Jim White, Packway Handle Band) The Sawyer Sessions EP
• 2015: Jim White v.s The Packway Handle Band (Jim White, Packway Handle Band) Take It Like A Man
• 2015: Sigmatropic ' Every Soul Is A Boat ' 12' ep [Record Store Day] (vocals & lyrics on ' That Throne in Your Heart ')

Film

• 2003: Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus

Visual art exhibits

"Deep Fried Ephemera", The Douglas Hyde Gallery, Dublin, Ireland July 4 – August 18, 2009

"Winter at SECCA" Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art, Winston-Salem, NC

Also participated in inaugural "Crossroads" series, performing with The South Memphis String Band, February 19, 2011

"Scrapbook of a Fringe Dweller" Ogden Museum of Southern Art, New Orleans LA, Oct.7 – December 15, 2013

Books

"Superwhite! / Wild-Eyed Tree," The Douglas Hyde Gallery, 2009.In conjunction with art exhibit."Includes autobiographical text, Superwhite (Another True Story), and previously unreleased lyrics by Jim White. Also included are images of the exhibition and photographs by Jim White." Recipient of 2014 Pushcart Prize for short fiction story Superwhite, published in Radio Silence.

Theater

Musical Score to "The Americans", a Sam Shepard play (with Dan Nettles), Juilliard School of Music NYC, February 11, 2010