McPherson grew up in rural southeastern Oklahoma, on a cattle ranch near the town of Talihina. His father was a farmer and ex-army while his mother was a church minister. He took up the guitar at age 13. In high school he played in a number of local punk rock bands and began writing his own songs. He has stated that he has never not been in a band of some sort since he was 16 years of age.
During this time, McPherson also developed a strong interest in 1950s rock and roll after being exposed to the music of Buddy Holly. This went on to shape his song writing and sound for bands he was in such as The Poison Okies and The Starkweather Boys.
He studied visual arts in college, earning a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Tulsa, and later worked as an art and technology teacher. After deciding to pursue music more seriously, McPherson sent a demo to Jimmy Sutton of the small independent record label Hi-STYLE Records, which specialized in roots music. Sutton agreed to produce McPherson's debut album: this became 2010's Signs and Signifiers. On 19 November 2012, Rolling Stone labelled McPherson an "Artist to Watch" in a 3½ star (out of 5) review of Signs and Signifiers after its wider release through Rounder Records.
The band played the acoustic stage at the Glastonbury Festival 2015 on Friday June 26, before continuing their European tour in the Netherlands.
In October 2015, JD McPherson and band appeared (in animated form) as musical guests performing a new and original song "Crazy Horse" for the DreamWorks animated TV series, The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show on Netflix.
North Side Gal
JD McPherson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Chasing the sweet thing so satisfied
Every time I try
Crazy about a north side gal
I got some good talk
But not enough game
Wooing the sweet thing
Every time I try
Crazy about a north side gal
Well she gets colder
Every time I try to hold her
There's a little saying "no" to
All the younger gentlemen
All of 'em try
They're crazy 'bout a north side gal
I got some money
And some wheels to drive
Old beat up guitars
And old ZZ Top
Every song I sing
It screams about a north side gal
Well she gets colder
Every time I try to hold her
There's a little saying "no" to
All the younger gentlemen
All of 'em try
They're crazy 'bout a north side gal
Well I said they're crazy 'bout a north side gal
Crazy 'bout a north side gal
In JD McPherson's song "North Side Gal," the singer sings about his obsessive love for a woman who lives on the north side of town. He describes how he has been chasing her and playing a "match game" all around the area, but despite his efforts, he feels like he doesn't have enough "game" or charm to win her over. He sings about how every time he tries, the woman becomes colder and more distant, pushing away all the other men who also try to win her affection. The singer is consumed by his love for this woman, and even his music is a way to express his passion for her.
Line by Line Meaning
I pulled a match game all around the north side
I roamed around the north side looking for a romantic partner
Chasing the sweet thing so satisfied
Looking for someone sweet and satisfying to pursue romantically
Every time I try
Every time I make an attempt
Crazy about a north side gal
Deeply infatuated with a woman from the north side
I got some good talk
I can talk well
But not enough game
But I lack the smoothness required to charm her
Wooing the sweet thing
Trying to win her over with my charm and affection
Oh ain't it a shame
It's unfortunate that my attempts to win her over have failed
Well she gets colder
She becomes more distant and unresponsive
Every time I try to hold her
Every time I try to physically express my affection towards her
There's a little saying "no" to
She rejects my advances by saying the word 'no'
All the younger gentlemen
All the other young men who pursue her
All of 'em try
All of them make attempts
They're crazy 'bout a north side gal
They are deeply infatuated with women from the north side
I got some money
I have some wealth
And some wheels to drive
And a car to drive
Old beat up guitars
Old, worn out guitars
And old ZZ Top
And old ZZ Top albums
Every song I sing
Every song I perform
It screams about a north side gal
It expresses my infatuation with a woman from the north side
Well I said they're crazy 'bout a north side gal
I said that other men are also deeply infatuated with women from the north side
Crazy 'bout a north side gal
Deeply infatuated with a woman from the north side
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: JD MCPHERSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@tukijansianakkonglomerat4088
I pulled a match game all around the north side
Chasing the sweet thing so satisfied
Every time I try
Crazy about a north side gal
I got some good talk
But not enough game
Wooing the sweet thing
Oh ain't it a shame
Every time I try
Crazy about a north side gal
Well she gets colder
Every time I try to hold her
There's a little saying "no" to
All the younger gentlemen
All of 'em try
They're crazy 'bout a north side gal
I got some money
And some wheels to drive
Old beat up guitars
And old ZZ Top
Every song I sing
It screams about a north side gal
Well she gets colder
Every time I try to hold her
There's a little saying "no" to
All the younger gentlemen
All of 'em try
They're crazy 'bout a north side gal
Well I said they're crazy 'bout a north side gal
Crazy 'bout a north side gal
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@stoney626
Rarely, rarely, if ever do I comment on videos. I must say however, that this dude is seriously talented and deserves even more than 500,000 hits. In an age of such shitty music, its such a breath of fresh air to hear something this awesome. Mr. Mcphearson, if you read this, come to Chicago and play a show. You rule.
@lloydzilinski4401
And now, waaaaay later, 10 - 11 years on in the spring/summer of 2022 computing science tech teacher JD McPherson is playing lead guitar on a tour with Alison Krauss and Robert Plant. Methinks the once and sometimes comp.sci. teacher has paid his dues and now gets to play and walk with two bona-fide legends of their genres in music. This guy was time-warped and born fifty years later than his real birth date; his feel for rock-a-billy and original rock and roll is that good.👍 My hat's off to the guitar player.
@simonbrooksstoryteller
@Lloyd Zilinski And born especially for us!!!
@RemoBongo530
Yup, going to see them tonight!
@wildcherry138
They used to play all the time in Chicago at Martyrs while this album was being recorded.
@liddyp983
he was my old technology teacher and the whole class he would sing for us!! I am so glad that he has taken up the music career!!
@StephanieinthePNW360
No way!! That’s so badass. He’s beyond talented 🙌🏻
@woofagaming6439
That's dope. I'm glad he did it, too!
@gilbogileski7064
Really! That is so cool!
@jessicawinters9433
That's awesome!!!!